Hurtin' and Blurtin'

Unfortunately, the upbeat attitude of my last post was a bit premature. Yesterday afternoon and evening were not pleasant, and barring some mentally disturbing images, lets just say I lost about 4 pounds in 4 hours. It felt as though my stomach and intestines belonged to two entirely different people, each one trying rid my person of anything (including water) via the quickest exit...Charming I know.

I was unable to teach my 7-9 pm class, which prompted my fellow workers to panic. They thought that the best thing for me to do was go to the hospital, a notion that instantly made me wary. Now usually one would think that refusing hospital care when faced with a fever, sever vomitting and travellers diarrhea is outright stubborness, but then again, few people have ever been to a real "chinese" hospital.

First, almost everyone at a chinese hospital is considered a doctor, yet few (if any) actually have M.D.s from reputable western hospitals (or even eastern ones). My experience, either firsthand, or from second hand horror stories, has been that Chinese medicine seeks the most holistic way to get you to vomit. By pushing a variety of awful smelling or tasting things down your throat. However, because purging was not my problem I didn't feel it necessary to open the flood gates even further.

Second, Chinese hospitals are very unhygenic, and in many situations will have you enter what appears to be a very modern and clean looking hospital, only to be referred to the hole-in-the-wall shack next door, where doctor li (common name) will have you poop in a minature ice cube tray over a hole in the ground (true story). He then may provide you with minature pellets for ingestion, which work to "restore balance to you stomach". Now,I will say that eastern medicine has many uses as preventative medicine, it can't compare to the western style of run tests, find the problem, diagnose and treat with specific chemical compounds.

Third, the health care industry in China resembles the same kind of service industry that exists in almost every facet of Chinese culture. That is to say, service sucks and waiting hours for something to happen, even when there appear to be more office workers than customers, it not uncommon. What I needed the most was rest--and lots of it. Going to the hospital at 7 30 pm would ensure waiting in a germ filled sitting room at least until 11 pm, awaiting a fate unknown...

Last, my coworkers suggested getting an "injection" after I went to the office, and when I pressed them on this issue (IV or what) they didn't really have a response. I'm not afraid of needles, but the last thing I want is having god-knows-what pumped into my veins without a proper diagnosis. This was the final straw keeping me from their better judgement, and after half an hour of feverishly arguing my position, they let me return to my hotel room. Unfortunately, upon arriving, the hotel clerk informed me that I hadn't paid for next weeks hotel rent, so I had to return back to the school office and wait another 30 minutes just to have someone put up my rent. What a delightful experience.

However, all the complaining aside, a night of rest did me well. Today I have been without a fever, abdominal pain, and have been able to keep down my first meal in 36 hours. While I have a slight head cold now, and feel rather weak, I'd say I feel 10 times better than yesterday. It looks like just a 24 hour viral deal, thankfully no cause for future concern or a trip to see "doctor li". Thank you western medicine.