When my friends and family in the United States ask how this trip has gone: I have a standard response: Costa Rica has been great, but it would have been the experience of a lifetime both personally and professionally if I had been uninjured and able to train normally. I have been through many different trials of cross training, different rehab routines, and dietary strategies to try to get healthy, but my IT band injury has significantly affected my mental health in Costa Rica, where I have not had access to a training room or many of the cross training facilities that I have at Rice University. Because of this and the persistence of my injury, my cross country season is now in jeopardy. It is hard to find people who understand the frustration I have been going through, and thinking about this has made me even more angry and mentally confused, so I have tried to stay away from it, but I wanted to get these thoughts down on paper. Clinicians at my internship have been supportive as always, as one of them even helped me find a pool close to the hostel where I could cross train! Unfortunately, the price to use it is high and the pool is poorly marked, so I have been unable to train as intensely as I want to there. I have lost fitness and hope in the last week, and I am really looking for a foothold to regain my confidence. This last week will focus on bringing my project to a close, however, this has also been stressful and largely unsuccessful in meeting the goals I wanted to achieve since the hospital has done so much to try to make this internship successful.
The pool that I found thanks to the advice of one of the doctors I work with. Unfortunately, intense lap swimming is dangerous due to there being no marks on the bottom of the pool.
Enough with the struggles: I was fortunate enough to find a need in the clinic that I am also now working with Rice senior design professors to pitch as a project. I am happy that my work in this area has paid off, although I still have more work to do in this area. My last week at the internship will thus require laser focus to consolidate the resources for future project groups, create the project definition for the senior design group, and finish out current prototype. I will do everything I can to finish these deliverables with exceptional quality, and I am grateful for the support of my professors and the clinicians at HNN that have worked with me through this process.
The new PLA finger with flexible joints in comparison to the original complete flexy finger.
Assembly of the PLA finger with flexible joints.
In addition to medical school applications and rehabilitation routines, I tried to spend my last weekend as a tourist in my home city! I did a San José food tour and went to the farmers market one last time. I still hope to go to the Butterfly Garden and the National Theater later in the week if I have time. Looking to finish strong!
The Mercado Borbón is a hidden gem with a TON of produce!
Famous San José Central Market.
Making empanadas at the end of the food tour!