I am going to India. It is a country that I can honestly say that I never thought I would travel to. My wife's nephew, Adam, moved over there and is working in Bollywood. He is engaged to an Indian actress model and is getting married on Valentines Day. So I was pretty excited about the whole thing and started planning for the trip. You know, stuff like where your going to stay, whats the weather like, what the culture is and how you get around once you get there. That's when I saw it. You need shots to go there. Shots don't really scare me. But the thought of someone shoving a two inch needle into my arm so I can travel half way around the world did not exactly make me feel good either. I got advice from everyone. Some people said you dont need them. Some said get as many as you can. One wise guy at work said pack lots of toilet paper. The US Department of State website scared me sufficiently enough to seek the advice of a travel doctor. So I set an appointment.
My wife and I go down there to get some advice and I figure at best maybe I get one shot and some malaria pills. Wrong! Boy was I wrong. First of all, the doctor had zero sense of humor and I felt more like I was going to the principals office than getting information on travel shots. However, I still had hope. I thought, just ask him to tell us what the risks are and I could decide which shots to get or not get. Strike Two! Wrong again. The doctor proceeds to scare both my wife and I into the following:
1) Hepatitis A
2) Typhoid
3) Polio
4) Flu
5) Malaria, and a prescription for the India version of.........
6) Montezuma's Revenge.
Lets not also forget that we were strongly encouraged to cover ourselves in DEET daily, sleep in DEET under a mosquito net and to stand in the wind to avoid being bitten by mosquito's during the day. That sounds like fun. He also goes on to say that we could also get something called Dengue Fever(pronounced Ding eee) for which there is no vaccination for. Apparently Dengue Fever causes you to writhe in pain for FOUR days wishing you were dead before you wake up on the 5th day feeling just fine.
So there I was experiencing Strike Three. I received three shots, two in my left arm, one in my right arm, with a two inch needle so that I could travel half way around the world. So much for my plan.
Yes...that pretty much sums it up. I was of the belief to "just go and be fine". I knew if we went down the path of seeking the advice of a travel doctor, they will lead us into the abyss of vaccines and pills. That's what they do - that's what they get paid for - that's what they believe in. Therefore, along side my husband, I got 2 shots in my right arm and 1 in my left, live Thyphoid oral pills and away we went. As for the Malaria pills? I think I want to skip the pills, enjoy my honeymoon and my nephews wedding, and pray for the best. Come on - they say we only have a 2% chance of getting it, so we should be good, right?....right?....we hope...:-)
ReplyDeleteHAHA... you had me laughing the whole time reading this. YES, as Cara put it.. just GO and BE FINE.. and HAVE FUN!!!!
ReplyDeleteOHH.. and dont forget the toilet paper :o)
as for only having a 2% chance of getting it.. lets hope someone else is that 2% (besides my parents!!)
xoxo - Ashlee