Mis-adventures in a Japanese hospital

This week one of my students gave me a present- Tonsillitis (yay!)

Or at least- that is what WEBMD has diagnosed me as having. I know, getting medical advice from a computer might not be the safest- especially as I may also have signs of a myriad of other diseases too. Not to mention my track record of self-diagnosis hasn't been exactly on par over the years (like the time I thought I was reacting to a spider bite- but it was actually shingles).



I hear what your saying- why not just go to a doctor to find out what is going on with my throat. After all, it does feel like I have been swallowing razor blades at 4am, for the last 6 days. Well, in Japan they do things a little different...


When people are sick, they do not go to the doctor, instead most go to the hospital. In fact now that I think about it, I have seen very few doctors offices around. Plenty of dentists and 'lady clinics', but a distinct lack of the reliable ol' GP. The most annoying thing about the hospital (besides the drama over something that would clear itself up in a week or two) is that it's a 30min drive away.  The last time I went to the hospital was with my chicken and sweet corn soup burns, and while I thought it was a bit of an over reaction at the time, the nurse in Triage didn't think so after she saw the welts... I still have little brown, chicken shaped scar tissue over my chest and have to eat soup with a bib for fear of triggering a bout of post traumatic stress... but I digress.

The other problem with being unwell in Japan is their severe lack of working medication. There isn't quite the hard core, over the counter drugs like you get back home, the kind you could make drugs with (if one had the know how). They prefer instead a bit of hot water and lemon to cure all that ails. Needless to say that having a cold over here sucks, as the strongest thing they seem to have is just aspirin . Though the colds over here are the watered down version of what we have back home, so maybe there is something to not using enough drugs to knock out a horse.
                           

Anyway, due to the fact that I am always up for an adventure, that WEBMD has steered me wrong in the past, that I have to yell at small children for a job and that Luke was going to the town with the hospital for class today- I decided to jump on the ol' hypochondriac train and get myself down to the nearest hospital to complain about my sore throat (eye roll).

Turns out, that hospitals are practically closed on the weekend. Front entrance is shut up tighter than a chastity belt, which leaves only the emergency entrance. I kept thinking why on earth would anyone go to a hospital without any serious injury (chicken soup or otherwise), but our friends and co-workers all went there for a variety of reasons. I went in an felt like a right doofus, saying to the receptionist- "Hello. It's not an emergency (well, duh) but I have a sore throat".

After filling out forms I went into the waiting room, expecting it to be much like back home- people in casts, with nails sticking out of their foreheads or BBQ burns down their seared arms- instead it was just like a doctors waiting room. Full of people who might be sick, but were in no means need of emergency treatment. At least that made me feel a little better.

After an hour or so I got into see a doctor and still felt like an idiot. I knew enough not to be demanding, but if I was back home I would have done a simple, "I've had a pus infected, swollen throat for the last 6 days and I can't swallow, please give me some antibiotics so I can be at my best to yell at people on Tuesday- because swallowing honey isn't working". Instead, I stuck a small strip of paper under my arm. It was awesomely cool- it took my body temperature using little bars that changed colour. The only problem was giving the slightly sweaty strip back to him. After I answered the usual questions, he kept asking me if it was okay to do stuff (mind out of the gutter). May I listen to your heart beat? May I take your blood pressure? All the while I was looking at him strangely thinking "duh, your the doctor, go nuts". Anyway, he examined away and then he was like "you're going to need an X-RAY". I repeated the word x-ray back to him to be sure (I love it in Japanese, it is 'rentogen', which sounds like a ray gun to me so super easy to remember). I really wanted to ask him why the hell he was taking an x-ray for a sore throat, but doctors (also known as Sensei in Japanese) are never questioned.

They were very polite. Asking me to strip off my top half and then put on a sexy grey hospital bonds shirt to have my throat and chest x-rayed (I'm just glad the shirt fit). After that was done it was a bit more waiting and then the doctor came out to talk to me.

 "Hmm. We think it's a cold, what would you like to do?" He politely asked.
"Umm, what do you recommend"- I replied, because I didn't know the Japanese for 'I would like to die quietly of shame' (I might have been able to fudge something, but it would have been lost in translation).
"If it gets worse, then on Monday you should see a doctor again."


I nodded and thanked him and made a slightly red and quick exit (and then waited another 35mins before I could pay; Japanese bureaucracy).

So there you have it. $60 later, red faced and diagnosed with a case of a cold (though I am still not convinced that a sore throat before a cold should last 6 days). And the final score is-

WEBMD- 0
Cassie's shame- 1

Autumn

Autumn is one of my favourite seasons in Japan and not just because it provides a much needed break from the summer heat. The temperature is slowly dropping, the heaters are being dusted out, and the coloured leaves are carpeting the roads.

The four seasons that Japan gets is one of my favourite reasons for living here. In Queensland, if the leaves start falling from the trees it is usually due to drought and certainly not a pretty sight. Here, the beautiful colours outside look like a desert sunset- all oranges, yellows and reds. The temperature drops to a mild 10deg (c) in the days (though, it is 5 degs right now), which makes for perfect weather to bring out the macha lattes and hide under a mountain of blankets while watching movies. Which would explain why I have taken a severe lack of photos lately.

Thankfully this year we have been gradually weaned into the colder months, (unlike last year where we went from swimming at the beach to winter wonderland) so it doesn't seem quite so cold. Autumn clothes in Japan is another reason I love it here. Though it can be a bit hit and miss as to whether or not I can squeeze myself into them. For now, leather boots and scarves are the perfect accessories for going outside (at least until winter gets here and I bust out the old ski-jacket again).

The Japanese also really embrace the seasonal food over here. Pumpkin flavoured food is everywhere (and makes me wish I had an oven) and trees all over town are laden with persimmons. The look absolutely beautiful (striking orange fruit hanging from black branches), though not as beautiful as they do in the winter.



There seem to be a lot of persimmon trees growing wild in the Tainai area. I did ask some friends why the monkeys (my old nemeses) don't steal the fruit from the trees (when they are more than happy to rip up all the other vegetable gardens around). Apparently the monkeys can get drunk off them (or so I was told). I have since tried researching to see how accurate this is, but to no avail. Maybe I would have to eat a whole heap of persimmons for some effect. I would like to see a monkey get drunk though, maybe walk its way off of a mountain, or into the sea.  *Sigh* Its a shame they don't eat them, as I am always looking for secret ways that I can get rid of the monkeys (some nights I lie in bed and plot their demise).

The falling of the leaves does signal the season for the bears and the monkeys to get a bit more aggressive. Which (lets face it) is not something I need with my monkey dramas. Snow has already stated falling on the mountains (and in the next town up), and so far the weather report says it will snow here on Saturday. I can only hope that the snow will come and chase the devil spawn back into the mountains permanently, but until then I will sit inside my nicely heated room and watch the leaves fall.

もったいない- Mottainai

Recently, I have been reading a book by a Nobel peace prize winner about Mottainai- which is a concept on wastefulness. It goes beyond just being wasteful though and instead means closer to "a sense of regret concerning waste when the intrinsic value of an object or resource is not properly utilized". It can also refer to wasted and wasteful efforts and actions, activities, time, souls, talents, emotion, minds, dreams, and potential. It astounds me sometimes how the Japanese have such a great way of putting such deep concepts into few words! (I also love the word "yugen"- which is an awareness of the universe that triggers emotional responses too deep and profound for words)


In the old days, the Japanese were very aware of the concept of wastefulness. They had metal things to put on the end of pencils to ensure you used it right down to the numb, you ate every bit of rice down to the last grain and even broken chinaware was repaired. Though in the west we also had the same concepts of wastefulness (hand me downs and left overs, etc), the Japanese go just a little deeper. For example, it is important to eat every grain of rice not just because of wastefulness, because it is the product of a farmer's labour, a labour of love and hard work. The bento (lunchbox) that your mum made you that you left on the train is not just a waste of food, but more importantly wasteful of your mother's love and feelings.





Mottainai can also apply to people too. If you are not utilizing your talents at work ( eg- if you speak three languages, or are a beautiful painter), that is also mottainai, because you are wasting some important skills.


Obviously this can apply to the more materialistic as well- Japan's agricultural ministry estimates that 23 million tons of food were discarded in 2007, about ¥11 trillion ($120 billion) worth, which is the monetary equivalent of Japan's annual agricultural output. Moreover, it cost ¥2 trillion ($21 billion) to process that waste.

Certainly food for thought....