Sick Again - Trinidad

November 12, 2014
Yes, I am.  Chickungunya temporarily lowers your white blood cell count.  The white blood cells get called into action to fight off the chick G as it runs here and there in your body.  This temporary lowering of the white cell count can allow other nasties into the party inside you.  For me it is a terrible stomach bug.  At least this is how I describe it.  You can look it all up if you want something official.

I overdid it on Thursday and Friday of last week.  By the time the grill was lite for the Friday night Coral Cove potluck, I knew I had a relapsed of chicken chimichanga going and not the dinner kind- chikungunya.  I was very achy.  Early Saturday the stomach bug showed up and set up shop.  I will spare you the details.  Tom calls this the violent stomach bug.  I knew I needed to stay hydrated but I just couldn't.  Nothing would  stay down.  Sorry - TMI.  By Sunday night I started to worry internal parts would start coming out as there was nothing left in me.  Sorry, sorry, I know TMI.

Cruisers are the best and everyone was worried and tried to help with meds, cans of soup, yogurt (to get cultures back in me) and kind words and thoughts.  Patty on s/v La Adventura told Tom late Sunday night that she has knowledge of a small clinic down the road in the next little town.  She suggested that she could take me the next morning if I was not better.

I was not.  Patty was on the case first thing that morning - she gets up really early.  She called Members Only Jesse James to get the latest options and info and set up transport.  Jesse James is so good to all the cruisers and medical situations are not different.  Tom and I discussed the options and decided that I needed to go somewhere that could offer an IV drip.  The only option was West Shore Medical Clinic.  A big modern clinic down in St James (I think).  Patty claimed that all her boat work for the day was outside and since it was cloudy with a forecast for rain, she would have nothing better to do than take me to the clinic.  Such a dear.  Tom and I decided he should stay and help s/v Sonic Boom with his haul out as planned and then work on s/v Honey Ryder.  Better to be busy and worried than sitting in a waiting room worried with nothing to do.

Members Only driver Martin showed up and Patty and I were off to the clinic.  The main desk sent me to the ER.  Within 10 mins I had my vitals taken and was hooked up to an IV.  Blood and urine tests showed I was extremely dehydrated (which I knew) and had gastrointestinal ???? - some stomach bug.  FYI the doctor actually set up the IV port herself after drawing out the blood samples.  Soon they started adding an antibiotic and a hand full of meds in syringes.  I took the opportunity to catch a few winks as sleep had been tough over the weekend.  After one IV bag, I gave another urine sample and was still dehydrated so another bag was hung.  The doctor had already said it would probably take 1 1/2 bags to re-hydrate me.

In the mean time, Patty being the seasoned cruiser she is, had come fully prepared to be at the clinic a good part of the day.  She had her mini laptop.  She found a place in the waiting room to plug in and catch up.  She and Captain James have had there share of testing medical facilities as they slowly adventure around the world.  Turkey, Malta, Trinidad, and USA to name just a few.

Two IV bags later I was feeling better but still experiencing stomach cramps.  The doctor said I would.  She loaded me up on prescriptions to get filled.  Patty took those and headed off to the pharmacy to start that process while the doctor gave me final instructions and then the nurse took out my IV port and got me ready to go.  She delivered my papers and pointed me to the ER front office to pay.  Oh boy.  I had come prepared with cash (Trinidad and Tobago =TT as it's called) as well as credit card.  Total ER bill $3144.40 TT.  This is like $524.00 US dollars.  I paid via credit card.

I found Patty and she walked me the short distance inside the building to the pharmacy where all my scripts were waiting - all 7 of them!  I have never had so many scripts at one time, not even when I had my hips resurfaced!  Oh well.  Glad to have them to help me get better.  I like modern medicine.  I also bought some Paracetamol  It's like ibuprofen or acetaminophen.  The English seem to like it and when our Swedish dock neighbors were down with chick G, Paracetamol is what they took.   Total pharmacy bill $652.75 TT.  Approximately $104.00 USA dollars.

Patty had already called Members Only for our transport back.  He was waiting for us when I finished paying.

I will say even with two IV bags and a big boost of IV meds to kick start my recovery, it has been tough going.  I have never had a stomach bug that came, stayed and just doesn't seem to want to leave.  I told Tom the other night I had this weird picture of an evil wizard that his invaded my stomach and won't let anything pass.  YES, when you are really sick in bed for more than two days without TV, movies or reading, your go places in your mind you haven't been in a while and really weird stuff come to light if you will.  However, I am on the right track now.  Tom is taking excellent care of me as always.  I cannot thank Patty and all the other cruisers enough.  Big thanks again to Jesse James Members Only.

West Shore Medical Clinic was terrific.  They got me right in and started treatment with minimal amount of paperwork needed, which the medical assistant filled out while she took my vitals.  The doctor was professional but also had a great bedside manner to comfort me.  As I mentioned she was the one to start the IV port and draw the blood.  I was the only one in the ER when I first got there.  While I was there a 93 year old local man was brought in by his family with breathing problems.  A fellow cruiser ended up on the other side of me.  She is actually from our marina.  She had a cyst that was causing her issues.  Finally, as I was preparing to leave the doctor was dealing with a forth patient that spoke NO English.  NONE.  She was nicely trying to determine what was wrong with him.  In other words, there was a lot going on but the doctor and staff handled it all very well.  I was impressed.

I am giving all the little details here because there may be other cruisers that want to learn from this.  Sickness in a Foreign Country 101.  ha!

Chikunguyna Update

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and kind words during this past week.  With each day my aches and pains got less and less.  By Thursday I moved into the itchy rash phase.  At first it was ok.  By Saturday it was terrible.  I busted out the Benadryl and kept a stead diet of those pills.  Saturday night I dug out the prescription strength cortisone cream but nothing seem to work.  My skin felt like it was on fire.  Sleeping was tough.  I thrashed about trying to keep myself from scratching my skin raw.  Finally Monday morning it subsided.  

Chick G is not fun.  I cannot recommend it at all.  I never suffered from the high fever or headaches that some people get.   However I will never forget the pain of that first night.  WOW!

HUGE thank you to my wonderful husband for taking care of me and putting up with me.  I know I was not fun to be around and that is putting it very mildly!

Chikungunya

This may or may not be the type of mozzie that carries it but aren't they all bad!

Or Chicken G or Chick G or as we call it aboard s/v Honey Ryder, Chicken Chimichanga.  While the rest of the world is talking about Ebola, the cruisers and locals here are all talking and whispering about Chick G.  *I don't know why but wherever something is bad, people lower their voices to a near whisper to talk about it.  While chicken G is not fatal, it is some nasty stuff.  Early symptoms are like the flu with high fever and aches but the severe joint and muscle pain that lasts for a longtime along with bad headaches is the stuff people whisper about.

Here are the full details if you are interested.  Chikungunya (CDC) and here (WHO). 

Mosquitoes are to blame.  Bastards!  Some places spray against them but most islands simply can't afford to spray.  Plus there are just so many places in these islands that are ideal for mozzies.  

There isn't a cure and the only prevention is to not get bitten.  Yeah right.  We are trying our best.  We have mozzie spray including some with 25% deet but it feels so nasty on your skin and inevitably I end up getting it in my mouth some how.  Yes, I know...that is bad too.  Plus I am fully convinced deet melts fiberglass.  Completely covering up is an option if you don't mind heat stroking. I have the coils to burn while in the cockpit and even in the boat but these must be monitored very closely as we don't want to scorch the fiberglass or worst yet, fire.  Not all coils are made the same.  Some smell ok while others are more like a campfire.  Additionally it's smoke and that leaves a soot like coating on things like fans and such.  I also have some natural stuff I have been testing out.   It seems to work somewhat but the affect wears off pretty quickly.   It has citronella, peppermint and other things. I like it but Tom hates the smell.  It's super strong.  He says he feels like he is sleeping with a big can of Pledge furniture polish.  On the positive side, it leaves my skins soft.  We have all the cockpit enclosure screens up - including the new one I made for the front windshield of the dodger.  However no enclosure it 100% in terms of shutting out mossies because of all the ins and outs of the cockpit, dodger, bimini, and arch.  We have all our screens in place on our portlights and the Zarcor doors are up with screens in but we still get mozzies below as we come and go the 100+ times a day from inside the boat out into the cockpit and beyond.  

Even with all this, they are finding ways to bite us, especially me.  They really like me.  The other day I got a bite 2 seconds after I got out of the shower.  Oh yeah, there is nothing like taking a cool shower to wash off the day's sweat and stink only to immediately cover yourself in deet.  Ugh!  Get this,  I got a bite over the weekend on my upper, inner thigh as I was pulling up my shorts after a quick pee!  I know, TMI but I am sharing to give you an idea of what I have been up against.  Little Bastards! They don't fight fair.  And please don't email me with mozzie bite prevention and fixes.  I know you all mean well but I just don't have the strength.  I have tried most of them and still get bites.  

And what good are mosquitoes?  It seems to me they only spread disease, pain and death.  I wish Bobby the Bat that lives outside our KC house was here to feast on these vicious suckers.    

Update - After writing this over the weekend I actually came down the chick chimichanga on Monday evening.  Looking back, I might have had some symptoms as early as this past weekend and just didn't realize it.  Sometimes it's hard to distinguish boat bite aches and pains from regular aches and pains from something is seriously wrong aches and pains.  By dinner time Monday night I knew.  Let me tell you Chicken G is some nasty stuff.  Over night I thought I was going to die and by early morning I was hoping I would.  This is the worst stuff I have experienced.  Horrific pain everywhere.  Any slight move causes pain.  I feel as though my body has been thrown down a flight of stairs.  My feet, ankles, hands and wrists are especially painful.  My feet feel like I have walked 20 miles in shoes 2 sizes too small.  I can't straighten my fingers completely.  Instead I look like one of those Lego people whose hands are the constant shape of a C.  Smirk - I feel too yucky for a full ha ha.

On a positive note, our dock neighbors that have been holed up for a week in their boat with chick g finally emerged yesterday and even ran an errand, so there is hope.  And to date Tom has escaped.  Knock on wood - ouch.  Why would they bite him when I am right here!  Crooked fingers crossed it stays that way.  Smirk.

Update Day Three - I am feeling slightly better.  I no longer have C's for hands but my fingers still aren't 100% straight and it hurts to use them for any sort of lifting, carrying, opening, pulling, pushing.....much of anything.  I still have aches and pains everywhere but much less.  That first night was such a dozy.  This morning I have developed a rash on my arms that is itchy.  More fun.  

Rumor has it that once you get chick G, you can't get it again.  The CDC website says specifically -

• Once a person has been infected, he or she is likely to be protected from future infections.

 I would love something that says 100% vs likely but that just isn't the way things work with nasty viruses.  

A fellow cruiser and also doctor has been advising me so that is helpful.  

One a positive note, I am hoping to use this down time to catch up on blog postings.  However typing is slow going with tender, crooked fingers and the internet connection is of course super slow.  Ten mins to upload one picture!  But then again, what do I have to do but watch a spinning ball indicator?  Ugh!  I am going back to bed!