It’s a common phenomenon for travelers to get sick during travel. For most, the food is the factor. Certain bacteria may appear in local food which is not present in the consumer’s home country, causing the immune system and the stomach to become confused and attempt to remove the foreign substance by force. But my issue was strange and different, making it all the more terrifying. I was out of the clear for malaria, but Africa’s diseases were many, and I had made a promise to myself that I would be cured before my birthday, which was coming up very soon. Thus for the first day in Kitenden I was bedridden, following every necessary step to achieve complete health. This was beneficial for my guides too, as they gained valuable time to work on the still-incapacitated car. I knew what I had to do, and had the resources to kick the disease out. With plenty of water, vitamin C, and rest, I hoped the fever symptoms would at least decrease the next day.
During my sickness, however, I made one decision that made the whole ordeal seemingly worth it. I knew from some of the translations I had made that the Maasai did possess medicine for curing fever. Thus the next time my guides came to check up on me, I requested a brew from one of the local houses. I was a little skeptical of the medicine’s potency. As a westerner I was inclined to be suspicious of any foreign cure, but I also knew I should have faith in the medicine I was researching. After all, Maasai natural medicine has a much older history than the pills and vaccines we use today. As a vegetarian, I declined the typical way of ingesting Maasai medicine, which is to boil it alongside the meat of goats to form a sort of soup. So when the boiled brew finally arrived, I was ready to drink purely the juice and boiled remnants of the medicinal plants. I won’t say it was a pleasure -- the concoction made me gag repeatedly, so bitter was it. But gulp by gulp, I swallowed down the potent tea until I at last collapsed on the bed, ready for the medicine to work its supposed miracles
The next morning, I tentatively assessed my condition. To my dismay, it felt no better than any other of my sick mornings. So far, the medicine seemed to have been a flop. Despite this fact, it was my last day in Kitenden, and I planned to make the most out of it. So as the sun rose, myself, my guide, and a local who we had hired embarked into the hills and forests surrounding Kilimanjaro. The medicine situation here was notably different from other places I had visited. Kitenden has very little forest space in which medicinal plants could grow; instead these areas were replaced by enormous fields of crops reminescent of the American midwest. The medicinal plants could instead be found within the bomas of certain families. One family might have control over the population of a certain tree, and another family would be able to trade for their own special medicine. So that afternoon, we hopped from boma to boma, surprising children and recording each home’s crop.
As always, my sickness began to worsen over the course of the day. By noon, I was shivering and my heart rate was rising--the fever was coming back. Resigned, we began the walk home to give my body some rest. But on the way, strangely, I began to feel better. My symptoms slowly decreased in potency, then went away. By the time our home was spotted, I felt like I could have done the walk all over again. The medicine had worked -- not with a quick, impermanent fix, as western fever-reducing medicines do, but slowly and on a deeper level. One moment I was feeling ready to spend the rest of the day wracked with fever; the next I was fully prepared to hop up and begin the day. The medicines of cultures like the Maasai are incredibly under-researched, and yet, they are among the cheapest and easiest to find on earth. Not to mention their potency, as I found out in Kitenden. Why so little attention was and is still given to traditional African medicines will forever be a mystery for me. I was simply glad I was on the forefront of this "new" science, and even more glad my fever had finally gone away.
Very concerned about your illness. I hope that you are now better and do not have a fever.