So I’m guessing that you, like most other people, don’t enjoy gets shots at the doctor. Let’s face it, getting shots is not a fun activity. Just the anticipation of getting shots is painful in and of itself. Because nobody enjoys this part of traveling, I’ll make this post as painless and simple as possible!
I went to our on campus health center eight weeks prior to departure to get my medical clearance. I was fortunate that my university’s health center has a travel clinic in it specifically for students traveling abroad. Most universities probably offer travel vaccinations, however not all doctors’ offices are familiar with these special vaccinations.
Are you planning on visiting your general physician for travel vaccinations? If so, make your appointment well in advance of when you actually need to have the vaccinations by. Your doctor’s office may have to special order certain vaccinations or they might refer you to a clinic specifically geared toward travel to obtain the proper immunizations.
Upon going to the my university’s travel clinic, they informed me that I had the majority of the vaccinations I needed which included Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Polio Booster, and Meningococcal Meningitis (which most colleges require to enroll). Seasonal flu vaccinations are suggested and a Rabies vaccination is recommended if you will be in the Tanzania for an extended period of time, but I opted out of these two as per my professor’s recommendation. I did, however, still need Typhoid and Yellow Fever vaccinations as the Yellow Fever immunization is required for entrance into most sub-Saharan African countries, including Tanzania.
Having had friends who received these vaccinations recently for study abroad trips, I knew ahead of time that they were going to hurt and I was going to be sore. The nurse did one shot in each arm. When she said to me “There, that wasn’t so bad,” I smiled politely at her and said I was fine even though I wanted to yell, “How do you think that felt?! OF COURSE IT HURT!”
For the next three days both of my arms felt so sore that you would have thought I had been hitting the gym nonstop and bench pressing small children. My roommates got a kick out of having to get things off higher shelves for me because I couldn’t lift my arms up as high as normal. At least someone got a laugh out of it!
Aside from the Yellow Fever and Typhoid vaccinations, the other major medical preparation you need for Tanzania (and most African countries) is to obtain Malaria medication. Your general physician or a travel clinic physician can write you a prescription for this but again, make sure you obtain this well in advance of your departure. There are different types of Malaria tablets, some of which you take daily, some only once a week. There are side affects to Malaria medication so be sure to review those with your physician.
Malarone, which is what most people on my study abroad trip took, is a popular Malaria medication that you take daily. Mefloquine (also called Larium), which is what I took, is a once a week pill. It made me nauseous on the days I took it because it is a strong dose of medicine, however I appreciated not having to remember to take it every day. Trust me; this is not medication that you want to forget because your Malaria exposure is high in Tanzania. Mosquitoes are carriers so be sure to pack strong bug spray (more on this in future posts). You can also contract Malaria by drinking the water which is why you should only drink bottled water!
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| Yellow Fever Endemic zones in Africa 2009, Credit: CDC |
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| Malaria Endemic Countries in Eastern Hemisphere, Credit: CDC |
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| Mefloquine Malaria Medication |
I hate shots!!! But what a great post, It's so important too get them because of the diseases in some countries! LIOB <333
ReplyDeleteVery clever title ;) But a very important aspect of traveling abroad!
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