SVOSH Trip (part 1)

The long anticipated SVOSH trip was this past week. It was AMAZING. SVOSH stands for "Student Volunteers of Optometric Services for Humanity" and we were able to go with the Merida, Mexico group.
Day uno:
A very long day of travel. We dropped Jackson off at Grandma and Grandpa Johnson's in IL. We flew out of Chicago and had to wake up at 3:30AM to get there on time. We met up with our group in Atlanta and got to Cancun, where we had to wait for 4 hours for the last member of our group. After she got there we had to take a 5 hour bus ride to the place we were staying. We met our host family and some of the Lions Club people, took a cold shower, decided the sleeping arrangements and went to bed.
We stopped at some random rest area on our way to Merida for dinner and it was very interesting.... no one really knew what to do and how to order so we just ordered these cheese empanadas and they were really disgusting. (Can you see how excited Justin looks to be eating them?) Day dos:
In the past, SVOSH groups only stayed in the city of Merida the whole time doing the clinic. This year they had us actually go to a different village each day and do a clinic. I really liked the way this worked out because it gave us an opportunity to see different areas and experience the culture. Merida is actually a big city so it was fun to see the small villages too. The first place was called Chicxulub Pueblo. This is where we stayed the first 2 nights with a family.
The people are really excited to claim that the meteor that hit earth and killed all of the dinosaurs landed in Chicxulub (It is even confermed by NASA). They were excited to show us around. The yellow church was built in 1640.

Our first day of clinic went really well and ran very smoothly. Everyone asked what I would be doing during the clinic and I wasn't exactly sure, but I actually got to do a lot. I did the optical dispensary and visual acuities. The dispensary was really hard because that is when you need to really communicate with the people and my Spanish is AWFUL! No one in our group spoke fluently, but I was definately the worst one in the group. Justin was probably the 2nd or 3rd worse. haha :)These pictures are of our host family/home. All 10 of us stayed in this house for the first three nights. We had four people in our room: Justin and I on the bed, someone on a couch, and someone in a hammock. The other people also shared rooms similar to our set up.
The house was really nice for the area we were in, but it was still a humbling experience to realize how much we have in our lives. They had wall a/c, but it was only used in the bedrooms and at night. They didn't have shower heads, it was just a hose that only had very cold water. The toilets often didn't flush (you can't throw toilet paper in the toilets). We saw this little lizard thing on the wall and one of our group members found one in his suit case! It was a very interesting experience.
The family was awesome though and they always fed us so good!The next day of clinic was in a village 15 mins away called Ixil. After our clinic work and dinner the mayor of Ixil threw us a surprise celebration. They had these cute kids do some dances and a few other things for our entertainment. Everyone was so gracious of all we were doing for their people. It was really neat. Day tres:
Our clinic in Ixil. This day also ran so smoothly. The clinic days were long, but we really enjoyed them.We had lunch in someones backyard and it was like a jungle there. They had chickens and big turkeys that gobbled at us. They also had this really cool fruit they gave us. The real name is Pitaya, but our translator told us the commercial name is called dragon fruit. It was good, it reminded me of a gray kiwi with more seeds.

On the way back to the clinic it was POURING rain. Everyone was soaked, but Justin and I were the prepared ones with our emergency ponchos. Where we were set up in the back started to flood like crazy, so we had to do some quick re-adjustments and move some of our stations to a different place. When it rains there, it pours!Day cuatro:
After an extremely long day we got back to our host families house and went to bed. I woke up around 3:00AM feeling pretty sick and running to the bathroom. (diarrhea) I couldn't sleep for the next few hours because I had to keep getting up to go to the bathroom. Finally at 6:00AM I woke Justin up because I started to feel chills and aches. I was really nervous about what it could be (getting sick in a foreign country is nerve racking) and he got up and gave me a blessing. About 6:30AM everyone woke up to get ready to head to the next village of Progreso. Luckily the plan was to drop off our luggage at the hotel first which is where Justin and I spent the morning while th rest of the group started another day of clinic. Unfortunately, the hotel had no rooms available with a/c. I was feeling awful and I just wanted to lay down. So we got a room (no a/c), stocked up on water, crackers, and Pepsi and said goodbye to our group. They gave us someones cell phone number and said they would check up on us later.
Soon after they left I started throwing up. I couldn't keep anything down (not even water) and I was still suffering from painful diarrhea and a feverish body. I was afraid of getting dehydrated and I felt like the best thing would be to go to a hospital. Justin tried to ask the front desk lady if he could use the phone and of course she started talking in Spanish a million miles per hour and for some reason wouldn't let him use the phone... we have no way of getting a hold of our group. Justin says the Spanish words for "very sick" and "we need phone" and "hospital/doctor"
Soon some random guy showed up with a doctor kit (assuming he is a doctor) and starts checking up on me. We told him what was going on (the best we could) and he wrote a prescription that he said was OK for the baby. We had no idea what to do with the prescription without a car or any idea where the closest pharmacy was, not to mention how leary we felt about the situation. All I wanted was to get to the hospital, and I didn't want to take some medicine that I wasn't sure about from some small village general practice doctor.
Finally around 12:30PM our translator and group leader showed up to the hotel to check up on us. We told them I wasn't doing good, and the translator said he would take us to Merida (about 30 mins away) and get us to a good hospital there. He said he knew of a good OB doctor who he called and made arrangements for an emergency visit.
We got to the hospital and found it was really nice. We got to the urgent care area and they told me "my doctor" called them and wanted to see me first. (It took me a while to figure out that "my doctor" was this Mexican OB, not my Dr. from the US.) We went up to the 9th floor and the Dr. wasn't there. Simon (our translator) called him and he said he was getting done with a c-section and would be right up. In the meantime I was in the hall where I nearly passed out and threw up in a plastic bag.
The Dr. got there and spent quite a bit of time with us. He did a good case history and then took an ultrasound of the baby. He said the baby was active and very healthy. He also confirmed that he was a boy! :)
He told me it was likely something I ate and that he was going to send me down to the urgent care to get hooked to an IV, get a shot in the bum to help with nausea, and some medicine to help with the diarrhea. He also made sure we knew everything was safe for the baby.
We were there for about 5 hours and we were SO grateful for Simon who stayed with us the whole time so that we could actually communicate with the people.
They did a test and found out I had a parasite called entamoeba histolytica. The OB wrote a script and gave me a 3 pill medicine that was suppose to kill it off.
We then headed back to Progreso, stopped off at walmart to get me some jello and yogurt and got back around 9:30PM. All in all, we were really grateful for what we received. We truly trusted that Dr. and the care was really good. We were at a good hospital with the correct resources needed. Simon our translator was our life savor and was so awesome about staying with us the entire day at the hospital. The Dr. knew why we were there, giving free eye exams to the people, and wrote off the cost as a professional courtesy--he charged us nothing! For the urgent care visit it only cost us $90!!! We were blessed!

This is Simon.Day cinco:
This day was our last day of clinic and was spent in Merida. I woke up feeling SO much better, but my group (and especially my husband) didn't want me to push myself too hard and go to the clinic. I didn't want Justin to miss out though, and so we found out that the place we were going did have a room with AC, I was still able to go and just hang out. I did a little bit of work, but mostly just took it easy. By the middle of this day everyone in the group was EXHAUSTED and started to not feel very good themselves. It was a bit of a chaotic day, but we all made it threw. Justin and I had a follow up appointment with the Dr. and things were looking better for me.

This is a monument they have in the middle of the city of Merida.Last day of clinic. Justin was practicing a new skill he has never done before called BIO (Binocular Indirect Ophthalmoscopy). This is where they look at the retina of the eye and check for diseases.After a LONG 4 days of clinic work the Lions club threw a big fiesta for us. They had it at a really really fancy house and had catered dinner. They brought in a Mariachi band and gave the American's A LOT of alcohol and made them dance and dance. haha it was funny. I am sure I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I wasn't still feeling sick and if Justin and I were drinkers! :) The night got long, but the people were so grateful for what we did and gave us some really nice gifts. We had an amazing experience and even though it was a lot of long days and hard work (and a day of being very sick), we wouldn't take it back for anything.

Stay tuned for the next 3 days in Cancun....