5 hours till I wake up...6 hours till I leave for the airport...9 hours till I takeoff...12 hours till I land... and then who the heck knows. What I do know is that I've got 4 bags packed to the brim, one of which is sure to cost me $100 for being overweight, and enough bug spray to possibly fumigate all of Nicaragua.
It's difficult to sum up what I'm feeling right now. Obviously, I'm a little tired because it's 2:15 AM. But mostly it's a combination of excitement, apprehension, hope, and caution. Excitement to return to work in an evolving field. Apprehension to enter the third world for the first time. Hope to make a difference at work and in my community. And caution about the realities of safety and security in an unknown world.
With that, there is not much left to say except farewell, adios, shalom, and ciao. Whatever becomes of the next several months, I know it will be an eye-opening experience.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Friday, January 4, 2008
Be Safe There. Immunize Here.
Today was a day I was not looking forward to. You guessed it - it was immunization day.
As I sat in waiting area number one, frantically calling my previous physician to find out how I'd been shot up in the past, the anxiety started kicking in. What if I've gotten an immunization already and they give me another one? What if I'm allergic to something and don't even know it? What if I've waited too long and the immunization won't be active before I get there?
After about an hour of torturous hypothetical's, the Physician Assistant (PA) called me in. My anxiety quickly turned to discontent as I weighed in at my record high - 170 lbs. Call it what you will, but this is the same kid who entered college at a buck-37. I was less than pleased, and, naturally, started rationalizing the situation. That shirt's got to be half a pound...same with the shorts...and the hat. Oh yeah, and I just ate like 4 hours ago...so that's got to be the reason.
As the PA left me again, this time in the examination room, I strolled from one wall to the next. To my right was a nice big color-coded map of the world, like the ones you see in history class. Only on this particular map there were no labels - no ocean titles, no country titles, no nothing. Instead, this map was a world-wide representation of Hepatitis. And the color codes represented each type of Hepatitis, and where it is prevalent in the world. My eyes locked on to an area that appeared to be Nicaragua, and vaccination #1 became clear - I would getting some Hepatitis A.
I shifted to my left, glancing at the little gadgets that filled the room, until I came across another pretty looking poster with all sorts of scenery and crafts. As I read the message "AFRICA IS AMAZING...TYPHOID FEVER IS NOT," vaccination #2 became clear to me as well...I would be getting some Typhoid.
An hour later my doctor finally arrived. Even though he appeared only slightly older than I, there is something about that white coat that made me trust the man. I mean, it's not like they sell those things on a street corner. Or even if they did, it would take an awful lot of work, brains, and creativity to pretend to be a physician, and actually have people buy off on it. I never caught the man's name, but he did deliver the news. It would be Hep A, and some Typhoid pills.
I fired all of the questions I had, covering side effects, effectiveness, longevity, and pain. And then it was over. Another PA came into the room, administered the Hep A, and I was on my way. I even had my typhoid pills on an ice pack to keep them at proper temperature.
As the elevator descended from Sunshine Medical it suddently hit me...I AM GOING TO NICARAGUA. After all of the thought, research, and time that went into this idea of returning overseas, it is now becoming an imminent reality. Three weeks from tomorrow I'll be on my way. And while awaiting immunizations in an examination room is not exactly the ideal place for a reality check, it's better than waiting for that very first night, when I experience the power of a mosquito net.
As I sat in waiting area number one, frantically calling my previous physician to find out how I'd been shot up in the past, the anxiety started kicking in. What if I've gotten an immunization already and they give me another one? What if I'm allergic to something and don't even know it? What if I've waited too long and the immunization won't be active before I get there?
After about an hour of torturous hypothetical's, the Physician Assistant (PA) called me in. My anxiety quickly turned to discontent as I weighed in at my record high - 170 lbs. Call it what you will, but this is the same kid who entered college at a buck-37. I was less than pleased, and, naturally, started rationalizing the situation. That shirt's got to be half a pound...same with the shorts...and the hat. Oh yeah, and I just ate like 4 hours ago...so that's got to be the reason.
As the PA left me again, this time in the examination room, I strolled from one wall to the next. To my right was a nice big color-coded map of the world, like the ones you see in history class. Only on this particular map there were no labels - no ocean titles, no country titles, no nothing. Instead, this map was a world-wide representation of Hepatitis. And the color codes represented each type of Hepatitis, and where it is prevalent in the world. My eyes locked on to an area that appeared to be Nicaragua, and vaccination #1 became clear - I would getting some Hepatitis A.
I shifted to my left, glancing at the little gadgets that filled the room, until I came across another pretty looking poster with all sorts of scenery and crafts. As I read the message "AFRICA IS AMAZING...TYPHOID FEVER IS NOT," vaccination #2 became clear to me as well...I would be getting some Typhoid.
An hour later my doctor finally arrived. Even though he appeared only slightly older than I, there is something about that white coat that made me trust the man. I mean, it's not like they sell those things on a street corner. Or even if they did, it would take an awful lot of work, brains, and creativity to pretend to be a physician, and actually have people buy off on it. I never caught the man's name, but he did deliver the news. It would be Hep A, and some Typhoid pills.
I fired all of the questions I had, covering side effects, effectiveness, longevity, and pain. And then it was over. Another PA came into the room, administered the Hep A, and I was on my way. I even had my typhoid pills on an ice pack to keep them at proper temperature.
As the elevator descended from Sunshine Medical it suddently hit me...I AM GOING TO NICARAGUA. After all of the thought, research, and time that went into this idea of returning overseas, it is now becoming an imminent reality. Three weeks from tomorrow I'll be on my way. And while awaiting immunizations in an examination room is not exactly the ideal place for a reality check, it's better than waiting for that very first night, when I experience the power of a mosquito net.
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