Clinic
Oh noes. I'm sick. And before you panic (Mom, I'm talking to you), it is not, I repeat NOT, the dread flu. Just a cold, and the doctors will confirm this. I don't even have a fever. Would I ever in a million years go to a hospital or clinic over this if I were in America? Hell no. Unfortunately, in order to take sick leave rather than vacation days, I must present my boss with a receipt from a medical clinic to prove I was really sick. If you are sick enough to miss work or school, you go to the clinic. That's just how it works here. I don't get sick much, so this was my first time going to a clinic in Japan. Just like the hospital, all of the nurses are wearing the traditional white-starched nurses uniform (dress) with little sweaters over their shoulders. Doctors all wear the white lab coat. It's Japan. Proper presentation is very important.
So, I go and sit in the waiting room for over an hour (since every single sick person dutifully reports to a health clinic, they're always crowded), and after a quick interview and examination, I'm prescribed 4, count em', 4 different medicines and sent to the pharmacy next door. This is also part of the system. You would feel cheated if you didn't leave with lots of meds. The pharmacy was entirely staffed by females wearing, I kid you not, cotton candy-pink ruffly aprons which tied with a bow in the back, except for one of them who was wearing a matching pink lab coat. I guess it's so people will take her seriously. *rolls eyes* The female office assistants and nurses at my schools (and Japanese mothers) wear aprons too. It signifies the role of a caretaker. Anyway, I looked up all the medications when I got home to be sure of what I was taking. Most of it is probably just what you'd find in an over-the counter cold medicine in America, but unfortunately, in Japan you can only buy super-weak and useless drugs, herbal remedies really, over the counter.
The Japanese beliefs about health are interesting, and somewhat different from ours. For one thing, back to my medicine, one of them is in grainy powder form which must be mixed with water and drunk. It's god-awful bitter. Horrible really. But, and this is true, Japanese people have the impression that if medicine is not bitter and unpleasant, it's probably no good. To understand this experience, next time you're sick, please crush 1 aspirin, 2 tylenol, and 1 antihistamine (the approximate contents of the powder), mix with water, and drink. Yummy, huh? The best part is, wash as you might, water from that glass will forever taste faintly of death. A lot of medications are consumed via this powder mixed with water method. In fact, the verb for "to take medicine" is the same as "to drink". It's not that they lack the ability to make medicine more palatable. No! They choose to do it this way, because medicine is supposed to be drunk, and it's supposed to taste terrible, and that's how it is. Much like nurses are supposed to wear white dresses for uniforms, to connect back to that part.
Other differences include the advise that to prevent colds you should not only wash your hands, but also periodically rinse out your mouth. I don't even mean gargling, just swishing around some water in your mouth and spitting it out. I'm not sure how effective that could really be, but everyone here takes it for granted that it's true. Another thing is the idea that you will catch cold by leaving your stomach uncovered while you sleep, leading some people to use belly-wraps at night. I'm not sure how many people really do that though. Also, if you don't immediately dry your hair after bathing, you're sure to get sick. Finally, the proper food for sick people is a sort of soupy rice porridge along with pickled plums. The plums have plenty of vitamin C, and the porridge is easy to digest, so I guess it makes just as much sense as chicken soup. Come to think of it, that might be a better choice for a sick person than chicken soup.
And of course, people who are sick or who don't want to get sick (so everyone now a days) wear sick masks. To an American, it looks sorta "Silent Hill" creepy, but it's just normal here.
To be honest, the medicine I just took is making me feel increasingly loopy, so I think I'll end this before it gets too incoherent. I'm sure it's the cough suppressant, which, according to my research, is just a concentrated form of that narcotic found in cough syrup. Weeeee! I feel better already!
So, I go and sit in the waiting room for over an hour (since every single sick person dutifully reports to a health clinic, they're always crowded), and after a quick interview and examination, I'm prescribed 4, count em', 4 different medicines and sent to the pharmacy next door. This is also part of the system. You would feel cheated if you didn't leave with lots of meds. The pharmacy was entirely staffed by females wearing, I kid you not, cotton candy-pink ruffly aprons which tied with a bow in the back, except for one of them who was wearing a matching pink lab coat. I guess it's so people will take her seriously. *rolls eyes* The female office assistants and nurses at my schools (and Japanese mothers) wear aprons too. It signifies the role of a caretaker. Anyway, I looked up all the medications when I got home to be sure of what I was taking. Most of it is probably just what you'd find in an over-the counter cold medicine in America, but unfortunately, in Japan you can only buy super-weak and useless drugs, herbal remedies really, over the counter.
The Japanese beliefs about health are interesting, and somewhat different from ours. For one thing, back to my medicine, one of them is in grainy powder form which must be mixed with water and drunk. It's god-awful bitter. Horrible really. But, and this is true, Japanese people have the impression that if medicine is not bitter and unpleasant, it's probably no good. To understand this experience, next time you're sick, please crush 1 aspirin, 2 tylenol, and 1 antihistamine (the approximate contents of the powder), mix with water, and drink. Yummy, huh? The best part is, wash as you might, water from that glass will forever taste faintly of death. A lot of medications are consumed via this powder mixed with water method. In fact, the verb for "to take medicine" is the same as "to drink". It's not that they lack the ability to make medicine more palatable. No! They choose to do it this way, because medicine is supposed to be drunk, and it's supposed to taste terrible, and that's how it is. Much like nurses are supposed to wear white dresses for uniforms, to connect back to that part.
Other differences include the advise that to prevent colds you should not only wash your hands, but also periodically rinse out your mouth. I don't even mean gargling, just swishing around some water in your mouth and spitting it out. I'm not sure how effective that could really be, but everyone here takes it for granted that it's true. Another thing is the idea that you will catch cold by leaving your stomach uncovered while you sleep, leading some people to use belly-wraps at night. I'm not sure how many people really do that though. Also, if you don't immediately dry your hair after bathing, you're sure to get sick. Finally, the proper food for sick people is a sort of soupy rice porridge along with pickled plums. The plums have plenty of vitamin C, and the porridge is easy to digest, so I guess it makes just as much sense as chicken soup. Come to think of it, that might be a better choice for a sick person than chicken soup.
And of course, people who are sick or who don't want to get sick (so everyone now a days) wear sick masks. To an American, it looks sorta "Silent Hill" creepy, but it's just normal here.
To be honest, the medicine I just took is making me feel increasingly loopy, so I think I'll end this before it gets too incoherent. I'm sure it's the cough suppressant, which, according to my research, is just a concentrated form of that narcotic found in cough syrup. Weeeee! I feel better already!