the flu has come!

So our regularly scheduled weekend has been interrupted by the FLU!!!! Type A, I believe the doctor said but we're not entirely sure because Ryan was in a fever state and I was having trouble paying attention to all the Japanese. I figure our first encounter with the Japanese medical system should make a pretty good update.

Ryan started feeling run down on Thursday and on Friday he made it through work but barely had an appetite at all. I had been giving him TheraFlu (basically tylenol, cough suppressant and nasal decongestant) but he was getting worse and was probably running a fever (we didn't have a thermometer at the time). So this morning we asked our friend Rob, who is also a JET ALT from America, to help us get Ryan some medical attention. (I could tell Ryan was really sick because I had to force him to eat on Friday!)

Poor Ryan couldn't even walk the three blocks to the clinic so Rob gave us a lift. Once there, Rob filled out the paperwork and we found that there was about an hour wait because there were 19 people ahead of us. However, they took Ryan's temperature when they found out we didn't know what it was and he was 39.8 C (103.6 F). YIKES.

We were whisked away to a different waiting room in the back. The room had stools with privacy curtains in between them. Rob and I discussed the creepiness of the room. Ryan was seen pretty much right away after that. They swabbed his nose and then ushered us into another room, where all three of us sat on the examination table.

The doctor came in, a kind looking old Japanese man. He explained that Ryan has the flu, listened to his lungs, checked his throat, prescribed medication, and introduced himself to us in English in the end. He was very impressed with Ryan's "yoroshiku onegai shimasu!"

Rob was able to observe how Japanese people will continue to speak to me in Japanese even when they have been told that I am not Japanese and do not understand much Japanese and even when I'm pretty sure they know that Rob is there to translate for us. They will continue to speak to only me. Hahaha. It's cool. I guess I just look really attentive and I have to admit that I might be leading them on by nodding and using my active listening skills. I would dye my hair blonde and wear blue contacts but then they might just confuse me for a Japanese girl anyway!

We paid for the visit (¥2,080; around $22) and went around to the other side of the building for his medicine. They directed us to a small waiting room, which I think was specifically for flu patients, and Rob filled out more paperwork for us. The pharmacist came upstairs and showed us how to and when to administer the medication and we paid ¥1,840 (around $20) for it.

Ryan is basically on quarantine for the next week and I get to play nurse. Hopefully I don't catch the flu. But, thanks to Rob we'll know where to go and who to see if I do. I hope he doesn't catch the flu from hanging out with us today! National healthcare for the win, by the way!

Here is what Ryan's medicine looks like:

I've seen the kids at school bring these little powder packets in before.
I wish I could have seen them packaging these powders.
The largest packet is actually three separate medications mixed.
The plastic bottle contains Ryan's flu medication (Relenza) and next to it is the inhaler.

Here's his medical bills and his clinic card!
(Also the notice of his quarantine and my instructions to spend us much time away from him as possible is in there too.)

Here is Ryan in the small flu waiting room of the pharmacy:

A not so good picture of our friend and translator Rob:


And here's a picture of me in my mask:

I sent Rob and Ryan home while I went to the supermarket to get a thermometer (finally!) and some groceries. His fever was still 39.9 C when I got home (why would it have changed?) so we got him out of his clothes and into PJs and straight to bed after fluids and medication.

I would like to report that Ryan has been resting all day, his fever broke, and he's watching Indiana Jones.
He also had a nice hot bowl of "udon-minestrone" soup and some garlic bread!


And now it's time for another dose of medicine. Time to don my mask!