Sophia's Rash
So, Sophia developed a rash shortly after we arrived. I didn't think much of it, it seemed similar to a rash I get when I go running in cold weather. But slowly it has been spreading all over her stomach, onto her sides and back, and it itches her terribly. I didn't have lotion, and I was putting my face moisturizer on her for a while, but finally I bought lotion. And finally, today, I decided to take her to see the school nurse. I'd been waiting it out, and it looked like it was getting better, but it still looks pretty bad.
So, I took my assistant as a translator, and we went to the nurse. The nurse prescribed us medicine and told us to go see a dermatologist at the hospital. I talked to Valerie, who had had a rash during her first week here, and had seen the nurse. She had been prescribed medicine and told to go to the dermatologist at the hospital. She did, and all the dermatologist did was say to take the medicine and see if it got better, which it did.
So I decided to take the wait-and-see approach. We were out of food at our apartment, and I knew I had to leave on time (5:30) so we could get to the supermarket and not get home too late on a school night. Now we also had to go to the pharmacy, which luckily I knew where it is located (right by the supermarket) and have miraculously remembered the Russian word for pharmacy.
However, around 5:00 the principal came and told me that my desk would be delivered at 5:30, so we had to hurry on home. Plus, the guy who would fix the heater would be there around 6:00. So we hurried home and found the desk guys waiting in a truck. They didn't ask for Tenge, and they quickly set up the desk. The Russian word for desk and table is the same--stol (long o sound). And the desk isn't much different from a table--no drawers. I've noticed that none of the teachers' desks have drawers; they all have mini cabinets next to the desks.
So the table guys were gone well before 6:00, but the heater guy never showed up. So at 7:00 we finally set out. I had to decide: pharmacy or supermarket? Medicine or food? Because it was late and I was in no mood to go to both. Sophia was hungry, so I chose food.
The next day, we managed to go to the pharmacy on our way to school, but they only had one of the two medicines. When we arrived at the school, we ran into the nurse, who speaks no English, so I couldn't explain why we hadn't gone to the hospital or taken the medicine. She was able to let us know that she had the other medicine in her room, so we first unpacked and then went to her room.
The nurse wasn't in her room, but her assistant was, who got the medicine--some strange-looking black tablets. She tried to get Sophia to swallow one. What a joke. Sophia sputtered and cries and finally managed to accidentally swallow a piece of one. Then she tried to get Sophia to swallow one of the the little white pills that I got at the pharmacy. This would be humorous, if Sophia weren't so upset, and if she didn't spit out the water and pill on the assistant. (Sophia says she didn't spit--spitting implies intent--but simply coughed. Well, it spewed quite a distant, and the assistant got quite wet.)
She then gave up, and as we were leaving we ran into the nurse, and I couldn't explain why Sophia hadn't taken the pills, so back we went into the nurse's room, where the assistant explained. Then the nurse went to her cabinet and took out liquid medicine! Hooray! Sophia happily drank this. Then the nurse explained that we can stir the black tablets in water and she can drink. So that's better.
Then went back to my classroom, and I had my Kazakh teacher write down what I now need from the pharmacist--a liquid version of whatever the white pills are.
So was it worth going to the nurse? Time will tell.
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