r/peacecorps • u/Lumpy-Hour7150 • Oct 04 '24

I’m so upset… Application Process

I have severe food allergies but have managed my entire life without problems. Are there really other countries I could go to?

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u/[deleted] Oct 04 '24

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8

u/Mysterious-Rate-5819 Oct 04 '24

Because if you die they pay for it financially (both directly & potentially through funding) and via public perception. Quite a few PC rules strike me as dumb, but, there's reasons & to infantilize us isn't one.

1

u/Lumpy-Hour7150 Oct 04 '24

You have a good point. Even though I’m very upset, there is definitely a reason for this rule. I’m still keeping hope that there is another place I can go.

2

u/Elros22 Lesotho'08-'10 Oct 04 '24

I was spending the weekend at another Volunteers site, way up in the mountains of Africa. . That night, the other volunteers tongue began to swell up. It started with slurred words, the complained their tongue wasnt working right, and before long they couldn't keep their tongue in their mouth. I called the PC Medical emergency number and was informed it would five hours before they could get to us.

The volunteer took Benadryl, as instructed and that slowed (but didn't stop) the swelling. A little less than five hours later PC showed up, loaded us all up into the LandCruiser, and we were back in the capitol in another five hours.

The Benadryl saved their life. I have no doubt about that. They had no known allergies at the time.

So yeah, it's upsetting, but it's also pretty serious.

5

u/Johnny_Banana18 Tigray RPCV Oct 04 '24

The rules are written in blood, I doubt the allergy standards in awareness in rural Cameroon are up to US standards.