(Post 151 of 263)

I remain so grateful to finally have access to reliable healthcare now that I live in Mexico. Five years in Mérida, and I still don’t take it for granted. It’s not just finally having a doctor, but also being able to walk into a pharmacy and get help for little things instead of wasting a day at a walk-in clinic. For example, a few weeks ago, I thought I might have contracted athlete’s foot. I went to the pharmacy down the street to speak with the on-site physician, but the pharmacist said she could help me herself. I left with a tube of inexpensive cream and a treatment plan.

Today, I finally had to concede that the cream had only 90% worked — one toe was still itchy and burning. I went back to the pharmacy and was given another cream that was described as “a step up” from what I’d bought, then told that if that one doesn’t work within 10 days, then I need to go see my doctor. Each visit is about 15 minutes from the time I leave the house to when I return. How convenient is that? And there’s no cost for such a quick consult, either.

I sometimes think back to my first months in Mexico in 2014 and wonder if then I would have had enough Spanish to do what I did today. Probably not. Immersion really works and I don’t really have any stress anymore about living my life in Spanish. I remember having to rehearse things before I’d head out and even something so small as picking up electrical tape at a small hardware store had me nearly breaking out in a rash.

Speaking of a rash, the new cream is already helping. Bliss! Maybe I can focus on my job now!