Medical Kit Submitted!!!

Mailed in my medical kit today!!! I am so thankful I have "most" of the medical forms taken care of. I know I am not completely finished with medical clearance, as I still have to get that anemia form filled out and then write a statement for the counselling. But this feels like a really good step in the process.

My fingers are crossed that there aren't any more problems with my tests and everything. Eeeek! I've read some blogs online in which some volunteers have said the Peace Corps only took a few days to process their forms, while others have had to wait for weeks and sometimes even months. Stupid me, I meant to get a tracking number for my envelope, but I started talking to the person working at the post office because I knew him and forgot. It would be just my luck the entire thing gets lost (I also didn't make copies).

But, I'm trying to think positively right now...

Application Timeline

November 26, 2010 - Submitted application online. I'd had the idea to join in the back of my mind since freshman year of college, but it was only in my junior year that I had begun to make serious plans to apply. I started joining some organizations I thought would help my application, including getting volunteer hours in a hospital Emergency Room, joining the campus Red Cross Club, and gaining some ESL tutoring skills through a campus organization.

January 28, 2011 - Peace Corps Interview on campus with our recruiter, Suzannah. She is really nice and easy-going, and volunteered in Niger and Liberia a few years ago. The interview lasts about one hour and goes pretty well (in my opinion). I had prepared by going over the interview questions posted on PeaceCorpsWiki. Most of the questions are word for word the same, though not all questions are asked. The ones I remember specifically are about how I deal with stressful situations currently, describe a time when I had to alter my appearance to fit an expectation, and eating habits. I had also read online that some interviewers had typed all the applicants' responses, so I wasn't as surprised as I might have been when Suzannah began typing on her laptop what I was saying. It was still a little nerve-wracking having, presumably, my word for word responses recorded. I express myself much better in writing, but the best advice I'd come across on the internet before the interview was just to think before I answered and to not feel the need to over answer the question.

January 31, 2011 - Receive official nomination via e-mail from my recruiter. I learn I have been nominated for a position as an English Teacher in Asia, with an estimated departure time between late July and late August 2011. Sweet! Suzannah (the recruiter) had asked me for my preference during the interview, but I really had no preference for any region. She seemed to sincerely want to nominate me for the area I'd really like most, and Asia just kind of slipped out. I figured if that's what my first response was, that's what my subconscience wanted.

February 3, 2011 - Receive Medical Kit in the mail. The envelope includes forms for a million procedures, including: a physical, six bloodwork labs, a few immunizations, a TB test, a PAP smear, a panoramic x-ray of my teeth, bitewing x-rays of my teeth, a chart illustrating the complete history of all dental work, a form for the measurements of my glasses, etc. Minor heart attack ensues upon opening this Pandora's box.

February 19, 2011 - I pay a visit to a Vision Center to get glasses. I wear contacts, but need two pairs of glasses, according to the Peace Corps. My insurance will not cover vision, so I end up paying $550 for the glasses. I reason I should have glasses anyway, so it's not really a "waste."

February 21, 2011 - First physician's appointment. I have my physical performed and a total of nine vials of blood drawn for the various labwork needed. I am able to fill out most of my physician's form during this one visit, but I have to go back the next day for a Polio vaccine booster and to receive a tuberculosis test. I get the TB test read 48 hours later, resulting in another trip to the doctor.


March 8, 2011 - I get my PAP smear done and pick up my bloodwork results. My doctor tells me one shows I am "very mildly anemic," which I know will require at least another form from the Peace Corps, and hopefully not a deferral. I call the Pre-Service Peace Corps Nurse a few days later, asking what I should do if I know there is a medical problem before I even submit my forms. I also ask her about some counselling sessions that I started after I completed most of the Medical Kit. Good news, she tells me I can go ahead and submit the original Medical Kit they sent. When they process it, she will just fax me a form for the anemia and ask me to write a statement regarding the counselling. She also tells me neither of these sounds like a problem at all.

March 12, 2011 - Trip to the dentist. I am shocked to hear I have no more cavities since my last visit, so all I get is a general cleaning. I already had my wisdom teeth out a few months before (in preparation for the Peace Corps since I knew two of them were impacted and would have to come out anyway). I leave my dental forms with the hygienist who says she will complete them later in the week and give me a call to pick them up.

March 25, 2011 - Having the day off my job from the daycare, I really buckle down in an attempt to tie up the many loose strings still hanging from this ordeal. I go back to the dentist to pick up my dental forms, but learn they have not been completed. I am told I need to come back tomorrow to get my gums "measured." This point is the one in which I begin to get exasperated with this whole medical process. I can't imagine why the Peace Corps wants to know the dimensions of my gums. It feels like I have been running around to different doctors for months non-stop. Which is because I have. I also drop off my eyeglass measurement form at the optometrist's office, but I am told this form can't be filled out until probably Monday. I then proceed to have my PAP smear results noted on a form, and get my final signature on the physician's form.

TOTAL DOCTORS' VISITS TALLY THUS FAR:

Visits to the Campus Health Services: 5
Visits to the Optometrist/Vision Center: 3
Visits to the Dentist: 3

While all these visits have really been annoying, I really haven't had to spend much money. All my doctor's and dentist's visits have been covered by my insurance (I have my University's insurance), and while the price for two pairs of glasses was pretty steep, I needed them regardless. I will be so happy when all these tests are over. I now feel like the end is in sight to this whole medical clearance process.