India? Not this time...

It has been decided that taking on projects in India is just too much for this trip and for the controllable size of Therapists Without Borders.

All those great reasons to visit the New Light organization in Kolkata still stand. They are in the center of the sex district and prostitution is a primary way of life out there. New Light attempts to stem the flow of children heading toward that fate, and give young women new opportunities for positive development. There's no doubt that psychotherapists, counselors, psychologists, and social workers would make an immense impact on their mental and emotional health.

However, after months of debating with myself, talking to a few key people about the situation out there, and taking a hard look at all the projects I'm already trying to take on as a newborn non-profit, we've concluded that India is too immense to take on at this early stage. Not only are there language barriers, but also deep cultural values that I feel I would need to give much more time to understand in order to better serve them in the future. In fact, Kolkata is not the only place in India that would stand to benefit from that kind of help. I almost took on another project just by hearing about another organization in the city of Kushalnagar!

On top of that, I have already been feeling like there are a million things I need/want to do for Therapists Without Borders without even leaving the country yet. By the time I come back from Cuzco, I will have my mind buzzing with work for them (ThWB will set itself up to screen, interview, and prepare volunteer therapists for them). Then I will be visiting 4 villages in Kenya and a school AND orphanage in Ghana. More information about those projects later. Needless to say, that's plenty enough work for the rest of the year!

What made the decision final, is that I have not yet heard back from the director of New Light. I am given to understand from the various people who have worked with her that she is an extraordinary woman, but is also extraordinarily busy. She has created many many projects beyond, and in support of, New Light... and has worked with the Dalai Lama (yay, my first name drop). It has been difficult to coordinate my visit with her for the past couple months, and with the trip coming up so soon, I just don't feel comfortable flying by the seat of my pants on this one, unless I'm a tourist.

Speaking of the trip, it's a good thing I still had not purchased plane tickets. I had been waiting to get things confirmed with New Light, and waiting to hear back from a pro bono travel agent who helped me look for humanitarian fares for flights. Now I can rearrange my time in Kenya and Ghana, and save money and stress from the issue of getting India's visa (I'd have had to pay $200 in total, for all the components of the application and to get it expedited).

:: phew ::

Vaccinations & Medications

My past (relevant) immunization history:

• Hepatitis A -- 2008
  
• Hepatitis B -- 1994, '95, '96
  
• IPV (Polio) -- 2007
  
• MMR (Measles/Mumps/Rubella) -- 1994
  
• Td (Tetnus, Diphtheria) -- 2004
  
• Typhoid -- 2007
  
• Varicella (from prior infection) -- 1986
  
• Yellow fever -- 2007

Vaccines recommended for my next travels:

• Flu: primarily because of being in enclosed airspace during my looong and multiple flights
  
• Hepatitis A: because this is a 2-dose series to get lifetime immunity, so I just need one more.
  
• MMR: because I will be working in close contact with people with disabilities who have unknown diagnoses, I should get a booster
  
• Oral Typhoid: because the first vaccine I received was a shot, which lasts only 2 years. Oral typhoid, which are 4 pills taken across 7 days, lasts 5 years.

• Tdap: Even though it hasn't been 10 years since I received my last Td, the physician recommended I get this new Tdap as an early booster because it also protects against Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
  
• Meningococcal (Meningitis): this has caused epidemics in parts of Africa. I couldn't remember whether or not I had received a shot for college (that was over 10 years ago, after all!), but the physician suggested I get a booster regardless.
  

Side Effects:

First, a side note. I asked not to receive any of those vaccines on the day of the consultation because I had not had eaten yet. Instead I scheduled to get them through my primary physician a day later, as I also wanted to consult with her about delaying my menstrual cycle through birth control pills. (There are many reasons for considering this, but the fascinating aspects of toileting in rural Kenya will have to be explained in another post. For now, consider yourself so much luckier if you are a guy.) After a long talk about the risks and benefits, I decided not to take those pills not only because I dislike taking pills/meds if I can help it, but also because they need to be taken at the same time every day, and the last thing I need is to keep track of the hours across 4 countries' time zones!

SO I received only the flu shot, Hep A, and oral typhoid. Firstly because I did not want 5 shots in one go. Secondly because some things aren't to be mixed with other things. Thirdly, I do not need all of them yet because the greater risks areas are in India and Africa.

Side effects of the flu and Hep A have been minimal. Flu (0.5cc) was nothing. Hep A (1.0cc) was super sore where it was injected, but lasted only a day. Oral Typhoid... I have to take on an empty stomach so that it can travel all the way to the small intestine. It has been causing some mild headache and nausea.


Prescriptions:

• Mefloquine (anti-malarial): I take this once a week and have to start taking it 2 weeks before traveling and continue until 4 weeks after returning to the USA. The most common side effect of this is vivid dreams. Not nightmares, but vivid and very weird dreams. I've taken this before, and the most memorable dream involved my flying on a broom through walls at a generic Hogwarts. I kid you not ;-)
• Azithromycin: for traveler's diarrhea. They called me "iron stomach" in Kenya, until I got food poisoning my 3rd time visiting and spent the night throwing up. No diarrhea though. That, I got in Vietnam.

Visit to the Travel Health Clinic

Next week will be my 6th trip to a developing country. But this week was only my 4th visit to a travel clinic since 2007. I had skipped a couple times because I don't like to shell out $$ to be told the same things... but this time I'm heading to new territories, and it's been a while since my last visit. Plus, I can't get anti-malarial medication without a prescription from a travel doctor... believe me, I've tried!

1) You fill out a form explaining your health/medical/medicinal history as well as where you are going, when, and for how long. They make copies of your immunization history if you brought it.

2) Then the receptionist prints out general advisories for the countries you write down. For my four countries (Peru, India, Kenya, Ghana), I was given 113 pages. Some excerpts for you (pages turned to at random; emphases copied from text):

It is illegal to wear military-style or camouflage clothing. Photography of sensitive installations, including military sites, government buildings, bridges, and Accra's international airport, is prohibited. Permission should be sought before photographing official buildings and individuals.

- Pg 8, under Ghana's country profile

High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) is a buildup of fluid in the lungs that can occur along with HACE or as a separate illness. Like HACE, it is a medical emergency. Those affected will be breathless and very tired when walking and have a sense of fullness or pressure in the chest. Eventually victims will be short of breath even while resting. At this point the illness can rapidly progress to death. Victims must be guided back down and receive drug and oxygen treatment as soon as their illness is recognized as HAPE. They should be kept warm and assisted as much as possible, since exertion will make their condition worse.

- Pg 30, under "Altitude Sickness" (relevant for Cuzco, Peru)

Swimmers are especially at risk in choppy, windy conditions, when tentacles can get wrapped around an arm or leg. Waders, beachcombers, and divers who may see the float but not the tentacles are also at risk. Envenomation causes instant severe pain, local wheals, blisters, and necrosis of skin. General symptoms include nausea, vomiting, cardiac and respiratory difficulties, and loss of consciousness leading to drowning. Deaths have occurred in the Atlantic coast of the U.S. (including Florida) and some Carribbean islands.

- Pg 75, under Marine Hazards

It's definitely fun bedtime reading!

There was a secondary packet that is only 11 pages. It was a summary of general safety, security and other precautions... like not rinsing your toothbrush in tap water and avoiding rabid animals.

Check and check.

3) You go into a private room and talk for at least an hour about your past immunizations, places you intend to visit, activities in which you intend to participate, the seasons of your destinations, altitude considerations, flight lengths, time zone changes, diet and medical history, travel experience, and on and on. That all boils down to what kind of warnings they'll give and vaccinations they recommend. They don't do physicals or checkups like that.

At the time of my visit, there was a new hire RN who was observing the staff and procedures. As the doctor knocked on my door to enter, she glanced at my chart, paused, and turned behind her, saying to the nurse, "You might want to sit in on this one. This could be interesting."

That was funny :-)

4) Conclusions are made and prescriptions are written. I was prescribed 6 vaccines and 2 medications. This I will write about in a separate post. Needless to say, I will be immune to pretty much everything. And probably glow in the dark.

Good times!

To Do List

By 2:55pm March 2nd (time/date of departure)

• Make a to-do list
  
• 3 discharge reports for my remaining early-intervention clients
• 10:45am 2/22/2011 Travel Health Clinic appointment to make sure my vaccinations are up to date and to get anti-malarial medication for the Africa/South Asia part of my trip... and emergency meds for traveler's diarrhea
• 11:00am 2/24/2011 Follow-up appointment to get shots
  
• Cancel YMCA membership because I won't be here for 3 months.
• Call credit & debit card companies to notify that I might use them out of country
• Get travel health insurance
• Register with US Embassy so they know where I am in case of emergencies
• Buy plane tickets from Chicago to Kolkata to Nairobi to Accra and back to Chicago, using a discounted humanitarian fare, if possible.
• Collect Spanish children books, educational toys (things from Peru's list of requests) from people and from Goodwill stores


• Pack 2 suitcases full of donations; make sure they weigh under 70 lbs (these will stay in Peru)
  
• Pack my backpack of my own clothes and necessities (sanitizer, infrared water purifier, insect repellent, camp towel...)
  
• Get multivitamin chewables (bc I am NOT good with pills), in case the food is not nutritious enough (this is more relevant for Africa; I bet it'll be fine in Peru), and non-perishable, healthy snacks
  
• Get a pocket Spanish-English dictionary
• Get things to do during the 17 hours of travel on the way there, and 23 hours on the way back (upload e-books!)
• Saturday 2/26/2011 phone meeting with ThWB's Psychotherapist Consultant, part of the new ThWB Advisory Board
• Make sure I bring enough memory for my camera!
• Constant contact with India, Kenya, and Ghana people to keep planning/preparing
  
• Find my passport. I swear it's somewhere in my room.

I will return to Chicago March 15th. The next set of travel will be March 29 or so. While I'm back home (more to be determined):

• Submit my passport and other required items to Passportsandvisas.com to get my India and Ghana visas expedited. Kenya visa can be purchased upon arrival.
  
• Start the anti-malarial medication (2 wks before travel)
  
• Pay volunteer fees to Village Volunteers
  
• Get more suitcases and more donations to fill them with
• Upload all pictures and clear memory to prepare for more
• Update ThWB website as much as possible with new information!
  
• Finish my guidebook for caregivers of people with disabilities
• Cut hair and donate to Locks of Love
  

Sponsorship Request: Medical need

Addendum: What a quick response! Within 6 hours of my posting this, a lovely Seattle couple has volunteered to pay the full cost of his visit! Thank you for all others who considered supporting him! Believe you me, there will be many other opportunities to help.

-------------------------------------------

Therapists Without Borders aims to have a sponsorship/scholarship fund in the future, where people can donate to support people with disabilities to get medical assistance, supplies, and an education.

For now, Village Volunteers will accept donations on ThWB's behalf, to support the people who need help as soon as possible.

Kevin Ochieng is "16 years old but orphaned, and is now staying with his grandma. He is in class 8 and has been ill for the last 7 years." (as was described by Edwin, co-director of Dago Dala Hera)

At this time, his leg's growth has increased to the point that it is becoming difficult for him to walk. See pictures below.

If you or someone you know can help pay for all or part of a trip to the doctor, that could change (or save, depending on whatever is causing this growth!) his life!

Here is the breakdown of costs:
Transportation for him, his grandmother, and Edwin (who can negotiate and facilitate the process) to the town of Kisii, to Aga Khan Hospital (70km away) = 3000 KSHS or KES (Kenyan Shillings) = $36.85 USD

X-rays = 6000 KES = $73.71

Doctor fees + consultation = 4000 KES = $49.14

Total = $159.7 USD

Extra buffer for miscellaneous/unexpected charges (including transaction fees from banks to withdraw our wire transfers) and to round it up to an even $200 = $40.30









To Donate: Click here and follow instructions to donate specifically to "Kevin Ochieng"

And let me know when you do it so I can tell them the good news and update this post! Thank you!!!!

Updates and FAQ

Updates

~~ Whirlwind Wheelchair International, inventor and manufacturer of the rugged RoughRider wheelchair, invited me to train and meet with their team last weekend at their headquarters in San Francisco. It was an amazing experience to have been in the same room with these brilliant minds and open hearts. They taught me about wheelchairs (particularly how to measure and assess candidates for them, since that is my plan for my upcoming trip) and we eventually discussed how we can help each others' goals. We concluded that they will focus on making and delivering their wheelchairs by the hundreds, and Therapists Without Border will focus on recruiting and sending volunteers (who are wheelchair specialists) out to measure, fit, and orient new riders to their chairs upon delivery. It's a perfect match! I can offer my registry of wheelchair therapists to other wheelchair donating organizations, as well.

~~ Also present at the training was Carolina, the co-founder of The Walkabout Foundation, which seeks to fund research to cure paralysis and provide wheelchairs to people around the world. They also partner with Whirlwind and the Christopher Reeves Foundation. I mention Carolina because she is this amazing woman who has already accomplished more in her life than most people I have ever met, and all for the sake of people with physical disabilities. She is my new role model.

~~ Tickets have been purchased for flights from Chicago to Cuzco, Peru, and back, March 2-14. Staff at Manos Unidas and I are excited to meet and help each other. The co-founder, Celeste, and I decided that I can do my observations and interviewing in the first week and in the second week I'll jump in as a therapist to give ideas for language goals for some students and speech therapy techniques for the staff. Perhaps over the weekend I can do touristy things... Usually excursions are the last thing on my mind during volunteer trips, though, so I only know of Cuzco's proximity to Machu Picchu because other people have told me so. I haven't yet done any research on what else I might want to do out there.

~~ The Therapists Without Borders website is being renovated by a friend with an artistic eye and simplistic style that I like. He has already given ThWB a fantastic new logo, which you can see in the Facebook link in the column to the right. Now to recall the 250 business cards I ordered from Vistaprint a couple months ago...

~~ The Kenya part of my trip is being organized. I will interview people with disabilities and their families to create a list of their profiles for future volunteers to review before they visit, as well as for the volunteers to update as they return. If there are any adults who might benefit from a wheelchair, I will assess and measure them out to be put on a waiting list to receive wheelchairs. (Only adults for now; Whirlwind is working on a prototype for pediatric wheelchairs to be distributed by the end of the year.) In addition to these profiles, Emmanuel and I will discuss future plans for a rehab center on the grounds of Sirua Aulo, as well as methods of incorporating children with special needs into his school at Namunyak Maasai Welfare.

~~ ThWB staff are planning on creating a fund (bank account) for itself as an organization, so that when people donate to ThWB (through Village Volunteers), the money can be set aside to sponsor people with disabilities to get medical treatment, sponsor purchases of rehabilitation equipment, wheelchairs, and prostheses, and even perhaps sponsor future volunteers through scholarships.

~~ On a personal matter, I have 8-10 students left on my caseload who need a new speech therapist to start within the next two weeks. Otherwise these students will suffer a gap in services. I had a caseload of 33 clients back in December... that means I have a ton of discharge reports that need to be written and I am very behind on them! I keep saying that, yet I haven't been doing them because I have been trying to keep up with Therapist Without Borders work!

FAQ

Will you keep a blog to keep us updated?
Yes, you are reading that blog right now :-) In reality, I don't know how often I will be able to update this blog while in the field. The places I am going to are, in fact, quite poor. Access to internet is questionable, but not impossible. I haven't decided yet whether I will bring my netbook. If I do, I will be able to use battery power to write blogs to later upload at a place with internet. Some villages in Kenya will have cyber cafes nearby (i.e., in Kenya, they can have internet via their cell phones. It's the craziest thing -- you're sitting in a mud hut where you drink rain water and use oil lanterns for a light source, yet you have cell phones with internet. Not touchscreens or iphones, but internet nonetheless. I might be able to borrow or rent one and keep y'all updated. We'll see :)

How can I help?

• Donate: If you want your donation to be tax-deductible, donate through Village Volunteers and indicate "Therapists Without Borders" in the "other" field, either through a check or online. If you don't mind skipping the tax-deduction, you can donate directly to me by cash, check or money order. Contact me for my mailing address.
• Pray
• Spread the word
• Find me more therapists, especially wheelchair specialists
• Comment on this blog or email me to remind me that you are following my work and that it is worth my while to continue documenting my journeys. Through past experience, I have found it highly encouraging to receive such notes of interest, especially when the going gets tough, as they say.
  

Can I or my organization be acknowledged for donating?
Yes, in two ways. I can add an area on the ThWB website to acknowledge partners, sponsors, and donors, as well as format a newsletter with the same.

How will you sleep? Get around? What will you eat?
These I will answer in future blogs, as I describe my current location and lodging situations. You can be sure I will document the food I eat :-)

Will you be safe?
Well, I am up-to-date on all my immunizations (including Hep B, typhoid and yellow fever; I only need a booster shot for Hep A) and in areas with malaria risk, I will take prophylaxis. Otherwise, I have traveled alone to several countries before, including 3 developing ones, and do feel that I have a certain sense of street smarts and knowledge of what's edible for my western stomach. In addition, the countries I will be visiting are currently quite stable, politically. Furthermore, Village Volunteers ensures that escorts are provided where necessary.

That said, I still cannot guarantee my own safety. Tribal warfare still exists; dangerous bacteria will still hide in innocuous places; insects will continue to attack me despite the gallons of DEET I poison my skin with; I can still be suckered, cornered, or attacked by devious men; I am not immune to the hazards of unpaved roads and reckless drivers... But I can assure you that I will take all necessary precautions to ensure that the probability that I will return safely will be higher than not.

Are you crazy?
Perhaps. But someone has to be, right?

Therapists Without Borders: Spring 2011 Research & Development

Dear Friends,

Therapists Without Borders (ThWB) will take its inaugural research and development trip this spring to several rural villages that we have identified as focus points as we begin our work to bring highly skilled, trained therapists to villages with diagnostic and treatment needs. For at least three months, I will travel to Peru, India, Kenya, and Ghana. Each development site has been carefully reviewed by our team of advisors and partners, and our initial work is dependent on my visiting each site personally, to connect with the in-country staff, analyze the specific needs of the community, and determine together how ThWB can best support them. Furthermore, thanks to a new partnership established with Whirlwind Wheelchair International, I will also assess and measure candidates for RoughRider wheelchairs.


1. Cuzco, Peru
Trip length: 2 weeks
Organization: Manos Unidas Peru

I’d like to learn from this organization because it is successfully doing, on a local level, what ThWB aims to do at a global level. People with disabilities in Peru are seen as burdens, cursed, worthless, just like they are in Kenya and Ghana. Very few children with special needs get an education, as they are thought to be hopeless cases. Manos Unidas is working to desensitize the communities to people with disabilities, to instill a sense of value in them, and to train local people to become self-sustaining. The desire for a bilateral partnership is also there: they want to receive therapist volunteers as much as I want to send them.



2. Kolkata, India
Trip length: 2 weeks
Organization: New Light India

New Light is a safe house "to protect and educate young girls, children and women at high risk” of sex trafficking. I will explain to the program staff how ThWB volunteer counselors and social workers can help their girls and young women with their social/emotional development, coping skills, conflict resolutions, and identification of any psychological issues resulting from trauma. In the future, I would like to see to set up training programs for locals to do the counseling on their own.



3. Western Kenya
Trip length: 3 weeks
Organizations: Dago Dala Hera, Namunyak Maasai Welfare, Sister Freda’s Foundation

Directly from India, I will fly to Kenya, where I will visit at least three villages to develop ThWB infrastructure and prepare them to receive therapist volunteers who can help liberate people with disabilities and their caregivers. In these areas, they do not have electricity or clean water and rely on private farming for their livelihood. It becomes extremely difficult when they also have to take care of a child or adult with a disability in a community that does not understand or support them. In addition, for the young women suffering from societal disempowerment and forced genital mutilation/circumcision, for the widows and orphans suffering from the HIV/AIDs epidemic, for the young men struggling to make the right decisions… I would also like to set them up to receive and benefit from ThWB counselors.



4. Volta Region, Ghana
Trip length: 2 weeks
Organization: Kpando Community Inclusive Special School

Finally, I will go to a special school for people with disabilities in Ghana. Kpando has 40-50 students (up to age 35) and a few dedicated teachers who are desperate for volunteers who can train teachers, diagnosis students, and plan treatments. My time at Kpando will be spent doing therapy and teacher training, as well as setting them up to receive ThWB volunteers.


How You Can Help:
Therapists Without Borders is quickly setting itself up to be a viable, vital organization. The future development and success of ThWB depends on my personally visiting these areas with great need. However, all costs of travel are to be paid out-of-pocket.

ThWB’s 501(c)(3) partner, Village Volunteers, is organizing my in-country transportation, accommodations, meals and escorts through payment of volunteer fees amounting to approximately $3,000. If you feel moved, please consider giving tax-deductible donations toward these fees by specifying “Therapists Without Borders” either in the memo line of a check payable to Village Volunteers (5100 S. Dawson St., Suite 202, Seattle, WA 98118), or in the “other” field if processing online.

Donations can also be made to me personally to cover airfare, immunizations, visa fees, anti-Malaria medicine, and other costs amounting to approximately $4,500. I can receive cash, money orders, or checks (payable to Linda Szeto; contact me for mailing address).

Thank you! I'm touched and encouraged that so many people share this vision. Your support is greatly appreciated, and is the backbone of Therapists Without Borders. You can follow my travels here on this blog.

Sincerely,

Linda Szeto, M.A., CCC-SLP
Founder / Executive Director
Therapists Without Borders
www.ThWB.org

America: Land of Excess and Opportunities

It occurred to me upon arrival back to the States this weekend that I never make comparisons until I come home.

That is to say, I only notice myself noticing differences AFTER a trip. For example, I noticed that the roads are so smooth here, our cars are in good condition, there are tons of lanes and cars everywhere, and everywhere is air conditioned even though it's not that hot out. I did NOT find myself in Belize thinking about what's different from home.

I've found this to be true even after coming home from other States. Most commonly, I find myself remarking (to myself, really) how vast the Chicagoland area is, how car-oriented we are, and how flat it is around here.

That's about as deep as I can get on this post tonight. I meant to point out how every one of us in America have more stuff than we know what to do with. At the same time, we are constantly surrounded by advertisements to buy more and stores to do so. I thought about how if I wanted to go indoor rock climbing, I can do that. If I wanted to go ice skating in the summer, I can do that. If I wanted to acquire some obscure part of an obscure object for a rather pointless personal project, I can do that (Think: "Mythbusters").

But I'm too tired to make those points eloquently.

On my last day in Belize, June 4th, my left inguinal lymph gland became infected from too many insect bites (last count was over 40). I saw a doctor state-side on Friday night who prescribed me some heavy meds that leave me feeling drained.

Just, please, try to appreciate and share what blessings you have. You live like royalty and don't even know it.

Discouragement & Schindler's List

I've hit that point in time where I feel discouraged about how much more needs to be done and how little time I have left. I'm also losing patience with the increase of both the temperature and my insect bites. The first makes me feel guilty for leaving and the second makes me feel guilty for wanting to leave.

I plan on writing about the specifics in more detail another time. Suffice it to say that I am at a low point in this cycle. Whenever I feel this way, I try to remind myself of something my friend Danette told me: think of "Schindler's List". Schindler worried so much about the people who died that he could have saved, that he forgot to consider all the people he did save. It's true that when there are so many issues going on in this world, individuals can only do so much. But consider that "only so much" is indefinitely better than nothing at all.

That brings me to another point: Short- vs Long-term volunteer?

This weekend I was finally able to be a tourist. (Belize is as amazing as everyone claims it to be!) At the same time, I hobnobbed with tourists and that's always an interesting experience. A common reaction when I say that I'm volunteering for 2 weeks is surprise and wonder at how anyone can make a difference in such a "short time".

My answer to them is pretty much what I said in my last blog post. We CAN make a difference without having to stay years in an area. In fact, short-term volunteers are people who can take back their experience and enhanced world-view to their home community to spread the knowledge, empathy and enthusiasm, which hopefully encourages more people to volunteer or donate to good causes. Short-term volunteers bring diverse perspectives, opinions, skills, knowledge, ideas, energy, donations and money/jobs (via volunteer fees) to the community-in-need. Short-term volunteers can spread their help across many places versus one concentrated place. Short-termers increase the opportunity for NGOs and other volunteers to network and use each other as resources. Indeed, people who only volunteer weeks or months of their time & efforts can make a huge, long-term overall impact (as long as they work with reputable NGOs). And like I said earlier (and confirmed by those around me) - SOME help is better than none at all.

Now, let me delineate the merits of long-term volunteerism. Two out of the 4 times I've volunteered, I've come across Peace Corps people or places. At an orphanage in Kenya called Dago Dala Hera, I got to see how a PC volunteer used PC funding to help them start building the children's home and set up their HIV/AIDS outreach program. Here in Belize, a PC volunteer just showed up yesterday at one of the schools at which I've been helping. She said she just finished her 3-month training program and will now start her 2-year stint right here in Georgeville and Central Farm to help them develop a literacy program for both schools. She's basically here to fulfill what I imagined would be the best recommendation. We will meet tomorrow morning, along with the both school principles, to discuss ideas for how this reading program will work out. I said today, I didn't want to step on her toes but that I do have ideas as a speech/language specialist -- she immediately reacted with wide-eyed surprise and said she'd love to talk about it since she doesn't have any training for it. What perfect timing that my leaving coincides with her arrival.

Nevertheless, I came home today still feeling discouraged. Then, by God's grace, I read a Facebook message from my friend Summer, who quoted something from her daily devotional book. It brought gentle tears of relief to my eyes, that I have not been here in vain, and the problems that I feel burdened by are not my own. They are problems of a fallen world. Therefore, I am not responsible for solving those problems, nor should I feel guilty for not being able to help more than I have.

Copied below is the entire message Summer wrote to me.

June 1
I AM involved in each moment of your life. I have carefully mapped out every inch of your journey through this day, even though much of it may feel haphazard. Because the world is in a fallen condition, things always seem to be unraveling around the edges. Expect to find trouble in this day. At the same time, trust that My Way is perfect, even in the midst of such messy imperfection.

Stay conscious of Me as you go through this day, remembering that I never leave your side. Let the Holy Spirit guide you step by step, protecting you from unnecessary trials and equipping you to get through whatever must be endured. As you trudge through the sludge of this fallen world, keep your mind in heavenly places with me. Thus the Light of my presence shines on you, giving you Peace and Joy that circumstances cannot touch.

Psalm 18:30; Isaiah 41:13

Therapists Without Borders?

Any doubts* I had about coming to Belize quickly dissipated when I met my host family. Barzakh Falah is run by a married couple, Jaime and Nancy, who rank among the top people I admire, respect, and find inspirational. They have 2 children of their own with 1 on the way (i.e., any day now!) and are raising 3 adopted children, each who had been deemed "unadoptable" by the authorities around here.

The youngest of the adopted chlidren is 4-year-old "B". A child born of substance abuse, B has lived here for 2 years. Her behavior problems had gotten so severe in their home that they confessed they were ready to give up and return B to the system. But then they heard about me and my profession. Through email exchanges and her personal research, Nancy learned that behavior problems may be the result of poor communication skills. They changed their mind about returning her, and took the announcement that I was coming as a sign that they need to give this little girl another chance.

Imagine that! Just because I came, this little girl is staying.

Make no mistake -- this is not a family that hasn't tried everything. This is not a family who thinks "oh well, this one doesn't fit with us. Send her back." They've reached out and sought help, particularly from the Social Services here who are supposed to support the children and their new families. But Social Services here is bullcrap. They don't know the first thing about caring for children with special needs, don't want to admit it, and don't want to do anything to help.

At first, I was intimidated by thinking I was expected to fix everything. Now I know that they know that it's a process, and that I am not an expert by any means, and that if things don't work out, it won't be my fault.

This little girl is SO precious. She's skinny and small and hyperactive. She has mood swings and temper tantrums and speech/language issues. But overall, on the "problem child" scale from 1-10 (1 being normal and 10 being that-14-y/o-boy-with-autism-who-tore-the-bathroom-sink-from-the-wall-in-a-tantrum, or
that-7-y/o-boy-with-Prader-Willi-syndrome-who-lashed-out-at-random-to-scratch-and-draw-blood, or
that-8-y/o-boy-with-Oppositional-Defiant-Disorder-who-waited-till-you're-watching-to-grab-and-run-with-scissors), I'd put B at a level 4.

But I can see how, to parents who've raised normal children, B seems so different and difficult. From my perspective, though, B is a cute very-treatable child. For example, within the first day she learned to make the /f/ sound in the initial word position in single words with visual cues only. She responds to verbal praise and positive attention! She has scattered skills up into the 4-year-old range, but mostly seems to function at a 2- to 3-year-old level. I suspect she has Emotional Disability, among other things. And why not? She was born with odds stacked against her, and has been through circumstances no kid's ever supposed to be put through.

Barzakh Falah has hosted many volunteers through various organizations. But... I'm the first to work directly with the children. (Past volunteers assisted with construction and farming.) Because I came, Nancy and Jaime now recognize that they need to reach out for more volunteers who have skills and knowledge to work with disabled/disadvantaged children and to train caregivers like themselves.

And those 11 children that I've been seeing at the two schools? They are all behind by at least 1 grade and teachers don't know how to help them. They have been "punished" for not achieving. One teacher even said to me today that she's been teaching her students, "No one is stupid. They are just lazy."

But because I came, they started to recognize that they may have been unfair to the children, because they can't help it if they have disorders. And now they want to know how to help them. Talk about paradigm shifts!

And because I came, motivation to create my own organization has been rekindled. While there are large organizations coordinating efforts for doctors and dentists to travel to rural villages, currently no official program exists for special educators, counselors, therapists, social workers, or psychologists. With all due respect to the doctors out there... but doctors are not the ones who are out in the field helping people and their caregivers cope with their diagnoses. They are not the ones who know how to deal with the day-to-day behavioral or emotional or intellectual deviations from the norm. We have to be creative, empathetic, knowledgeable, and PRESENT for those who are struggling.

Anyone who's interested in helping me start "Therapists Without Borders" (or another name more clever than this and includes special ed teachers, counselors & psychs), or anyone interested in travel volunteerism, please let me know!

(Neuroplastic Travel, Inc.?)

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*When planning my post-podunk, IL, travels, I considered 3 options.
1) Visit friends in various parts of Eastern Asia
2) Visit Michael in Switzerland
3) Village Volunteers (VV) again and
   a) go back to Sirua Aulo in Kenya
   b) go to India's Abha Light program (I'd considered it in the past)
   c) go to Belize as the first VV volunteer

To be very honest with everyone out there, I was leaning toward option 1 more than anything else. (Oh yeah, it wouldn't have worked well for me to go to Switzerland even if we were still together-- Michael is tied up with school and studies). I was burnt out at work and sick of being an SLP. I really wanted a break AND I longed to country-hop again, like I had just done from Nov '09 - Feb '10. A whim, some encouragement from a good friend, and a strong sense of responsibility all urged me to choose option 3c. Now I realize it was God's doing all along.