As some of you (not that many of you) already know, I've been fairly sick as of late. It started about 5 days ago, when I noticed that my throat was a little sore. This followed directly after I'd had a bit of a screaming match with a tree (it's been a hard week, don't worry, the tree's fine) so I didn't think much of it, figuring my vocal chords were probably just a tad worn out. It persisted though, and I began noticing that I had less and less energy to do even the most mundane tasks. Suffice to say, I did not go to all my classes last week.
On day three of this I realized I might not have just a simple cold, so I went and talked to the nurse. Her English is decent but not overly technical, and while she didn't tell me what I had she very effectively communicated that yes, what I had was bad and no, she could not help me. She gave me vague directions to a doctor who theoretically spoke English (more on that later) and told me to go there tomorrow as it was already closed for the day.
Paula happened to drop by later and upon looking at my throat informed me that I most definitely had (have) strep, and that I should really, really go get some antibiotics for that.
The next day, after a thrilling morning of waking up at 3:00 am from throat pain, I headed off to the mall. From here I was helped by another exchange student, a man I know vaguely but am not overly friendly with, who had time and decided that helping the sick girl find the doctor's office was a decent way to waste it. His name is Stuart, and he's the only student from Scotland at AIU. We walked around for a little while somewhat aimlessly, eventually asking at a convenience store for directions. They drew me a very imprecise map that mostly just served to confuse things further, but eventually we found the place and he went on his way.
Inside the doctor's they had me fill out a form that was entirely in Japanese, which was an adventure to say the least. The woman also asked me to pee in a cup, which was definitely something I wanted to clarify to make sure I'd translated correctly. Unfortunately there were integral words in this inquiry that I definitely didn't know, and I somewhat helplessly resorted to hand gestures. This was not a proud time for me or the nurse.
After an hour in the waiting room (there was only one doctor and Japanese clinics often run on a first come/first serve basis) I was called into an office occupied, as far as I could tell, by one doctor and two nurses. The doctor didn't precisely speak English so much as he knew sporadic vocabulary in the language, so we communicated in a kind of broken mish-mash that probably resembled a pidgin language more than anything else. He also said "ano," which is the Japanese equivilent to "um," about ever 2-3 words no matter what language he was trying to speak, which was not very beneficial to effective communication. He asked me a couple of questions and then took my pulse, which for some reason required a nurse nearby. Her primary purpose seemed to be to keep me from running away while he put a stethoscope to every available inch of my chest and back. It was an odd experience.
I was let go just a couple minutes after my entrance to the office with instructions to head to the pharmacy next door. Apparently I have one of the most clear-cut and visible cases of strep ever, and anyone who's looked down my throat has been pretty much instantly sure of what it was. The man at the pharmacy initially gave me nine different medications- nine! But I talked him down to just the antibiotic. The rest were mainly for generic things, symptoms I wasn't experiencing, and, for a couple of them, illnesses I didn't have. He sent me back to the hospital when I'd bought my pills to get a $0.60 refund for not getting the other eight. Apparently Japan charges not just for medicine, but for medicine referrals too. That said, I paid less than $25 for both the appointment and the medicine combined, so I really can't complain too much. I guess that insurance card they forced us all to get was worth it.
Today I have spent the largest portion of my time sleeping, with occasional breaks for meals and pill administration. I've been eating yogurt with everything because it doesn't hurt. This is probably the most yogurt I've eaten in years.
Other than sleeping and eating, I've made significant headway into my book (if anyone wants a mildly trippy, highly metaphor-driven, sometimes disturbing and always confusing new book to read, I highly recommend Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami) and talked to Paula for an hour or so after dinner. She's dropped by for a little while each day during my self-imposed hermitude, for which I am eternally grateful. I do not like to go without human contact for a whole day, it makes me a little crazy. Her willingness to come over and spend time with the sick person is something I will always appreciate.
In conclusion: being sick sucks, Japanese doctors are weird, yogurt and antibiotics are good, and friends are the best things to have.
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