Martinique: Kidney Stones and Shopping

We arrived in St. Anne, Martinique on January 6, 2018.  It had been about six months since our last visit here and we were all longing to buy French cheese, wine and produce.

Unfortunately, John had his third attack of kidney stones the day after we arrived. Fortunately it didn't happen while we were underway because he was completely incapacitated, doubled up in our cramped forward head for the day. It was horrible. The attack lasted many hours leaving him exhausted, and then suddenly, remarkably, the pain was gone. Our fabulous family doctor from home gave us some email advice and suggested we get some tests done. 

The next day, while John was curled up in a ball on the floor, suffering through another attack, I went on the morning radio net and got some advice about where to find a doctor who spoke English. Later the kids and I went ashore in this small town to inquire about medical services. We ran into our friend Catherine from Wakataitea who gave us some information on medical care including some advice on where not to go. 

The following day started with another agonizing kidney stone attack. The kids and I watched as John was reduced to a sweaty mass of pain on the floor. John is pretty stoic when it comes to being sick, so we knew it was bad. Once he recovered, we quickly weighed anchor and took the boat a few miles to Le Marin, a larger centre with more facilities. We sat with fingers crossed that John would be OK to leave the boat the next day.

The following morning, we drugged John up with Gravol and Advil and got him to shore by 0900. We found Dr. Gutmann, who saw us within an hour. This English-speaking doctor agreed with the diagnosis that John likely had kidney stones and gave us a referral for x-ray and ultrasound to rule out a blockage or other nasties.  However, she felt it was unlikely that we would be able to get all the tests in Le Marin, and would likely have to rent a car or take a taxi to another city. Ughh.

As John was still able to walk, we went to the x-ray clinic immediately to find it completely full with patients. We waited at the desk, only to be told that we could get an appointment...in two weeks.  When I started to get my hackles up, a lovely local woman came forward and gently translated that my husband needed to be seen now.  The receptionist went to speak to the doctor and came back and said we would be seen that day. (I now believe in angels.) We were so relieved.

From the time we arrived, John had both tests done in about 90 minutes complete with copies of reports and x-rays. We went back to Dr. Gutmann (who just happened to be in her office!) with the reports, and she told us that no stone was "stuck." We were so grateful that no further intervention was needed and that John just had to stick it out. We were also amazed how reasonable the costs were to see the doctor and have the tests done. (Note the absence of photos for this part of the blog.)

The following day, John announced that the stone had passed. We all screamed with joy!

With a healthy skipper again, our focused turned to putting in some solid days of school and preparing for our trip to Dominica.  Months earlier we started making inquires about volunteering on Dominica to help rebuild after Hurricane Maria devastated the island. We found Rebuild Dominica, an NGO based out of the U.S. According to their website, they are an organization that has been involved in raising funds since Dominica was hit by Tropical Storm Erica in 2015. They put us in contact with their people on Dominica, so we could find out what they wanted us to bring, and how we could help once we arrived.

After several emails and phone calls, we had a list of things to bring: tools for roofing, cordless drills, safety harnesses, solar lights, and food for their children's program. We were also told that help was needed to put roofs back on community buildings. 

Most goods in Martinique are imported from France, so we sailed to the capital, Fort de France where we would be close to the best shopping. 

Fort de France

Fort de France

Wavey playing at the park next to the dinghy dock in Fort de France

For several days, shopping was all we did. We must have looked quite stunned in the big box stores. It was culture shock having so much choice and variety. It was also good to brush up on our French.

One of many dinghy loads

Sorting the food

Market in Fort de France

Market day

Bus to industrial park

Getting bus pass

Shopping for drills and safety gear

Home improvement store

Before leaving Fort de France, we did our laundry. There is nothing quite like a French laundromat with those big front loading washers that have hot water and long cycles...

Our last stop before heading to Dominica was St. Pierre where we met up with our friends on Trismic for a quick visit and to do a final shop. It was not a tearful goodbye as we planned to meet up again in a day or two.

John making a call home after doing more shopping

Nahanni V at anchor

We left for Dominica in the early morning on January 25th and arrived around 8:00 pm after a great sail. We were excited and ready for this new volunteer adventure!

Underway: Preparing the mainsail and bound for Dominica!