A Commentary on the Current State of Healthcare
So...Monday afternoon I fell asleep after class, as I am prone to do, and awoke to find that everyone had gone to dinner without me which was fine since I was feeling kind of eh at the time anyway. Eventually my roommate and others return slightly tipsy and inform me that they are about to leave again to hit up this Russian/Chinese club. On a Monday night. They tried to coax me into going, but for some odd reason I was experiencing a brief wave of sensical thinking for a change so I declined and stayed home like a good little Chinese student.
By the time everyone stumbles back home, extremely fucking intoxicated, my head is killing me to the point that there are two distinct places on each side of my head that feel like they're in a vice everytime I stand up. Additionally, my stomach is beginning to hurt like whoa. But because my roommate is the hot little thing that she is, and she practically gets drunk through osmosis if you dip her finger in sake, everyone is gathered in my room. About an hour goes by of people ignoring the fact that I am hiding with my head under my pillow before I turn pitiably to Brez, who is a little drunk himself. He tells me there is no way I'm gonna get everyone out of there anytime soon...now this sounds like a dare to me. With the last fiber of my strength I sit up calmly turn to everyone and yell "If you don't have a vagina, please get the fuck out of my fucking room." Jesse, you would have been so proud of me.
That night I'm made very aware of the fact that I am in fact sick. To spare people details, between Sherry and myself, the bathroom was not free until about 10 am. Tuesday I missed all my classes and didn't leave the room. By Tuesday night Bai Di and Sherry were asking if I wanted to go to the hospital, but I had a mental picture of Chinese hospitals and told Sherry that if it got that bad, just let me die. Wednesday morning, I had not eaten anything since Sunday night, and was completely unable to even hold down water. A new fun game was holding up Chelsea's arm and watching as it went thwap back down on the bed. So I agreed to go to the hospital with Sherry accompanying me as translator as I had just completely given up on understanding in my weakened, pathetic state. We walked to the hospital and check in at the front desk where they ask for no form of identification, no health insurance, nothing. Just my name. And my Chinese name at that. Therefore I now have Chinese hospital receipts with Bao Feng printed on them. Yeah I forgot to tell you all, Bao Feng is my Chinese name...it means Treasured Phoenix...I did not pick it.
After a brief examination in a room that was last cleaned while Mao was still in power, they concluded that I was vastly dehydrated. You don't fucking say! I was then led into the IV room. No joke there was a fucking IV room. Weirdest thing ever. Group of people sitting around like any other waiting room, except we're all fucking tethered to these bags hanging above our heads. It's times like that that "Nice weather we've been having" just doesn't seem to suffice.
After about 15 minutes the nurse must have noticed that either a) I was the only whitey in the room or b) I looked fucking scared shitless because she let me and Sherry go into our own private cell...I mean room. This room...well...let's just say I cannot even fathom what Chinese prisons must be like. Metal cot, complete with not-fresh bedding, paint chipping off the walls, bugs flying about. In fact Sherry was cracking up that while my left hand was incapacitated by the IV, I killed a mosquito with my right hand. I fucking rock. So yeah...that was fun. Sherry and I passed the time going back and forth naming restaurants and foods we're going to dive into once we get back to the states, and the whole time, you know what kept running through my mind? "I'm just putting this out here, but is there any way I could get one of these, filled with Guinness?" Thank god I entertain myself.
I have to say, Chinese medicine is fucking miraculous, I felt better instantly after the IV and now I'm taking this kind of sulfuric shit three times a day for anti-nausea. All in all, despite the presentation, I actually favor Chinese hospitals to American ones. I was in and out of there in two and a half hours, got attention immediately, cost me 60 yuan, not too shabby.
Today is Thursday, and after class we went to this amazing Japanese restaurant. My stomach is completely back to normal now but I'm not really a big sushi eater as it is so I played it safe. Took lots of pictures of these unbelievable looking dishes though...thought of Addy and her yellowtail the whole time.
Catch you all on the flipside.
All my love,
Chelsea
PS Justin thanks for dropping me a note...John has read your email to him. Hope your car is treating you well.
By the time everyone stumbles back home, extremely fucking intoxicated, my head is killing me to the point that there are two distinct places on each side of my head that feel like they're in a vice everytime I stand up. Additionally, my stomach is beginning to hurt like whoa. But because my roommate is the hot little thing that she is, and she practically gets drunk through osmosis if you dip her finger in sake, everyone is gathered in my room. About an hour goes by of people ignoring the fact that I am hiding with my head under my pillow before I turn pitiably to Brez, who is a little drunk himself. He tells me there is no way I'm gonna get everyone out of there anytime soon...now this sounds like a dare to me. With the last fiber of my strength I sit up calmly turn to everyone and yell "If you don't have a vagina, please get the fuck out of my fucking room." Jesse, you would have been so proud of me.
That night I'm made very aware of the fact that I am in fact sick. To spare people details, between Sherry and myself, the bathroom was not free until about 10 am. Tuesday I missed all my classes and didn't leave the room. By Tuesday night Bai Di and Sherry were asking if I wanted to go to the hospital, but I had a mental picture of Chinese hospitals and told Sherry that if it got that bad, just let me die. Wednesday morning, I had not eaten anything since Sunday night, and was completely unable to even hold down water. A new fun game was holding up Chelsea's arm and watching as it went thwap back down on the bed. So I agreed to go to the hospital with Sherry accompanying me as translator as I had just completely given up on understanding in my weakened, pathetic state. We walked to the hospital and check in at the front desk where they ask for no form of identification, no health insurance, nothing. Just my name. And my Chinese name at that. Therefore I now have Chinese hospital receipts with Bao Feng printed on them. Yeah I forgot to tell you all, Bao Feng is my Chinese name...it means Treasured Phoenix...I did not pick it.
After a brief examination in a room that was last cleaned while Mao was still in power, they concluded that I was vastly dehydrated. You don't fucking say! I was then led into the IV room. No joke there was a fucking IV room. Weirdest thing ever. Group of people sitting around like any other waiting room, except we're all fucking tethered to these bags hanging above our heads. It's times like that that "Nice weather we've been having" just doesn't seem to suffice.
After about 15 minutes the nurse must have noticed that either a) I was the only whitey in the room or b) I looked fucking scared shitless because she let me and Sherry go into our own private cell...I mean room. This room...well...let's just say I cannot even fathom what Chinese prisons must be like. Metal cot, complete with not-fresh bedding, paint chipping off the walls, bugs flying about. In fact Sherry was cracking up that while my left hand was incapacitated by the IV, I killed a mosquito with my right hand. I fucking rock. So yeah...that was fun. Sherry and I passed the time going back and forth naming restaurants and foods we're going to dive into once we get back to the states, and the whole time, you know what kept running through my mind? "I'm just putting this out here, but is there any way I could get one of these, filled with Guinness?" Thank god I entertain myself.
I have to say, Chinese medicine is fucking miraculous, I felt better instantly after the IV and now I'm taking this kind of sulfuric shit three times a day for anti-nausea. All in all, despite the presentation, I actually favor Chinese hospitals to American ones. I was in and out of there in two and a half hours, got attention immediately, cost me 60 yuan, not too shabby.
Today is Thursday, and after class we went to this amazing Japanese restaurant. My stomach is completely back to normal now but I'm not really a big sushi eater as it is so I played it safe. Took lots of pictures of these unbelievable looking dishes though...thought of Addy and her yellowtail the whole time.
Catch you all on the flipside.
All my love,
Chelsea
PS Justin thanks for dropping me a note...John has read your email to him. Hope your car is treating you well.