The One with the Vaccinations

Travel Clinic

As most of you could have guessed, the trip preparation that I was most dreading was getting "all of" my vaccinations for India.  I assumed that I would have to make multiple trips to the doctors office so that my arm wouldn't fall off with all of the shots I had to get so that I didn't die abroad.

To my surprise, the only injection I had to get was a tetanus booster, that I was due for in August anyways.  Thankfully I already got the rest of the vaccinations sometime in my childhood. The Typhoid vaccination is offered in oral tablets, and I will also have to take Malaria pills for the entirety of my trip.

Dr. Thompson

Unfortunately my best friend who usually accompanies me on these slightly ridiculous ordeals is gone for the week, so I had to brave the trip to the Travel Clinic all on my own.  Dr. Richard Thompson was kind of quirky but seemed quite competent. We sat down together in his office and discussed my trip, and what I would be doing so that he could understand what kinds of diseases I would possibly be exposed to.  He enjoyed acting out the different scenarios (example: someone getting bit by a cute dog with rabies).  He was also nice enough to prescribe me a preventative antibiotic, just in case I get a respiratory or stomach bug.

After we discussed the plan, I had to go get my shot.  The nurse, Giovana, was literally the nicest nurse I've ever had.  She was super patient and had me lie down.  For the first time in my life I stayed calm and it didn't take more than 5 minutes.  They were super paranoid that I was going to pass out, so they made me lie there for 10 minutes sipping water, and then wait another 15 minutes in the waiting room "just in case".

Though a 20 year old getting a simple shot doesn't seem like much of a feat, for me it was, so I am proud that I was able to do it all on my own.  Hopefully this is an indication that I am ready to face challenges that I would not have been able to deal with in the past, since I am sure that I will encounter them in many different forms throughout my time in India.