getting sick in china

Living in a dorm, even in the US, is just asking to get sick. Well, I guess I asked for it.

One of my friends has had a bad cough these past couple of weeks, so she went to the doctor on campus (Chinese medicine) to try and get some medications. When she got there, they pricked her finger to test her blood and concluded that it was a very serious illness. They tried to get her to take an X-ray...all for what she believes is a cold. Even more, they speak Chinese, which is a little intimidating when you're not fluent and just don't have the mental strength to try. She refused the chest x-ray, which angered the Chinese doctor (cultural difference: Americans take responsibility for their own body. If we don't want a treatment, we can refuse it. Chinese people tend to do whatever the doctor tells them, without questioning his authority or the appropriateness of the treatment.)

So when I got sick on Monday, I had zero motivation to go to the hospital, having heard nothing but horror stories. However, having not gotten any better after a couple of days, I figured it was time to go to the hospital. The Western hospital in Beijing is all the way across town, so I was trying to avoid the inconvenience, but now I'm glad I went. They spoke English pretty well and were generally familiar with medication like Tylenol, so I felt much better. I had to go back and forth between two separate buildings several times. First, Building A to register, then Building B to see a doctor, then Building A again for a chest x-ray, then Building B again for diagnosis, then finally Building A to get my medications--very complicated. But in the end, I found out what is wrong (Bronchitis!) and got the proper medication, so now my main concern is not giving it to everyone in the hall! We'll see how the next few days go.