"Maybe the mosquito thought you were a child, that's why it bit you and you got dengue fever"
That's what the teachers said the first day I was back at school after being sick. It wasn't just the people at the market and the doctor, it seems many Khmer people really think of Dengue as a kids disease, as that's what it is for Khmer people.
Anyway I got better from that, but then Soeun wasn't feeling himself for awhile, just as he started to get a bit better (he's still not totally normal) I had a night of diarrhea/vomiting and the sore tummy lasted all the next day. Once I was better from that, Soeun had a really sore tummy, unknown source, and he was meant to preach that morning at church! But we both seem healthy today, hopefully it will stay that way.

Confusing

I think I’m pretty much back to normal after having dengue fever. I just wrote about the first 7 days on my other blog (Stop looking in my ear, take my blood!). It’s about how I got sick and it was a bit confusing because I also had an ear infection so we thought that’s why I had a fever. So I didn’t have a blood test until it was nearly over. Dengue fever isn’t a big deal for Khmer adults, so my doctor, who is Khmer didn’t seemed concerned to take my blood (to check for dengue), even though I’d had heaps of dengue symptoms.

It was also a bit confusing as an expat nurse told me a particular symptom I had was NOT a dengue symptom, but others sources (other ppls experience, websites) told me it was. And that particular symptom was the first thing I had that I was pretty sure didn’t come from an ear infection. I’ve had ear infections before but its never give me red itchy arms and legs!

My pain and fever gone, but still low energy and feel sick when I eat. I went to church on Sunday but couldn't stand up for a whole song. Still can't ride my bike. And talking in khmer is exhausting on the best of days so you can imagine now.

dengue

I haven't been online much recently as I've been sick. Thankfully I'm almost better. It looks like I had dengue fever although for most of the week we thought it was a fever due to an ear infection, then an allergic reaction to the antibiotics.

I only had a blood test yesterday, 6 days after the fever started and the doctor said probably too late to show anything, my temp was already down and body aches gone. But he just rang and said that its likely I did have dengue as my platelet count was 135,000. He said normal is between 150,000 to 350,000.

Hopefully I'll get better completely and quickly, dengue recovering sometimes has complications.

Evacuation Plan: Dangerous place to live

This time of year is when my visa and our health insurance is due. The main reason I want health insurance is so I could be evacuated if necessary. If we’re in a bad traffic accident or get a serious case of dengue fever the international doctors here would recommend being medivaced to Thailand.

Apparently it can cost around $20,000USD. I asked around other foreigners what insurance they have, to see if there was a company people recommended. But all the ex-pats I talked to are with organizations so they hadn’t applied themselves.

I found an insurance company that sold international health insurance and bought some last year. However this year we decided to buy membership of an international medical clinic instead, our membership includes an evacuation plan. There are pros and cons of both; it’s hard to know which is the best until you’re in a real situation.

The price of membership has gone up about $200 dollars compared to this time last year. They told me this is due to the fact that Cambodia in now a more dangerous place to live. Traffic accidents have increased, last rainy season there was more Dengue Fever than usual and Bird Flu is an issue. The first 2 I was already well aware of but the only time I think about bird flu is when I break an egg and remember to wash my hands well, and when I see one of the many many chicken flu ads on TV.

Recently we...

KS has been spending his days preparing lesson on Jeremiah. The new year will start in about a month and for the first time the college will have semesters instead of terms.

Campus life is different with most of the students away. I was worried I wouldn’t have as much opportunity to (try) speak Khmer during these months. However there are a few girls still living in the dorms next door. And with less people around I think we tend to spend more time together, sharing food, talking etc, than during term time.

My classmate who was evacuated cos she has Dengue is getting better. It will be awhile before she is well enough to come back, but she is much better.
Another classmate was in a car crash recently and he has just started coming back to class. There are 63 stairs up to our 3rd floor classroom, according to him. He has plaster from toe to knee, so he has time to count the stairs and he slowly makes his way up and down each day.

I’m still riding my bike to class each day, although it enjoying less. About once a week I take a moto taxi if I’m tired or its raining or something. As I was riding home recently a moto accident happened right beside me. I don’t think it was fatal but hearing the moto crunch on the road and seeing people flying through the air increased my fear of the traffic here.

Evacuation

My class mate I wrote about in a previous post (Dengue Fever, click on side bar to read or scroll down) does have DF. After waiting a few days and doing a second blood test she wasn't getting any better, so now she's had to leave Cambodia.

Dengue Fever

At the moment Cambodia is having an outbreak of Dengue Fever. At first I just heard about it on Radio Australia and read about it in the Phnom Penh Post, but now I’m starting to hear about fellow ex-pats having to be evacuated to Thailand because they are sick. And at time of writing my classmate has had a fever for 3 days (plus head and body aches and vomiting) and is waiting for test results.

Actually even when there is not an outbreak it’s always a threat. Before I came here my travel doctor told me about it. The other diseases she told me about she gave me shots for, but there is no vaccination for Dengue. I was told to wear insect repellant everyday. (Dengue is spread by mossies that bite during the day.) I was told to make sure my insurance included medical evacuation, so if need be I could be taken to hospital in Bangkok.

There are four different types. Mostly it’s like the flu- fever, aches etc. At its worse it can cause internal bleeding and then death. I was told that Khmer people think of it as a kids disease. I think they usually get it a lot when they are young, so if they survive to adulthood they are immune.