The sun was shining, the air was cool and I was well energized as I awoke at 9! I am so happy to be in India and exploring the world. I am feeling better than I was yesterday but am still not 100%. I am going to take it easy today, eat simply and go only as far as I can in order to reserve my energy/health. I am excited to work in the hotel today because the hospital gets boring and none the less confined. I can actually relax in a nice bed in which I can work today.
For breakfast I ate my cheerios with a spoon full of peanut butter, how appetizing! I am very pleased with the taste of the Cheerios and am happy with the fact that my stomach does not get upset after eating them! I am pleased to find that my stomach is feeling well but I will continue to be cautious! Jackie and I are working on our evaluations, flip book and our breast self-exam fact sheet today. We plan on finishing each and this will allow us to implement our material as soon as possible. We hope that the material will be beneficial as well as useful for many years to come. The hospital will be receiving our flip book after we have left and the fact sheets will stay with the women to allow for cohesion as well as exams to be followed in the proper manner.
Around 1:30 we took a break and went for a little walk around Madurai. We ended up down the same street as we always do and proceeded into the secluded sections of town allowing us to view the “unknown”. We were offered everything from bags, purses, necklaces, maps and flowers from all the people on the street. Walking the streets of Madurai is strenuous work! I found some fabulous jewelry and was pleased with the break from our work. We ended back at the hotel around 3 and completed our work. When we finished with our flip book we talked and relaxed for a bit. The whole group came back around 5 and we then went to dinner on the roof top. Dinner consisted of a Pepsi and a “club sandwich”. The reason I put quotations was the fact that there were 3 pieces of bread, an egg, minced chicken, tomatoes as well as cucumbers on it! Very interesting but I was very hungry by this point and it settled well with my stomach. The last point of our checklist for the day was to have Anne review our book/evaluation and then we would present it to Uma and he will then translate it into Tamil in order for the women to read/understand what we are trying to teach them. Today was very laid back but high stress none the less. I am very happy we completed all of our goals and are well on our way to implementation.
The members who traveled during the day came back with very appealing stories. They went door to door in a village a tested their questions/found their research subjects. Many of the stories consisted of men speaking up/over the women in order to provide the answers to the questions that were asked. I found this to be a collective framework that occurred across Tamil Nadu. The women are willing and waiting to talk but the stigma providing men as overbearing is definitely seen here. The women who were able to talk with out being interrupted told of their life stories, when they married, how many children, etc. I was thinking and making connections to the States and how patients are private and the HIPPA act is in place. It is a great testing area to receive information from those with first hand knowledge than not. The women are more than willing to give our information and this is exciting! The research collected here is done very differently than the way it is collected in the states. I find the level of privacy to be very low while in India. Even while walking on the streets, women/men ask where I am from, why I am here and when I am leaving. Their curiosity has expended mine by 20! I have found their interest to be forward and direct, in which I like on a few levels. I was very happy to be filled in on the day’s events and was also excited to know that Mamma Mia was on at 10 p.m.! Shruthi and I have not turned on our television since we came but tonight it was plugged back in and Mamma Mia showed up! I not only enjoy the musical/movie but was happy to view it while settling down for the day! I thank everyone for emailing me and face booking me to let me know what is happening in the states. I am glad everyone is well and I am very nervous to go to the leprosy village tomorrow! This will be a once in a lifetime experience but I am nervous for some reason! It is now 12 p.m. and I am ready for bed! We only have 7 days till we leave, now!
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