今日はかかりつけの心臓専門医の定期診察日でした。それも無事済み、続いて骨量検査（bone density screening)を受けました。結果は２年前の結果と比べて、わずかではあるが骨量は増えているので、あらたに薬を摂取しなくてよいとのことでほっとしました。というのは、前回の検査で、骨量が基準以下であるとのことで新薬を処方されたのですが、この薬が身体に合わず具合が悪くなり、以後の摂取は中止といった経験があるからです。
診察に同伴してくれたノーマンに、骨量といえば、以前、長屋ブログに、転倒を繰り返した割には軽度の擦過傷だけですんだことに、両親とご先祖様にお加護を感謝する、と述べたことを話すと、ノーマンも感謝する事がある、それはADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder 注意欠陥多動性障害）の患者さんがアポイントメントをきちんと守って時間通りに来てくれる本当に感謝すると言います。それはADHDの本質からいってかなりの努力を要することですから。
付記：ノーマンは２０１３年５月以来、ADHDの医療に専念しています。
In Hawaii, the term “hapa” encompasses all persons of equally mixed race. I am half Japanese & half Caucasian. My father is of Japanese ancestry and my mother is of European ancestry. This is a very common occurrence in Hawaii.
It has been very interesting for me to encounter a different response to being “hapa”, here in Okinawa. First of all, most people do not recognize that I am half Japanese. When I share this information, there is an assumption that “Japanese” refers to Japanese nationality. Whereas in Hawaii, “Japanese” refers to Japanese ethnicity. It is also very uncommon for children with bi-cultural parents to have a Japanese father and Caucasian mother. Usually, the mother is Japanese and the father is Caucasian.
This is a medical senryuu about eyes.
meeting my gaze
taking the first step
to communication
Among patients recovering from cerebrovascular accident, there are many who are dimly aware of their surroundings, whose eyes can’t focus, or who have trouble maintaining a constant gaze. When these conditions arise, it’s difficult to communicate in a meaningful way. For such patients, I suppose it’s like dreaming with their eyes open.It’s a bit like being dazed under the influence of cold medication. A lot of patients can’t even recall these times of limited functioning.
As their symptoms decrease, the patient’s line of sight gradually snaps into focus. When I meet their gaze, I can sense that their awareness is recovering. I sense them returning to their normal selves. From that point forward, I am able to understand my patient, and communication begins. However, even if the ocular symptoms resulting from cerebrovascular accident aren’t that severe, they can still last quite a long time. I think that when patients undergo these slight and long term changes, many people around them feel strangely uncomfortable when interacting as a result.
– Fujisaki Yukiyo
– English by Chay Schiller
視線合うコミュニケーションの第一歩
しせん あう コミュニケーション の だい いっぽ
脳血管障害直後の患者さんは、意識が朦朧とし、目の焦点が合わず、視線も合いにくくなる方が多いです。そのような状態にあると、相手を認識し、意味ある会話が難しいことがあります。目が開いているのに夢の中にいる感じでしょうか。風邪薬を飲んだ時のぼーっとした感じに似ています。患者さんの多くは、この状態の時のことをあまり思い出すことができないようです。だんだん症状が落ち着いてくると、視線がしっかりと合うようになります。目をみると、あ、ちょっと意識がはっきりしてきたかな、と感じます。まるで本来の自分を取り戻したような感じです。その頃から、しっかり相手を認識し、会話が成立してきます。しかし脳血管障害を発症すると、この焦点の合わない症状がそれほどひどくなくとも長く続く場合があるようです。周囲の方が何と無くコミュニケーションの際に違和感を感じる、以前と違うと感じる要因の一つではないかと思います。
I went home for Christmas and it was the coldest it has been in 20 years. It was so bad one day that even the schools were closed. The temperature was in the negatives. This kind of weather is dangerous because your skin can freeze very quickly causing frostbite. For this reason, everyone stayed inside where it was warm to hide from the cold. Although I really enjoyed spending time with my family, I missed the warmer climate in Hawaii. The good news was that I celebrated a white Christmas. In other words, there was a lot of snow during the holiday. I even had a picture taken in a coat and hat while wearing gloves and standing in front of a pile of snow. Fortunately, snow is considered a necessary part of a traditional Christmas.
wood lonely floats
until falling catches giant wave
man riding triumphantly
Surf boards are merely pieces of wood (or fiberglass, etc.) until someone decides to use the board to ride a wave. When surfing, the board becomes a tool that is used to glide over the water as it is propelled by the water of the wave behind the rider. As the person and the board unite to tame a fierce wave, thus is born the joy of surfing.
孤独な木大波に乗り勝ち誇る
こどくな き おおなみ に のり かちほこる
誰かがボードで波に乗ることを決めるまで、サーフボードはただの板切れです。サーフィンをするとき、ボードはライダーの後ろの波の水によって、前へ押し進められます。そのときに、板は水の上で滑るための道具になります。このようにして、サーフィンの楽しみが生まれます。
– Ben Clark
– Japanese by Nakamura Michiko
new year starts
ancient healing again
I’m grateful
January seventh was seven plant rice gruel day. This gruel is made with rice and what are known as the “seven plants of spring” in Japan. At my house, we also include mochi.
The purpose of this dish is to pray for another year of good health and to give your stomach a break from all the food and drink of the new year’s festivities.
Old customs are quite often grounded in sound wisdom, and this one has certainly helped out my aching stomach. Although many customs are gradually fading away, I have recently strengthened my resolve to be more respectful of the wisdom that our ancestors have left us.
– Miyata Aya
– English by Chay Schiller
ありがとう古人が癒すお正月
ありがとう こじん が いやす おしょうがつ
1月7日は七草粥の日でした。
七草粥は、春の七草が入ったお粥です。
私の家ではお餅も一緒に入れます。
一年間の無病息災を祈り、お正月の祝膳や祝酒で疲れた胃腸を休める為にあります。
古くからの風習には、理にかなっているものが多いです。
不調だった私の胃も癒されました。
すたる風習が多いですが、古人が残してくれた知恵は大切にしたいと改めて思いました。
Let me tell you a little about speech therapists.
In Japan, speech therapiy became a profession with national licensure in 1997.
This approval came 32 years after it did for other rehabilitation specialty areas, and there are probably a lot of people in Japan who don’t know about speech therapy.
Right now, there are about 22,000 nationally licensed speech therapists in Japan.
There is a legally required program of study that one must take to become a speech therapist.
This entails going to school for a minimum of two years, maybe a lot more. I graduated from a school with a two year program, but it was rather difficult because of the great number of required courses.
Speech therapists can find many different positions, such as at hospitals, nursing homes, day service facilities, special care schools, hearing aid companies, and so on.
The work of a speech therapist consists primarily of communication training and rehabilitation of eating and drinking problems.
In Japan, where the population is rapidly aging, there are a lot of people who are succumbing to dysphagia due to sickness or old age.
There are still many places that lack speech therapists, and it is said that this profession will be in demand for years to come.
Aya Miyata
English by Chay Schiller
In the first sentence, the phrase “I rounded up three coworkers for a bicycle trip” is not quite the same as the original Japanese. In the original, it is expressed thusly: 職場後輩と3人で自転車を持ち寄り
職場 – Workplace
後輩 – Junior people
持ち寄り – To gather
So why would I omit these three words in favor of “coworker” and “round up”? Because in English, we don’t make a big deal about the junior or senior status of the people we work with, and I try to make my translations sound natural. Nevertheless, I tried to communicate the same feeling as the original using the phrase “round up”, which implies that Mr. Umi is mostly in charge of the informal gathering and therefore probably more influential or at least a longer-standing employee with a greater social circle.
brilliant winter
in silence reflecting
flood control lake
I rounded up three coworkers for a bicycle trip to Okuchichibu, which is hidden away in the countryside of Saitama.
Setting out on the train at six in the morning, we reached Chichibu lake at an elevation of 500 meters. We then embarked on a 50 kilometer trip on a mountainous road around the lake.
Chichibu lake is also known as Futase dam, which was build along the Arakawa. The name Arakawa is composed of the characters for wild (荒) and river (川), and indeed, this river has flooded countless times. The dam was constructed to mitigate the floodwaters. In other words, Chichibu lake is man-made.
This dam stood before me in absolute stillness, quietly upholding its duty. The majesty of this scene enveloped all of us completely.
冬晴れと静寂映す治水の湖畔
ふゆばれ と せいじゃく うつす ちすい の こはん
職場後輩と3人で自転車を持ち寄り、
埼玉の秘境の地、奥秩父に行きました。
朝6時から電車に揺られ、
標高約500mにある秩父湖まで、
往復約50kmの山路を攻めました。
秩父湖は二瀬（ふたせ）ダムと言うそうです。
名前の通り幾度となく氾濫した
荒川を静める役目を持たされたそう。
つまり、人工の湖です。
そんなダムはただただ静かに
自らの役割である静寂を守っていました。
私など簡単に飲み込まれそうなほど深いダムでした。
– Oda Umi
– English by Chay Schiller
言語聴覚士についてお話しします。
日本の言語聴覚士が国家資格になったのは1997年です。
他のリハビリ専門職と比べると32年も認定が遅く、日本では言語聴覚士を知らない方も多いと思います。
日本での有資格者は現在、約2万2千人います。
言語聴覚士になるためには法律で決められた教育課程を受ける必要があります。
最短でも2年間学校に通う必要があります。
私は2年制の学校を卒業しましたが、履修科目がとても多いため、なかなか大変でした。
言語聴覚士の働き口は、病院、老人介護保健施設、デイサービスセンター、特別養護学校、補聴器メーカーなど多岐にわたります。
言語聴覚士の仕事は主にコミュニケーションに関わる事や摂食嚥下（飲み込み）に関わるリハビリです。
高齢化が進む日本では、加齢や病気による嚥下障害となる方が多くいます。
まだまだ言語聴覚士が足りない現場が多く、今後も需要がある職業だといえます。
