At the end of the language exchange meeting it started to rain. I hadn't yet signed up for Grab, an Uber like ridesharing service, and got thoroughly soaked on my walk back. The next day, I didn't feel great, had low energy and no appetite. It wasn't like a cold, and I had no COVID symptoms, but I did a self-test right away: negative. Well, no harm in eating a little less for a few days—there's hardly any woman who doesn't like to get rid of a few extra pounds, right? So, I ate less 😏, drank less😒, and eventually stopped worrying about finding a washroom on my daily excursions 😟.

I got weaker, and my balance worsened. That's when I knew I needed medical attention! Luckily, Sandra—you might remember her from my Prachuap stories—came to my rescue with an excellent recommendation.

On Monday, I booked an appointment at Dr. Morgan's HCMC health centre for the following afternoon. On Tuesday morning I tried to solve my pressing laundry issue. I didn't have enough strength to do the usual hand washing but thought I can manage the 11-minute walk to the laundromat.

On the way back I run out of steam, fell into a ditch, got stuck under a tree branch, could neither free myself nor use my phone. After what felt like eternity, a young delivery driver finally heard my call for help and got me back on my feet. He didn't speak English, gave me the water left in his small bottle to clean up, then disappeared just to come back a few minutes later with a big bottle of water. When I picked up my not so clean mask—we were supposed to wear them even outdoors—he firmly shook his head and handed me a new one. The memories of my rather unpleasant time in mother nature's undergrowth will fade over time, but I'll never forget this kind young man and our silent but clear communication.

Back at my hotel room, I needed to rest before I could tackle the task of cleaning myself. I would have never been able to make it to the clinic on time and rebooked my appointment for the next day.

I arrived at HCMC the next day very weak, with a fever, severely dehydrated, and disoriented. Covid test: negative. I don't know what prompted me to mention a small lesion on my back that had appeared a few weeks ago, never itched, and never changed. Dr. Morgan immediately suspected scrub typhus, a parasite infection, which should respond well to antibiotics. She put me on IV, added some fever reducing and kidney and liver healing drugs to the cocktail, twice sent blood samples to the hospital for testing, and provided me with all the required medication and the strict order to drink and eat. The fever was gone at the end of the day, and I went back to the hotel.

Besides soiling my freshly washed but not dried laundry, my involuntary side-trip to the ditch left me with impressive colorful bruises and also swallowed one of the lenses in my glasses. I didn't have enough time for a repair in Thailand and ended up wearing old glasses with a long-outdated prescription for the next four weeks 🧐.

I made another—successful—trip to the laundromat, this time using the ridesharing Grab service and so staying far away from any ditches!

For the next few days I still felt very weak and nauseous, eating was an unpleasant chore. I went back to the clinic once more and spent another 4 hours on IV. After that, the nausea subsided, and I started the slow but steady process of recovery.

Two days later was my last day in Chiang Mai before returning to Bangkok for my flight back to Canada. How would my body hold up? I decided to give it a test with a one-hour slow walk to the big Night Bazaar, the only place where I had seen colorful small elephants that would make a perfect thank-you gift for a few friends at home and the only souvenir for myself. I had to take a good rest halfway, found what I was looking for, and immediately called a Grab for the ride back.

My thoughts looking back on the ordeal?

• The medical care at HCMC was excellent and very affordable: under $500 (CAD) including medication, lab work, and detailed reports for follow-up in Canada. My travel insurance covered all expenses.
• In a similar situation, I would certainly seek medical attention sooner, in Thailand or elsewhere.
• There are indeed other illnesses besides COVID 😜.
• Some friends thought that I must be glad to be back in Canada for treatment. No, I'm very grateful that diagnosis and instant care happened in Thailand. Scrub typhus is a tropical illness. My family doctor had never heard of it— and I don't blame him.
• Has this experience changed my carefree attitude towards travelling in Asia? Not a bit. I could have been bitten by a stray dog, a greedy monkey, or a common tick (at home in Canada). I could have caught food poisoning or twisted my ankle. Things happen. Considering that this was the very first time that I had to see a doctor while travelling, I just checked it off my "to-do list" and moved on.
• Has it changed my opinion of solo travelling? No, I would have felt a thousand times worse knowing that I ruined a friend's vacation. Besides, I'm very cranky when I'm not well 🙄. But I'm tremendously grateful for everyone who helped me out when I needed it: Sandra's clinic recommendation, Dr. Morgan's care, my friends' concerned inquiries, suggestions, and encouragement, airport pick-up, and even offers to help me with my medical bill. I never felt alone.
  So, what would I have done without Sandra's referral? There's a huge expat community in Thailand—I'm sure, one posting would have given me plenty of leads.

Epilogue:

Blood tests after my return to Canada confirmed that I was on the mend and didn't need further treatment. It took a few weeks until I recovered all my strength.

Unfortunately, it appears that I've now contracted telogen effluvium as an aftermath of the incident, a condition that leads to significant hair loss and is usually triggered after stress or a traumatic event. The parasite infection and resulting acute kidney and liver injury definitely put a lot of stress on my body, the timing matches the description for the disorder, and a few emotional challenges shortly after my return probably added the last drop to the cup already filled to the brim.

TE is usually self-limiting, lasting for about 6 months, which is small comfort and neither lowers my stress level nor improves my mental well-being 🙄. But maybe planning my next trip will 😀.