Elizabeth goes on Med Hold

So in the two and a half weeks since I arrived at my site in Chiwamba, I have been sick all but about five days. It started as a cold, which morphed into a coughy- tight- chest thing. Being sick is no fun when you have to draw your own water and cook over fire- no spending the whole day in bed! Plus it was frustrating to finally be somewhere where I could actually do something and instead feel too weak :-(
After starting on some antibiotics last week, I felt better for long enough to walk out to some of the nearby villages where the HSA's were doing child nutrition campaigns. I helped measure children to screen for malnutrition while the HSA's gave out vitamin A and mebendazole for worms. We were able to identify several malnourished children who were then referred back to the Health Centre for supplemental feeding. After about three days of this, though, I started feeling crummy again. Two nights ago I had a fever and called the doc bac, who had me come into Lilongwe first thing yesterday morning.
I hitched out from my village to the main road with some missionaries (thank you!!!) and rode in the back of a truck into town (not fun- we were stopped at a police checkpoint for almost an hour...). The doc found me lying on the steps outside the clinic, out of breath. Some new meds and a bit of IV fluids later, I felt a little better. I told the doc that I hadn't eaten in two days and he took me out for a milkshake!!
So I will be in Lilongwe for a few days until I am fully recovered.
And then....hopefully....starting actual work in Chiwamba...