From the physical therapist

I’m finally adding to this worthwhile blog. 

The day before yesterday I began earning my keep by seeing some physical therapy patients. I’ve been a PT for almost 24 years, so I know my way around the human musculoskeletal, neuromuscular and neurological systems. I am, however, greatly hampered by my ability to speak only the most rudimentary elements of the Spanish language.  I can count to 10, order off a menu and ask ‘where is the bathroom?’. With this level of language skill, it is impossible to take a history. I therefore relied heavily on Eddie and Jazmin’s translation skills. 

The physical therapy patients I encounter at Roca Blanco fall into two major categories: simple or complicated. A simple case would be the single-joint orthopedic patient. The complicated case is the 3 weeks s/p dense CVA with hemiplegia. Since I don’t have as much as a reflex hammer here, I do the best I can with my brain and my hands.

We missed our work in the clinic this afternoon, but not because we wanted to…

     The van broke down

There was no lack of help from the locals eager to lend a hand to a van full of pretty American girls (and a couple of guys), but 5 people scratching their heads was no better than one person doing so.  The starter was Jerry rigged to begin with. The starter fuse had been bypassed by wrapping the starter wire around a fuse prong and shuving the fuse into the appropriate terminal. But the fuse popped out and Dave didn’t know where it came from. Then one of the helpers dropped the fuse somewhere in the abyss of the engine compartment. Eventually, Dave left in a taxi to pick up a mechanic from the next town over. A different van came and carried us back to mission base. And that’s how it goes in Mexico. 

This evening we visited the bioluminescent lake. The glowing water and sparkling hands were surreal. You can’t take a picture of it and you can’t take a sample home. You can only take a memory of the experience. 

I’m thankful that the local variety of mosquitoes do not seem to be attracted to my A-positive blood.