China trip Date : 21.08.06 - day 4
Day Four :: Thursday: 9.30 a.m. Sacha has to go for her first acupuncture session with Doctor Ge who is very famous for being the only General to become a doctor within this Army facility. I had never seen acupuncture being performed on anyone in the flesh before and really wasn’t sure what to expect. There were people walking around the room with needles sticking out of their faces. No-one seemed to be in any pain or discomfort. Dr Ge asked me to lay Sacha down on a table in his room then proceeded to stick 10 pins in her legs, arms and head. She didn’t flinch at all even though he seemed to stick some needles in more deeply than others. I was very impressed by it all so thought I would ask about some weight loss acupuncture for myself. Apparently it takes a month of acupuncture for it to be effective and I am only staying here for two weeks so I had to knock that idea on the head. What a shame as I am all for taking any shortcuts to losing weight!!! The needles were removed after ten minutes and Sacha was fine with no crying.
When we got back up to the 10th floor Sacha had to have her 2nd Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) IV. She was quite ok with having another needle stuck in her hand. This drip lasts for approx. 1/2 hour and there have been no side effects so far.
At about 1pm Sacha started to get a bit of a temperature and I started to get a bit nervous as I thought that this might be the first of the side effects of the stem cell therapy. Graham and I took her for a walk in the park across the road as there was a bit of a breeze blowing and we needed a change of scenery after being in the hospital for over 24 hours without going outside. Sacha dozed on and off but you could see she was in a bit of discomfort. I tried not to worry too much or let my mind run away with unnecessary thoughts. Once again, everyone stared at us. Some people said ‘hi’ or smiled as we went past which was nice. We tried to imagine what they were saying as soon as our backs were turned. We are so used to seeing people of different cultures and origins in the UK that we don’t bat an eyelid. How different for some Chinese people to see Westerners maybe for the first time right in front of their eyes! There were some people flying kites in the park and there is only one word to describe their skills. Awesome! The kites themselves were so decorative and colourful and the kitists (is that the right word?) were totally in control of making them bounce up and down and fly through the air. There was one kite that looked like a huge black crow jumping up and down mid-air!
By the time we got back for Sacha’s physiotherapy at 3pm her temperature was back to normal and she was her usual self. I have no idea what caused the rise in temperature. Physio lasted 1 3/4 hours and she had her legs, arms and back concentrated on. As Sacha loses her muscle co-ordination with the progression of Batten disease, her limbs either become stiff or very floppy and physio concentrates on her being able to use all her muscles correctly and so that she doesn’t get a curved spine.
Later on that day ‘Rose’ and ‘Lily’ (they asked us to give them English names) took us a to a renowned fish restaurant. Rose and Lily are two trainee doctors who have nearly Graduated and work on the 9th floor of the hospital. They have come upstairs every day to see Sacha, to play with her and help us with her care. We did not ask them to do this – they really wanted to.
The restaurant was very nice and we were seated at a large round table and poured green tea. The Chinese seem to have some kind of fresh tea with every meal. It is very nice, and healthy to boot! For most Westerners, I would imagine that it would be difficult to order fish here as most of the fish do not have an English name - as they are indigenous to China. Rose ordered for us and to our surprise the Chef came over to show us our dinner flapping around in a bucket before being cooked. Now that’s fresh!
The meal exceeded all our expectations. The fish had been chopped up and cooked in a large bowl of steaming hot oil infused with red chillies. There were also beansprouts in the oil. The bowl was placed in the middle of the table and everyone scooped out some fish. Some more than others! Surprisingly, given the number of chillies in the bowl the fish was not too spicy. It had a lovely taste and was the most tender white fish I have ever eaten. We had a large bowl of special fried rice to accompany the fish which was also delicious! This entire meal and a bottle of red wine only cost us 135 rmb (approx. 10 GBP). As is customary in China only one person pays the bill which we were glad to do for our friends Rose and Lily. Their help was much appreciated.
After a quick stop at the supermarket (the shops don’t close till 22.30 which is good as we can go out when it’s a bit cooler for Sacha to leave the hospital) we went back ‘home’ very tired after another eventful day!
So many people have offered time and energy to support Sacha we have made a 'big' thank you page. Do tell us if we have missed you off the list!