Food Poisoning – Be Serious!

Oh Be Serious! You can’t be food poisoning from RICE! Oh yes you can… it’s a little bacteria called B. ceres.

Any med student how dutifully read through their “First Aid for Step 1” book while studying for their board exams knows this little saying to help them remember a sneaky little cause of food poisoning. I was just (un)lucky enough to get to experience it in practice.

I won’t regale you with stories of projectile vomiting for hours on end (well I guess I just did), but rather with the kindness that I was shown. Michael, the receptionist at the hotel noticed that I didn’t seem well when I checked in. When I didn’t come back downstairs after a few hours, he called up and started asking me about my symptoms. He then came to my room and gently said, “I’m not a doctor, but I think it was something you ate and I think I have something that may help.” He then made me a cup of lemon and honey tea and said he’d check back in an hour. The tea just provided fodder for the exotoxin but the kindness was greatly appreciated. When I wasn’t any better later in the evening, he went out and somehow found an open pharmacy to be me medicine. Again, not something that stayed down, but the kindness was greatly appreciated.

There isn’t really much treatment for food poisoning except time and trying to minimize dehydration. But when you feel like crap, are lying in a foreign hotel, and just want a hug from your mommy, a cup of kindness from a stranger means the world.

Unless of course it’s not actually food poisoning… five days in…. I think it might actually be a really bad case of giardia…. Hmmm.