Sickness

Hey everyone,

My installation at post has been delayed for two reasons. The first is that tomorrow is Mawlid, an important Muslim holiday and by association an important Nigerien holiday. The second is that the two of us being installed in the same region have each picked up some nasty intestinal problems recently. Yesterday we were supposed to meet with the regional officials in Tillaberi. It was a formality, introductions to people we will never see again. However, the other volunteer had a rough night Sunday and found out Monday that she had picked up amoebas and bacteria. I, on the other hand, discovered that I'd picked up giardia. What fun!

For those of you who didn't know, as I did not when I accepted this post, Niger is one of the three hardest Peace Corps posts. The other two are Mongolia (extreme cold) and Mauritania (extreme heat). Niger has both extreme heat, poverty, and an abundance of bad things in the GI tract. We were told early on that the incidence of diarrhea in this country is 334 cases per 100 volunteers per year. I've had two cases so far in the last 3 weeks.

The last time I had bacteria, which resulted in a fever, cramps, and I don't want to even describe the frequency or consistency of...yeah, best not to think about it. The treatment is three days of antibiotics. This time has been a little better. Giardia required only a single dose of pills, after which I slept for about 15 hours. Bacteria with amoebas is slightly worse, and by slightly I mean very very bad. It requires a 3-day dose of antibiotics for the bacteria, a 3-day dose of another drug for the amoebas, and a 7-day dose to clear the intestine of amoebic cysts, which can release more amoebas weeks or even months later. The drug combination is like dropping a thermonuclear warhead inside your small intestine and often feels worse than the original diarrhea.

Apologies for the disgusting post, but now you have a better idea of what I've been going through in Peace Corps Niger the past couple months. Sorry, but I have to run. The giardia is acting up again...