Busy Week, But Still Fulfilling

I had quite the stressful week with 15 people who had clinical visits and there is actually an elder in the hospital right now with new onset diabetes. His blood sugar was 500! It has been staying around 200 now that he  has been on an insulin drip and getting fluids for a day. We hope he will be released today. We had two sisters that had endoscopies because they can´t eat anything without vomiting and or diarrhea for 2 weeks or more despite every medication known to mankind including La Bomba. We also have several missionaries that have pre-existing health issues that they did NOT list in their mission papers so I have 3 people I need to write reports on for the area medical doctor. The increase in sick missionaries has gotten out of control! This week my companion and I are actually going to be spending a lot more time in the office to organize treatment regimens and intreventions for prevention of illnesses. Many of these Elders only want to drink Cola even when they are SICK! Or want to help owners catch their dogs and refuse to take the rabbies shots after the dog bites them. I hate to be stern with them but they just dont get it sometimes.

We actually had a cool thing happen this week. We had a reference from a member that we went to contact and actually followed the directions exactly but turned out to be a different family and the member had given us the wrong direction.  The father, Wilmer, was so friendly and introduced us to all 6 of his kids. We made an appointment for the next day and 3 of his kids are getting baptized this month.  His ex-wife left him and her 2 kids from another man so he has their 4 kids and 2 of hers from her prior spouse. They don´t have running water and live in a tiny cinderblock house with a tin roof.  Wilmer works everyday and can´t attend church but wants to be baptized so badly.  He does EVERYTHING for his family and is so loving.  We are excited to teach him about keeping the sabbath day holy and tithing and the blessings he will receive!  I actually teared up in ward council meeting talking about them.  To have nothing but yet be so loving and giving of the things you do have.

Love and Miss Yáll,

Hermana Lyman

One Year Left

It has been quite interesting to me to see how my weeks go.  I have weeks were I can focus mostly on our investigators and work in the sector and weeks where I am spending most of my time in the office or on the phone with sick missionaries or doctors. This week was almost completely nursing with only a few hours in our sector this week. Our numbers are so LOW....never ever have my numbers been this low.  We have only been averaging about 2.5 hours daily in the sector this week. Yesterday alone, we counted, and I had 18 different missionaries call for varies health issues. I have to report all of these to President, document in EMED log, send them different medications and treatment regimens, and make appointments. With this being said the Area Medical Adviser, Dr. Piepgrass, and I have become pretty good friends. He is going to make a great reference for my job application one day. Also I am really wanting to go back to school when I get back for nurse practitioner....hopefully it will still be a masters program when I get back and not a doctorate.

Love and Miss Yáll,

Hermana Lyman 

6 Months

Ecuador.

So I will hit my 6 month mark this week...not sure if it has flown by quickly or slowly.  What I do know is this is the BEST decision I have made in my life.  I have learned so much and grown so much in so many ways.  Recognizing more and more the love that Heavenly Father has for all of his children and the countless miracles he provides us with. 

Love,

Hermana Lyman

The Worst and the Best of the Mission!

I cannot put words to the week I have had. It is more than safe to say this past week has been the toughest week of my ENTIRE life. Everyone decides they want to be sick the week before Christmas....I will never understand that. I have also been sick this week and had a headache for 4 days but I am feeling much better. My cell phone has been constantly glued to my face and multiple people sent to clinics. The clinics in Guayaquil tend to be very reliable however making appointments outside of Guayaquil and finding specialist takes some time and about a million phone calls. Everybody at the new insurance company knows me by name because we have had so many sick missionaries lately and I have called at least 2 times every day. Wednesday we had 5 missionaries in clinics for multiple reasons, a gallbladder removed, and wisdom teeth removed.  I spent a good several hours on the phone with Aetna, missionaries, and Clinics. I cried my eyes out at the end of the day. This week we also had 18 new missionaries arrive from different MTCs and only 2 new Hermanas. President called me Friday morning and told me I was going to be a trainer....I thought I misunderstood him but the assistants called me and told me that Hermana Smith, one of the new Hermanas was going to be my new companion. I got that nausea feeling in my stomach and thought that President must have lost his marbles because my Spanish is far from fluent and I am stressing so much with my responsibilities for nursing. He explained to me that it is only for a week or so until after the holidays when he can focus more on changes for the Hermanas. Yesterday was the best day of my mission. Never have I felt the help of the Lord so much in my life all at once. Words were just flowing from my mouth and promptings of what to say and do kept coming to mind. No doubt in my mind that this is the Lord´s work and that he is literally carrying me through these days.

I love the Lord, in him my soul delights!

Feliz Navidad!

Temple!!!

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the temple here in Guayaquil. Words cannot express how much of a blessing that was for me. So many questions answered, reminded of many truths, and so many feelings put to peace. Serving a mission is by far the hardest and most stressful thing I have ever done. Some days when I feel like I cannot handle another day, I wonder how Heavenly Father could call me to this work when I am so far from being adequate to fulfill my calling-- the Lord always ALWAYS lifts me up. There is no way I could do this work on my own, absolutely no way. To feel and literally see the Lord´s help in this work really is something marvelous and a wonder. I can feel the increased closeness to my Father in Heaven as I am learning more and more how to lean on him. I understand more of his love for all of his children as I see changes in lives through ¨small and simple things.

Con Amor,

Hermana Lyman

La Enferma

Work, Work, Work.

This week has been crazy busy with trying to manage time between investigators and los enfermos. Today alone I have had 5 people call for sore throats and congestion along with a few yesterday. It seems to be the illness of the week along with anything and everything else. Also 2 missionaries got bit by dogs and one of them this is the 3rd time he has called me for this. With the new insurance company I have to call them first when wanting to send a missionary to receive medical care, they then contact the facility to confirm they will except payment, then the insurance company calls me back to give me the okay. We discovered this week that my cell phone plan will not allow me to make international calls. Aetna, the insurance company, is based in Florida. This has been such a headache because I have had to call the elders in the office to call Aetna from a land line and relaying information. By Monday my new cell phone plan should be in effect. Also trying to contact clinics outside of Guayaquil is nearly impossible. Their numbers are constantly changing so we find about 10 different numbers for each facility online and hope one of them is correct--It has been hit or miss. There is one clinic in Manta that I had to send an Elder to just to ask them for their number. Hopefully Aetna will be able to get in contact with them so we can get a contract there. There have been a few lessons this week where I have been on the phone the whole time trying to coordinate appointments and dealing with the new insurance. It has been nice to be in a trio so that when this does happen my companions can teach and I can manage the nursing problems without impeding the mission work. Now that I am in a trio with the other 2 hermanas that we share a ward with we have been working two sectors--La Florida 1 y 2. They have a pretty large sector in Miduvi which is all government housing so we spend a lot of time trying to catch buses to work in both sectors. Leaning on the Lord everyday to give me strength. I love and miss everyone!

Con Amor,

Hermana Lyman

Thanksgiving Week!

This week has been a little crazy and stressful with everything going on. Lots of people getting sick and needing appointments etc. I actually got a pretty bad headache the last two days and intermittent waves of nausea but I have been taking ibuprofen and drinking tons of water which has seemed to almost kill the headache completely. Tomorrow we are switching to Aetna the new insurance company so I´m sure getting use to the new system will cause some stress but hopefully by January I will be a costumed to everything.

Looks like everyone is having a fun Thanksgiving Holiday! I would kill for some thanksgiving food, especially pumpkin pie. Ryan´s Razor looks like tons of fun and a lot of mud. Today I helped a lady in our ward decorate her Christmas garland in her house and it made me a little homesick. Wish I could help Mom decorate the garland on the mantle again this year but you will just have to send me lots of pictures!

Today we have two baptisms that we are really excited about. One is the mother of our convert Rafael. Rafael is going to baptize her which is going to be so neat to see. Two of our converts Rafael and Richard are both attending mission prep after church and Oswaldo and his family are so excited to go to the temple in a year.

Con Amor,
Hermana Lyman