Deployment, Day 160 – Disease

It was bound to happen. There are a couple of bad illnesses that were picked up in Thailand being passed around the ship. Nothing deadly or debilitating, just a couple of nasty bugs that are making some people feel pretty miserable. There is some kind of nasty flu-like illness, as well as some kind of GI tract disease that is giving people nasty diarrhea. The doc said that he has already had over 100 people visit medical for the illnesses, and that doesn’t include the people that are just lying in bed, trying to battle the disease by themselves without the help of medical.

When someone picks up a disease in a foreign port, it is not uncommon for it to spread across the ship like wildfire. We are in the perfect environment for the transmission of disease. We live in very close quarters, breathe the same air, use the same toilets, eat in the same room, and work in the same offices. If you work solely within the skin of the ship, you might as well be living in a petrie dish. Sometimes it is only a matter of time until you get it.

I am actually surprised that I have escaped so far unscathed. The last time we picked up some bugs from a foreign port (right after Singapore), I picked it up almost right away. There have also been four other people who stayed in the same house as me in Thailand that have gotten sick. I have been careful though. I wash my hands three or four times a day. After I was sick last, Lady Anne sent me some small bottles of that antibacterial hand sanitizer stuff. I keep one bottle in my pocket at all times and use it whenever I touch common surfaces and before I eat.

I hope this time it runs its course and avoids me completely. With only three weeks until we get home, it would really be a bummer to get sick now.