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| These are my letters from Mexico, in case you missed them! :) | |||||
Letter 4 (July 14, 2006):
I know it's July and I haven't written in ages! Life has been a little overwhelming and I've been hesitant to sit down and write it all out. But here it goes… I’ve been back in the U.S. since the end of June but I wasn't slated to return until August 1st. I hardly know how to start so I’ll go back to the beginning… In February, I noticed I was losing hair but when I mentioned it to others, they told me it was just the Merida water. When I returned to the U.S. in April, I went to the doctor just to check in and mentioned the hair loss. She said losing 50-100 hairs daily is normal and some people lose more after rapid weight loss. I’d lost weight at a normal rate in a healthy way and felt like the hair loss was abnormal but I took her word for it. I went back to Mexico on May 2nd and promptly cut my hair to my chin, hoping it would help the situation, but it didn’t. I kept asking people for advice but nobody seemed to take me seriously... many said I must not be eating right, but I was taking a women's multivitamin daily and eating well. I mostly felt fine otherwise, aside from a few other side effects I later realized were connected. One night, in June, as I was washing my hair, I realized it was significantly thinner. I freaked out and after a good cry, I wracked my brain for possible causes. I sent a few ideas to Shaun, who did some research and discovered a definite connection between my antimalarial medication, Chloroquine, and hair loss! My doctor said I should stop the medication and go to an area with lower malaria risk. Within a few days, I was packing up, saying quick goodbyes to my Champoton friends, and hopping a bus. I arrived in Merida just as the sun was setting and grabbed a taxi to the same house where I stayed my first 3 months in Mexico; the house belongs to my mom’s childhood friend, Laura, and her ex-husband (as of February), Juan. They all moved to Cancun so no one lives there now. I went to see Juan’s sister, Carmela, who lives on the same street and keeps the key to the house. It was then that my night suddenly got really complicated… Juan had told me in May that I was welcome at the house any time, just to ask Carmela for the key. His daughter, Laurita, knew about my situation and had told me the day before that I was welcome to stay in the house. But, as it turned out, Juan had decided impulsively to sell the house without letting anyone know. He had came the day before, took the key, and put the house on the market. So at about 9:00pm, I realized I had no place to stay. My mom gave me the sweetest surprise; she went online and bought me 2 nights at a nice hotel. It was a great gift but I couldn’t afford to continue staying there. I moved over to a hostel downtown that only cost about $10 per night. I’d only been there a couple of days when things dramatically changed again. Even though I had stopped my meds, my hair was rapidly worsening,. When I woke up to find my pillow covered with my hair one morning, I contacted my mom and told her I was scared something might be really wrong with me. She contacted my pharmacist, who was very concerned and insisted that I come home immediately for blood tests. She said I needed to see if my liver, or anything else, had been damaged by the meds. I learned of this at 1:00pm on Friday; by 2:00 I decided to catch the next plane out of Merida. By 3:00, I was packed up, checked out of the hostel and in a taxi. I made it to the airport by 3:30, bought my tickets and was on a plane by 4:00pm. I flew to Mexico City, then to Chicago, where I spent a cold, sleepless night in the airport. I arrived in Raleigh at 9:00am on Saturday and by 10:30am, I was in the doctor’s office. Whew! It all happened VERY quickly. I was in a state of shock and very sad because I didn’t get to say goodbye to so many people, and I didn’t know if I would be able to return. The blood tests thankfully came back normal so the doctors do not think I have internal damage. My dermatologist says it is highly likely that Chloroquine was the culprit. As of now, my hair loss is still bad but seems to be improving some. I am taking vitamin supplements but can’t bring myself to try Progaine… one of the side effects is facial hair and I can’t handle that! It has all been pretty depressing. I feel unfeminine and insecure; I feel like everyone can tell I’ve lost a ton of hair. I’m told it looks thin but not like I’m “balding.” I guess that’s somewhat encouraging… And now for some silver lining… in other news, I’m applying for my first teaching job – I want to start with a Teacher Assistant position in a kindergarten class. I have been contacted by a few schools already and had my first interview today. So it was nice that I was home for that. I also got to spend a few days with my mom at the beach this week, which was great! The best news of all is Shaun and I can go back to Mexico – we leave this Sunday for Cancun! We can’t visit any malaria zones (i.e. no Champoton) but there is always next time. I have been planning hard for this trip though and we will still have a blast! I’ll keep a journal and will be sure to share our pictures and stories. We will be back August 1st so I will try to write shortly after that. Hope you’re well. I’m working hard to catch up with all the emails that I am, ONCE AGAIN, behind on! Still, please write back and let me know how you’re doing. I’ll reply as soon as I can but tonight I have to finish packing! Love you all. Take care and hope to hear from you soon. -Kelly 2006-07-15 03:08:58 GMT
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