My fight with Malaria and Typhoid

The impulse to write this was created by my friend who had a similar experience with typhoid, but i had a double whammy with malaria and typhoid. It all started with the north east monsoon setting over Tamilnadu (It receives more than 50% rainfall through this unlike other Indian states). Two days of heavy downpour made the streets of Chennai filled with slush and became a breeding ground of mosquitoes.I chose to wear sandals instead of shoes as i need to evade through half feet of stagnating water. I experienced mosquito bites in my office bus as it was in disuse for entire day after dropping us in office. It became a good place for mosquitoes to grow. My roommate also suffered fever along with me but i took medication from doctor. But after subsiding again on stoppage of medicines fever re occured.Since he gave his blood to test for malaria and typhoid,i also gave at a different centre without any advice from doctor. His reports came and both were negative instilling a positive hope that it will be same for me. Meanwhile my situation was worse and i was terribly down and needed my dad’s help. On hearing my screams he rushed to Chennai from a wedding in Namakkal. But the next day when i got result for malaria i was shell shocked, it was positive and doctor gave me medicine which had 6 tablets to be taken every six hours. The comical thing was when my dad came i was alright to goto office. Immediately after having lunch we decided to take train to home. It was Kovai express and i had stamina to enter the unreserved compartment through emergency exit window to catch a place for my father and me without getting the typhoid result as doctor told chances are very bleak to get both in tandem.

The journey started from Chennai central and i was alright till Katpadi, then i was feeling a very high fever and by the time it reached Erode i was in a semi unconscious state and  i needed a extra arm to walk straight.I told my dad i had no stamina to travel further which was a sharp contrast to how i was some 6 hrs before.I stayed at my grandmas place before proceeding further to Sathyamangalam. The night was terrible as i was sleepless and vomiting whatever i ate and no signs of fever getting subsiding.

As per my grandfather’s advice was to consult a nearby family doctor. He listened carefully the symptoms which i faced and revealed him that i also gave blood to test typhoid. As per his advice i dialed the diagnostic center and they told something to him.After the call he told that you also have typhoid. He prescribed some medicines. My dad went length and breadth of Erode to get the prescribed medicines and he succeeded in buying after a lot of hardships.

Meanwhile i ran of leave in office and my project was peaking to a crucial stage.I was thinking that i have floundered my first project and had to suffer loss of pay. The strict diet prescribed was the only thing which i can’t forget. The good thing was that even after getting both they didn’t ask me get hospitalized and they believed that i had enough fluids to sustain. I was tired physically but mentally i was fresh. I had only choice of rice  porridge at my disposal. Some suggested to have oats porridge but mere smell of oats made me to vomit and till date i hate oats.

To have solid diet i took 3 days and i was ready to work in a weeks time.I was back to work after a hiatus of 10 days. The sad part was that i was absent for only 7 working days with 3 days of leave without LoP at my disposal. Due to LoP concept at my office for 4 working days i suffered salary loss of 7 days which included weekends and one government holiday for Gandhi Jayanthi.

I picked up speed at work and soon was working 18-20 hours daily in office for next 15 days to get the job done. I lost just 4 kgs unlike my friend who lost half kg a day for just Malaria :)…

Dynastic Politics in India-The missing link

I was  wondering why in India dynastic politics has become a routine affair. Right from national parties like Congress(known one) to regional parties like DMK, Rashtriya Lok Dal, NCP all have seen father/son or father/daughter kind of things. If the leader has an extended family then numerous power centers and each one of them competing to show who is great in controlling power. Lets come to the reason, India being a traditionally a Hindu country(other religions are converts from Hindus only) where you have numerous Gods and Goddess. I equate them to father figures but definitely they don’t have any qualities to be compared with Gods. Consider Lord Shiva and we worship her consort Parvathi and their children Karthikeyan and Vinayak. So we can see this as a first family of Siva and we the people or politicians have emulated this and say for example first family of DMK has Karuna holding the power and his extended clan from his sons like Stalin to grand nephews Marans hold numerous power centers.

Karuna's first family

First family of Lord Siva