Year abroad blues

If I was to say I was okay at the moment I would be lying. This semester is proving to be extremely challenging, even though I know that if this was to happen at home, it would be no feat at all. 

When I first arrived at UNT we had an induction session where we introduced to the concept of the 'year abroad blues'. We were told that they usually hit students during the middle of November and there would be a low point up until the beginning of February and things would start to perk up again. The trouble is I didn't have a 'dip' at all last semester. I couldn't have asked for a better semester. I became really close with a group of exchange students, made friends with people on my course, got a boyfriend and was making the most of my time here by travelling at the weekend. 

However, all good things must come to an end, right? 

I suddenly realised a few weeks into my first semester that I was one of two exchange students that were remaining in the U.S for the full academic year. The others were only staying for the semester and I suddenly started to panic. In order to maintain a social life, I decided to move to 'Bruce Hall' in my second semester as it was a dorm only for music students. I felt like this would be the best solution. 

However, it didn't really pan out that way. I went home for Christmas and had a fantastic time with my friends and family. The only problem was that I didn't think I was going back to America after the holidays. I saw myself back at Birmingham with my old course mates and if I'm honest, the reality of it didn't hit me at all... not even at the airport. 

At first I went to Chicago and had a fantastic time with my boyfriend, but the mood changed once I was back in Denton. The first thing I saw was Santa Fe, the old dorm I lived in last semester - where all my exchange friends didn't live anymore. Denton was starting to enclose on me. I have never felt more trapped in a place than I have in Denton. As someone who has always lived in big towns and in big cities, Denton is the smallest place I have lived in, in my entire life. 

Socially this term has been a struggle. I am having resurrect my social situation, which is difficult since everyone here is underage. The drinking culture is very different here and I miss just going to the pub with someone for a drink and a chat. I am having to switch rooms today because my roommate is unaccommodating to the extent where she wakes me up at 4:30am if everyday because of her practice routine and as a result, I have just got over the flu. I have just broken up with my boyfriend for reasons out of my control, which kills me as it worked so well. 

I have very little security here. 

I know I'm not behaving rationally here because if this happened at home, I would wipe myself down and get back up again and sort everything out... but I'm so alone here that I find it hard just to ask someone to hang out. I know I need to change something, but I can't seem to find the strength. 

I'm struggling. 

Healthcare

Today has been another day that I have spent in the bed. Over the past four days, I have been very sick. I have been extremely rundown for several reasons and it was hardly surprising that I got ill. I started to feel poorly on Wednesday and by Thursday I was starting to feel worse. The opera rehearsal was proving to be hard work - normally it was easy standing, waiting for directions, but this rehearsal was proving to be too much. I just wanted the process to end. 

On Friday, I felt even worse. I somehow managed to get out of bed to my 8am conducting class and it was torture. I was sweating profusely and as we practiced our conducting, I could feel my temperature rising further and further. I went back to bed and I was thankful that my 12pm was cancelled. I messaged my director and MD and apologised that I wouldn't be able to make it to my opera rehearsal. 

After that I spent 24 hours in bed. I couldn't move. I was falling in and out of sleep constantly. I was sweating, I had aches in my stomach, a headache, I had lost my voice and a violent cough that was making me want to heave. I felt awful. Around 12am, I managed to pull myself together and get into the shower. Just getting off my bed took me thirty minutes alone. 

On Saturday, my friend Erin kindly took me to the doctors to get myself checked out. I was curious about the American health system. The truth of the matter is that the Brits give American's a lot of stick for their healthcare system and the seemingly backwards nature of it. Being born in Britain has meant that I am entitled to the National Health Service - a free health service for any British citizen. This is paid for by the taxpayer and they will contribute approximately £1900 ($3100) a year (approx. £160/$260 a month). 

I made that when I went to the US that I took out a travel insurance plan. I had heard so many horror stories of foreigners who had been caught out in the US and ended up in thousands of dollars worth of debt. However, I was aware that when I went to the doctors that I was going to have to pay up front and then be reimbursed by my insurance company. 

We went to a GP's clinic that was owned by the company 'CareNow'. Now the initial thing about this GP's clinic was that you could get a 'walk in' appointment. At home, it would be impossible to have a walk-in appointment. You must be up just before 8am and rush to the phone and try and make an appointment with the receptionist. If you try and ring at 8:05am all the appointments will be gone and you will have to ring back the next day to play the waiting game again. Of course you could go to a walk-in centre or a 24 hour clinic, but it is at the risk of making an appointment with someone who doesn't know your medical history. 

I sat in the reception for about 45 minutes and was quite occupied during that time. Firstly, the reception area was so much different to the clinics in England. It was very spacious, super clean and modern. Thinking back to home, there was only one clinic that was as modern and spacious as this centre and it only opened a few years back. The trouble with a lot of practices in England is that they are old and haven't been revamped in a very long time. As a result, they look drab and rather sorry for themselves. 

On the other hand, it was very American. I know this is a ridiculous statement to make, but when you have been here for a while, you begin to realise that a lot of houses and businesses are fashioned in the same way. Most houses have the same tabletops, the same skirting boards, cabinets etc. You can't say that in England. Houses in England are built very differently, but I have been to so many houses and businesses now that are structured the same and have the same interior.  

After 45 minutes, I was called over by a nurse who took my height and my weight. She spoke to me about my symptoms, how long I had felt like this, how I would rate the pain etc. and she then left the room. I thought that was slightly odd and I sat by myself for about five minutes. Suddenly, a doctor came into the room, who asked me some questions about my symptoms and my medical history. She took my temperature, checked my throat and told me that I had a respiratory infection and the flu. She told me what medication she was going to put me on and how to take it. She then left the room and a different nurse came in. She handed me my prescriptions, a doctors note and paperwork for the receptionist. I was then taken to the reception to pay for my visit. 

The total visit came to $83 (£50).

The thing that really took me by shock in this centre was the fact that I was seen to by three different health care professionals. A typical appointment at home will consist of approximately 10 minutes with the doctor to explain something that has potentially been causing you problems for over a year. This isn't a criticism of the NHS. I think most of us watched the BBC programme 'Keeping Britain Alive: The NHS in a day' and on one of the episodes it followed a day of a GP. She explained the time constrictions she had and how it was her job to prevent the majority of patients heading to hospital where the expensive treatments were. It is clear that in a time of austerity, the NHS does not have the money to fund such luxuries as time and staff. 

I went to pick up my antibiotics and cough medicine from a pharmacy (quick comment - did you know they have drive through pharmacies in America...) and I paid $50 (£30) for the medicine - very different to the £7.50 ($10) charge for every variety of medicine from the NHS.

I'm definitely starting to feel a lot better now. I don't have a temperature anymore or an upset stomach, I'm just waiting for this cough to go and to get my voice back. 

I am also looking forward to the day off tomorrow...

SO

What are my thoughts on this system? Is it better than the NHS? Should we say no to the NHS and throw it down the drain?

Of course not, don't be silly.

The American health system sums up one thing for me - you get what you pay for. According to statistics, an individual in the US will pay $5600 (£3400) a year for healthcare - almost double what we pay in taxes. The quality of service I received was fantastic and as result, I feel well on my way to recovery, which is great...

IF you can afford it. 

Lucky for me, this will be back in my bank account in a few weeks and it will be as if this trip to the doctors never happened... but what if you're poor? So poor that you can barely pay your bills and a trip to the doctors is enough to send you over the financial edge. What then? I guess you don't go. You suffer. What might have been just a cough could have been a sign of lung cancer, but instead you go without because you can't afford treatment. 

However, with the introduction of Obamacare, individuals that earn under $45,000 and families that earn under $90,000 a year will be able to apply for subsidies from the government to pay their health insurance. Hooray you say? Well apparently not, if there has ever been a bitter dispute between the Republican and the Democratic party, it has been over healthcare. 

I am by no means a socialist, but I do believe that healthcare is something that we all should be entitled to and that it is the responsibility of the government and society to take care of the poor, the vulnerable and the disabled. Poverty is not a choice - people do not decide to be poor. Even though the NHS might be slow sometimes and you may have to wait for an operation or to be seen in A&E, it is still there if you need it. It will cover you whether you need a stitch on you thumb or brain surgery. 

The NHS is truly one of the things that makes Britain great and it will be a wicked day if anyone decided to abandon it.