Among the many realities of moving away from your support system, being it a new city or a new country, is that life keeps happening. The ups and the downs. One of the downs is that you will get sick. When we lived in Korea it wasn’t uncommon for newly arrived Westerners to fall ill within the first few weeks.
Jetlag and stress, even good stress, weaken the immune system and there are all kinds of new microbes to be exposed to. I imagine it is similar for Easterners headed West. During my first few weeks on Jeju I developed tonsillitis. Previous to that I had never had tonsillitis in my life. Never. Nor have I had it since.
Back to the present, Saturday I felt off. Sunday I developed a stitch in my side. After lunch I felt bloated. I popped a Gas-X that I’d brought with me from the States. As anyone who has ever suffered from it gas trapped within the body can be quite painful. It is not uncommon for people to end up in the ER thinking they are having heart attacks. So, when my discomfort increased I didn’t think too much of it. Just took another Gas-X and went to bed. It wasn’t until the pain woke me that I started to worry.
The rest of the night was spent on the floor of my bathroom. The pain in my right side continued to increase. My stomach felt stretched and bloated to double its normal size- and it was moving. Like something out of a horror movie I could see the vomit and diarrhea fighting their way out of me. I was shaking and sweating and thoroughly miserable. Finally, my body was just empty. It could have been worse. At least my bathroom floor is heated.
Like most travellers or adventurous eaters I’ve had my share of gastrointestinal incidents. This was not the first, or even third, time I’d slept on the bathroom floor. There’d been Vietnam, Paris, India, a time or two in Korea, and one of the worst right after we moved back home to Louisiana. If it wasn’t for the pain I would have been miserable, but not particularly worried. The pain, though. That bothered me on multiple levels.
If I had been home I would have awakened SM and we would have had several choices. Call Dad and ask him to stay with Lil Bit. Call SM’s mom and ask her to stay with Lil Bit. Bring Lil Bit to either of them or ask either one of them to drive me to Urgent Care while SM stayed home. If Dad and MiL were not around we still had my brother, SiL, aunt, and uncle all within walking distance plus easily half a dozen Urgent Care centers within a ten minute drive. That’s not counting the two hospitals.
But, I was not home. So, I waited until SM’s alarm went off and told him he would have to handle Lil Bit that morning and I needed to see a doctor. At this point I gotta tell you, when stuff like this happens I am forcefully reminded that despite not having the social safety net we would have at home I am lucky not to be doing this alone. For the single parents out there, especially the ones away from home who are having to sew and forge together your own social webs, to you I give a standing ovation.
We showed up at our medical clinic shortly before nine. By this time the pain was so bad I could not stand up straight or hold still. You may be wondering if I took anything for the pain. The answer is no. Since I was still nauseated and vomiting it seemed moot to take anything orally. Also, I’d spent a lot of time on the bathroom floor Googling my symptoms and had come up with four possibilities. The one I thought most likely, gastritis, could be further iritated by aspirin or other anti-inflammatory drugs. As it turns out I did not have anything on my list and am suffering from an upper urinary tract infection. Particularly, I have a bacterial infection in my kidney.
Despite UTIs being among the most common infections in humans, particularly for women, this is my first. Upper tract UTIs are relatively unusual. Symptoms of an upper tract UTI include: pain and tenderness in the upper back and sides, chills, fever, nausea, and vomiting. If left untreated they can damage the kidneys or spread to the bloodstream. Symptoms will normally pass within three to five days of starting treatment. Both upper and lower tract UTIs are normally treated with a short course of antibiotics.
Now, about the Danish healthcare system. My own clinic has open hours between eight and eight-thirty Monday through Friday. Otherwise you are advised to call first. As a matter of fact, calling first is a major theme of the healthcare system. The emergency number for Denmark, and much of Europe, is 112. Always call 112 for emergency life-threatening illness or injury. Denmark also has a Medical Helpline. The number varies depending on region. For the capital region, my region, the number is 1813. The Helpline must be called to get access to an emergency department or an emergency clinic.
The Helpline is manned by specially trained nurses and doctors who advise on what to do in case of injury or sudden illness. Call 1813 when your own medical clinic has closed. The Helpline is open weekdays at 16:00 to 08:00 and Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Again, always call first. All inquiries must be made by telephone. There will be waiting time on the phone. Patience. *You’ll probably get through.* (Direct quote.)
Before calling 1813, have any health insurance cards or other information like meds currently taking, allergies to medication, temperature in case of fever, at the ready. If using a mobile phone service based outside Denmark, please remember to use Denmark’s country code +45 before dialing 1813.
This website provides advice and guidance on suddenly emerging illness in children and adults. The site provides citizens with information on how to get in touch with the medical officer, 1813, emergency services, and emergency clinics. To access this Danish language site I used Chrome’s translation feature.
The Capital Region Denmark has a generally helpful site in English with a thorough section on healthcare. Their services page is where I got much of this info. Also Living in Denmark has this helpful Emergencies page.