I am going to try and keep this PG rated but there was nothing PG about this experience. The experience is what is referred to as “Traveler’s Diarrhea” and it was a real treat ESPECIALLY 5 days into our trip! The Mayo Clinic says, “Traveler's diarrhea is a digestive tract disorder that commonly causes loose stools and abdominal cramps. It's caused by eating contaminated food or drinking contaminated water.”
I am only sharing and writing this because it’s very common, and if we can help any other poor unfortunate soul, then the post is worth it. Timeline of events went as so:
Night 1 - Started feeling some cramps in the ole belly. I ignored them and went to sleep without an issue.
Day 1 - The madness began in the morning, BUT once again I thought this could be an isolated incident. We had to get on a bus so I popped a couple of Imodiums (BRING THESE!) and got through the trip without any issues.
Night 2 - The “4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse” came riding ferociously into my body. The riders symbolize the following:
Conquest - Conquered my body.
War - Waged a war on not only my body but also my soul.
Famine - It took everything in my body and my body didn’t want to put anything back in.
Death - I swear it tried, but I prevailed.
I won’t give numbers or details but it was in the Top 5 longest nights of my life that wasn’t helped by the fact we were staying in the “party hostel” which blared the loudest music possible until 2:30 AM and would start again at 8:00 AM.
Day 2 - My lovely Spanish speaking wife came to my rescue. I sent her on a mission for liquids and any type of medicine. She went to a pharmacy and they allowed her to purchase a prescription of Bactrim (without a doctor luckily), rehydration salt, and rehydration juice / medicine for 28 soles (that’s $8.34 USD for anyone not great at conversions). As you can imagine this was a major win in the war against my body. I didn’t do a single thing all day, didn’t even leave the hostel room. Luckily we had our own private toilet which you can believe has been reviewed.
Night 3 - Started to subside and since I was so exhausted, I was able to sleep okay.
Day 3/Night 4 - This was the scariest day. We had to get on a bus at 1:00 PM, would be making just a couple of short stops but wouldn’t be getting off until 5:00 AM. The worst part is that their number one rule on the bus that they tell you is, “No #2’s in the toilet, only #1.” I took some Imodium at our last stop around 7:00 PM and made it all the way! Gold star!
As you can see, this ordeal (while funny because poop is funny) can be very inconvenient. It’s not as debilitating as a flu, but just very uncomfortable. The biggest takeaway here is go and get medicine IMMEDIATELY, and I would recommend trying to just go to a pharmacy first before going to a doctor.
Hopefully this is the last time we have to talk about this.