An Autobiography of H1N1

I was born in mexico in april 2009..at 4 months of age and size many times smaller than the smallest pin-head i have send the worlds largest democracy into a frenzy..i have been ably assisted by the fourth estate..i am the media's latest posterboy and managed to overshadow even SRK's frisking in the US..my cousins have tormented this world for ages.the common flu has been around forever but never managed to top popularity charts or capture the imagination of the numerous news channels..N-95 was only an expensive mobile phone until i made it a house-hold name..i have sent the stocks of 3M and Roche soaring..even surgical masks which were seen only in operation theatres are now on every street.It was never so difficult to sneeze before,every sneeze is looked at with suspicion.I have managed to shake up the usually unflappable bollywood who have been worried whether i will stop them from ringing in the cash..cricket matches and badminton tournaments have been affected..i have made the 'S word ' a taboo..people are fearless of hiv,tuberculosis and malaria but are petrified of swine flu..i have driven the health administration up the wall and managed to make the health minister hurl abuses.Schools and multiplexes have been shut down..Before i came along even medical students hadn't heard of tamiflu now its as popular as crocin..

I have managed to bring about a lot of positive changes too.People wash their hands more often thanks to me..they spit less often.cleanliness is the latest buzz word.I have changed the way people will look at a common cold..Once the summer arrives i will go into hibernation but i hope the changes i have brought about remain..but of course I WILL BE BACK!!!

Im lovin it!

Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than talking to my patients.They make me laugh,make me cry...I go through a gamut of emotions in one single hectic day..I don't think there is any other branch of medicine other than psychiatry that keeps you so much at peace with yourself..There is no better stress buster than that look in your patients eyes that says "thank you doc for understanding me."

He tells you about all the people out there that are out to get him and  it seems like you are the only one who believes him and also knows about the voices in his head that threaten him.  It seems to him that you are the only person in the world he can trust and share all the unusual experiences that others label as madness..and when those voices are driven away following treatment he comes to you and shares with a sheepish grin all the silly things that he did...