Because illness has been such a big part of my life in Delhi, it only seemed right to write something about it. Of course before coming I had been warned about Delhi Belly and given a lot of advice about what to eat, drink, and do to avoid sickness generally.
Thankfully for the first month that I was in the city, I was not really sick. Aside from some general transition sickness which seemed to have more to do with malaria medication and jetlag than anything else, I was fine and probably a little overconfident about my ability to eat, drink, and be merry.
Pride goeth before destruction.
Major illness number one came after some delicious but contaminated street food claimed its revenge. Gulguppe, or pani puri, is awesome. It is essentially hollow little balls of fried bread that street vendors fill with spiced water and potato. There are different kinds of filling, one more sweet and the other more salty, and I like them both a lot. Before leaving home, the always wise Esha told me to avoid gulguppe from street vendors and for a while, I did. Then I didn't. And I paid.
Unfortunately after that I seemed to be unable to last a full week without some virus or another. I missed work, meetings, outings, and many parts of being a human being for days at a time. There were several low points, and I am conflicted about which takes the title for most pathetic, but I think it is probably the train ride back from Rishikesh when whatever heinous virus it was took hold and left me a fevered and shivering mess trapped in the train compartment with a happy family and a businessman, all unsuspecting and undeserving of the germs undoubtedly emanating from the pitiful creature across from them.
The sickness is annoying mostly because it makes me unproductive and removes me from the people and places that I enjoy and that make being here so great. It is the kind of sickness that prohibits almost anything but sleeping or half-watching/half-ignoring whatever might be on tv or one of the movies downloaded to my Kindle. There is no productivity except what little comes from the working thoughts and concepts through fever brain. It would seem that given the fact that I could not leave my room for days at a time, I might have been able to catch up on blog posts or emails or anything really. My inability to sit with my head in one position or look directly at any kind of screen made that impossible.
Happily most of these illnesses only lasted a few days and not weeks at a time like in some of the stories told to me by other travelers, including one poor guy who got typhoid and ended up with a major scar from the surgery he needed while here.
The exception was a determined sinus and respiratory issue that I still cannot shake. I was forced to cancel a trip to the Jaipur Literary Festival and extend my stay at the Mehrauli apartment in Delhi, and I spent a few days being as close to a hermit as I could be because even the walk up and down my stairs left me wheezing and coughing so hard that I was left heaving on the roadside. Attractive.
After several attempts to visit the doctor with no luck (the hours are still beyond my comprehension), I finally made it to a doctor in the neighborhood thanks to my landlord, Shubhneet, who is wonderful and super helpful.
Going to the doctor in different countries has been really interesting and unfortunately, necessary. Most everywhere, a pharmicist, also called a chemist, will suffice because they are allowed to give medicines that at home require a prescription. In Buenos Aires and here, visits to more traditional hospitals or offices have been necessary.
I arrived at the office in the evening because the hours are from 6pm to 9pm and I was handed a number from a nurse and told to wait. The office was full and there were lots of people and families waiting for their number to be called. There were a fair number of little ones and many of them were fascinated by me and my hair. One baby in particular was very fussy and one of his caretakers would walk him around and point to me to distract him. Normally I do not enjoy staring and pointing, but this I did not mind.
The doctor called my number and I entered his office to wait to be seen. I anticipated a private visit. This did not happen. Instead I waited with two other patients while the doctor spoke to another patient from his desk right in front of us. He asked the problem and conducted the examination in full view of everyone in the room. He used a flashlight and with me, a lot of gesturing and a few key words (fever, sinus, cough, breathe) to diagnose.
After some nodding and pointing, I left with a prescription for an antibiotic for the sinus infection and three other medicines to deal with my symptoms and the respiratory stuff. It was not a traditional visit but I left with medicine and a bill under five USD, medicine included, so I was definitely not complaining. Had I had another medical issue, the public examination might have been strange, but because it was sinus and chest, I felt fine about it.
Although I am still not totally well, I am feeling better and less useless and am hoping to keep this level of wellness, at least, until I leave India.
I have learned from being sick this often and now have more confidence in my ability to take care of myself and to deal with whatever circumstance while being sick. Still I am looking forward to a time when I am not so worried about it.
Thankfully for the first month that I was in the city, I was not really sick. Aside from some general transition sickness which seemed to have more to do with malaria medication and jetlag than anything else, I was fine and probably a little overconfident about my ability to eat, drink, and be merry.
Pride goeth before destruction.
Major illness number one came after some delicious but contaminated street food claimed its revenge. Gulguppe, or pani puri, is awesome. It is essentially hollow little balls of fried bread that street vendors fill with spiced water and potato. There are different kinds of filling, one more sweet and the other more salty, and I like them both a lot. Before leaving home, the always wise Esha told me to avoid gulguppe from street vendors and for a while, I did. Then I didn't. And I paid.
Unfortunately after that I seemed to be unable to last a full week without some virus or another. I missed work, meetings, outings, and many parts of being a human being for days at a time. There were several low points, and I am conflicted about which takes the title for most pathetic, but I think it is probably the train ride back from Rishikesh when whatever heinous virus it was took hold and left me a fevered and shivering mess trapped in the train compartment with a happy family and a businessman, all unsuspecting and undeserving of the germs undoubtedly emanating from the pitiful creature across from them.
The sickness is annoying mostly because it makes me unproductive and removes me from the people and places that I enjoy and that make being here so great. It is the kind of sickness that prohibits almost anything but sleeping or half-watching/half-ignoring whatever might be on tv or one of the movies downloaded to my Kindle. There is no productivity except what little comes from the working thoughts and concepts through fever brain. It would seem that given the fact that I could not leave my room for days at a time, I might have been able to catch up on blog posts or emails or anything really. My inability to sit with my head in one position or look directly at any kind of screen made that impossible.
Happily most of these illnesses only lasted a few days and not weeks at a time like in some of the stories told to me by other travelers, including one poor guy who got typhoid and ended up with a major scar from the surgery he needed while here.
The exception was a determined sinus and respiratory issue that I still cannot shake. I was forced to cancel a trip to the Jaipur Literary Festival and extend my stay at the Mehrauli apartment in Delhi, and I spent a few days being as close to a hermit as I could be because even the walk up and down my stairs left me wheezing and coughing so hard that I was left heaving on the roadside. Attractive.
After several attempts to visit the doctor with no luck (the hours are still beyond my comprehension), I finally made it to a doctor in the neighborhood thanks to my landlord, Shubhneet, who is wonderful and super helpful.
Going to the doctor in different countries has been really interesting and unfortunately, necessary. Most everywhere, a pharmicist, also called a chemist, will suffice because they are allowed to give medicines that at home require a prescription. In Buenos Aires and here, visits to more traditional hospitals or offices have been necessary.
I arrived at the office in the evening because the hours are from 6pm to 9pm and I was handed a number from a nurse and told to wait. The office was full and there were lots of people and families waiting for their number to be called. There were a fair number of little ones and many of them were fascinated by me and my hair. One baby in particular was very fussy and one of his caretakers would walk him around and point to me to distract him. Normally I do not enjoy staring and pointing, but this I did not mind.
The doctor called my number and I entered his office to wait to be seen. I anticipated a private visit. This did not happen. Instead I waited with two other patients while the doctor spoke to another patient from his desk right in front of us. He asked the problem and conducted the examination in full view of everyone in the room. He used a flashlight and with me, a lot of gesturing and a few key words (fever, sinus, cough, breathe) to diagnose.
After some nodding and pointing, I left with a prescription for an antibiotic for the sinus infection and three other medicines to deal with my symptoms and the respiratory stuff. It was not a traditional visit but I left with medicine and a bill under five USD, medicine included, so I was definitely not complaining. Had I had another medical issue, the public examination might have been strange, but because it was sinus and chest, I felt fine about it.
Although I am still not totally well, I am feeling better and less useless and am hoping to keep this level of wellness, at least, until I leave India.
I have learned from being sick this often and now have more confidence in my ability to take care of myself and to deal with whatever circumstance while being sick. Still I am looking forward to a time when I am not so worried about it.
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