Winter is coming in Germany… The initial exciting “honeymoon” phase has begun to fizzle out and reality is setting in. To say it has been difficult would be an understatement. From finding last minute housing in the middle of a housing crises, to bank difficulties, to developing tonsillitis and keeping up with my studies and internship search all within the last few weeks. However, I am still beyond grateful to be here and experience these challenges, as they have all taught me valuable lessons.
A large cultural shock that I encountered here, is the difficulty (near impossibility) of finding a doctor. I fortunately did not have this problem when I had previously lived in Germany, but there is always an opportunity for something new. In the last two weeks I had developed a very painful case of tonsillitis and fever; I had called every single doctor in my small town of Germany, all of which said “Tut mir leid, aber rufen Sie weiter an” which means sorry but keep trying/calling. I began to feel very hopeless in this situation as I had reached out to everyone I knew searching for a way to get connected to a doctor so that I could get the antibiotics I needed. I was down to the last option- go to the Krankenhaus (hospital). So I went. I walked 30 minutes each way up a large hill, in the cold and sick as a dog. I signed in and waited for two hours to be seen for less than five minutes. I was finally able to get the medication needed with a prescription from the hospital doctor, and after finding an emergency pharmacy open later that night. I was shocked at the level of patient care in the German hospital. The medical staff was extremely short with me, showed signs of extreme frustration, and spoke with thick southern German accents. This took me aback, as I was used to such a high level of patient care in the US. At first I was extremely frustrated with the situation, as I was extremely sick and doing the best I possibly could. However, I forced myself to take a step back and look at the situation from all sides. Medical staff in Germany tend to have a much lower income than doctors in the US. Perhaps it is due to universal health care here, and the overload of patients with very little doctors. Although this is a situation I would not want to experience again, I learned that I myself need to be more understanding of the whole picture, all the factors that contribute to my experiences here. In the end, I am okay and the doctors did their job. It is a very stressful time in Germany at the moment due to the energy/heating crises and the large influx of refugees from Ukraine. There are bigger issues than what I am experiencing. This was a very valuable lesson for me to learn and experience, and one I will surely not forget. With this gained knowledge, I plan to take on challenges in the future by keeping a cool head, and trying to understand the factors that contribute to the bigger picture.