Stomach bugs and late night hospital visits

For a whole second in May, I wasn't posting much or doing much of anything on here or any other social media.

May was spent taking care of my family because the awful stomach flu invaded our home. It started with my oldest daughter during the first weekend in May. She came home Sunday night from her biological mom's house complaining that her stomach hurt. For the next several hours, she spent her time in the bathroom hugging the toilet like the feet of her savior. It wasn't until my husband came home late at night that I really started to get concerned for her. She hadn't been able to eat and had become completely lethargic.

I worried out loud until my husband decided it was a better idea to search for a hospital that would take her in than to just wait out the bug.

The most frustrating thing about Japan, after six, everything becomes emergency services only and most hospitals are closed. This also meant that the children's insurance doesn't work so we had to pay the full price of getting an IV. This was still cheaper than any medical service I have received in the states and it gave us parents the chance to worry a bit less about our daughter -- just let her rest and try to get some rest ourselves.

The late night expense reminded me of a time when I was visiting a friend in Shinjuku, Tokyo. We had gone out drinking the night before and I must have gotten food poisoning. In the morning, I was not a pretty sight and we thought maybe it was just a hangover, but the need for the toilet never seemed to seise. By 8 pm, my friend was super worried and called me an ambulance (free in Japan, for those other Americans who didn't know) and I was carried off to the closest hospital. I got the care I needed, but I had to pay 15,000 yen, the highest price I have paid so far for visiting a doctor here in Japan. This was more than when I injured my spine and had to have x-rays and MRI scans. Even more frustrating, because it was so late, their front desk was closed and they told me I had to come back a different day to pay. This meant I had to come all the way back to Shinjuku.

When my daughter got sick and my husband explained that emergency services mean that the insurance doesn't pay for everything, my expensive late-night hospital visit made more sense.

I thought my daughter had food poisoning and not the stomach flu, but it was definitely contagious. It spread to the rest of the family, but I think I will talk more about that next time.

I am still not sure about insurance and emergency services and such here in Japan. It is always explained to me when I am not in a position to fully comprehend it.