I am Very Feeling

So it's official, my last full day in Trichy is coming to a close. My time here has been so amazing and I have learned so much. India is such an amazing place and there is so much to be gained from spending time in a very different culture; for me, this has been confirmed by my journeys to India and Haiti. With each new experience, I am able to learn and grow into a better and more informed version of myself. Traveling is something that makes you grow in ways you couldn't even imagine and as Mary Ritter Beard said, "Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living." 

On that note, I have a whole day to share with you. And since I have a lot of very unrelated things to share, this blog post is going to be fairly jumbled - bare with me! So here's a snapshot of my last day in wonderful  Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India:

First, the medical things I learned today! As I mentioned a couple posts ago, a woman pregnant with twins had come in with very serious edema, or swelling. She was so swollen from her feet to her thighs that she was hardly able to move. After being sent home, she returned yesterday because she could no longer bare to be so swollen and she was subsequently admitted to the nursing home. Since she had previously been discharged she had developed jaundice as well as all symptoms of Hellp syndrome (Hemolysis elevated liver enzymes low platelet). She had a planned elective cesarean, since one twin was breeched. But because of the Hellp, they were fearful she would bleed out and transferred her to a better-equipped multi-specialty hospital in the area. Hellp is often a side effect of preeclampsia (hypertension during pregnancy), but this patient only had very mild preeclampsia. They did the cesarean today at the multi-specialty hospital and luckily, both twins and mom were okay! But Mom's jaundice was so severe that even the uterus and amniotic fluid were yellow! Hopefully post-op will continue to go will for all involved. 

In the afternoon Morgan came to Janet with me for a reason that I will get to in a few minutes, but while she was there, we were able to see a couple last surgeries! The first was a laparoscopic vaginal hysterectomy. This surgery is almost suture-less, since everything inside is disconnected via laparoscopically and the rest is pulled out vaginally. Since I hadn't yet seen a hysterectomy, I was glad I got to see one before leaving! The second surgery was a routine cesarean. I have seen a couple, but Morgan had only seen cesareans in goats! This one was a bit different for her since she got to see the birth of a human baby, but she said overall it was pretty similar! I was glad that I got to see a birth on my last day since I was really hoping for it!

I also found out today that one of the other girls at Janet, Ajumunnisha, is getting married in the next couple of months. She invited me to her wedding, but since India is not a cheap plane ticket, I'm not going to be able to make it! Ajumunnisha is only 20 years old and her fiancé is 27. I can't imagine getting married right now, but I wish her and Rahila both all the best in their futures with their new families! 

Speaking of families, I saw my youngest patient yet today. A Muslim girl of only 17-years-old came in today and she was 5 months pregnant. She had been married for 7 months and was now expecting around October. I was unable to see the husband's age, but I was curious as to the age difference. The girl looked very young and her young age was confirmed by her chart. We have many teenage pregnancies in the US, but very rarely is it a young teenager who is already married. 

Since we have been here, we have always wondered why there were lots of bangles tied around this specific tree outside Janet. Today, Raja told Morgan that reason! In Hindu tradition, the pregnant women wear many bangles during their first pregnancy and shake them so the baby is able to hear. After the birth, they hang them on a tree (the tree outside Janet if the child is born there) as goo luck for their first child!

My wish finally came true today! I got to play with a little girl! This little girl was so smiley and was laughing and kept waving to Morgan and I from afar. So when we headed back into Dr. Victoria's office following her lunch, we made a quick stop by the little girl. She was so giggly and was smiling so big when she told us hi, waved, and then shook our hands. Later when I saw her again after my Mehandhi (see below) was completed, she was in awe of the art and was looking at her hands trying to figure out why she didn't have any. She was so precious and it was wonderful to see her so happy!

The left is a traditional wedding Mehandhi,
while the right is traditionally Arabic
Mehandhi

For our last day, Rahila did Mehandhi for both Morgan and myself. Mehandhi is what we think of as Henna, but is so much cooler! The work is so intracate and is mainly completed on the hands. Often it is done for decoration or for special occasions such as weddings. The Mehandhi will stay on for two weeks or so, so I hope to still have it when I get home! In the photos, I still have the actual paste once because I want the stain to be as dark as possible, but I will post another photo after the paste is washed off and it is finally set! Also, since Morgan was at Janet and had never been there before, the girls all had a new name to quickly memorize. At one point, Rahila was trying to saw everybody's name and struggled with Morgan's. She ended up saying, "Maddie, Marissa, and Mango." So now those are the three M's and Morgan is now known as Mango Fitch! Silly girls!

With my head low, I am sad to announce that tonight was our last trip to our favorite ice cream shop, Ibaco. Two celebrate I got two whole scoops of ice cream - one cappuccino (my favorite) and one New York fudge! It was a wonderful last trip and I'm surely going to miss our frequent trips! I'm sure the workers are going to be wondering where their frequent American customers went!

Some new Tamil phrases I finally learned!

Nalla irukiya - How are you?

Nalla iruken - I'm fine. 

The last thing I want to share is some of the phrases I was told today. The first is the word "super." Think of the okay symbol you do with your fingers and add the word super while you do it. This is often what people say when they like something. For instance, today I was wearing a jeweled hair barrette and jasmine flowers. Upon my arrival, multiple people told me it was "super" complete with the okay hand sign. I really love that and I might start telling everyone that things are super! The second is the phrase "I'm very feeling;" Another that I like very much. Raja and some of the girls at the clinic today all told me that they were very feeling. This basically means that they are sad because we are leaving. I like this phrase because I have had many experiences where I have a lot of emotions and I am definitely feeling, but it is hard to describe what I am feeling. So from no on, I may resort to this phrase... I am very feeling. 

And finally, some photos from my last day. I am so happy I was able to share my journey through India with you and I hope that my faithful (and occasional) readers have enjoyed it. I've had readers from all over the world (Serbia and Russia - also other non-Americans - shout out to you) and I'm so happy I was able to share my adventures with so many people. I hope you all continue to read as I continue my journey through Europe over the next two weeks!

Farewell from India,
Rissa

Dr. Victoria and I!

The girls in reception + the OP-assistants. From left to right: Rahila, Ajumunnisha, Saranya, Bona, and myself. Also, Saranya's face in this is priceless, please take note of that! You can also see in this photo how gorgeous Rahila is, the photo below does not do her justice!

The OP-assistants: Saranya, Vijaya, and Rahila

A final group photo with our faithful driver Raja

The men in this photo are the principal of Bishop Heber College (left) and Dr. Relton (right) who was in charge of our program. We are so thankful for everything they offered us here in India and have enjoyed our time spent on their campus!