Chiapas - My GI issues and a sidebar on Tropical Diseases

Monday, January 26, 2026

Montezuma's Revenge? More like Pakal's revenge. 


My biggest misconception about my own body is that I have a stomach of steel. Day 6 into my trip to Chiapas, I woke up with GI issues that have lasted me up to today (Day 11). Alhamdulillah, it isn't that serious, but it's probably the worst I have ever felt related to GI. Day 1, I felt weak, had a pang in my stomach equivalent to severe anxiety, loose bowels (:-D), headache and I felt lethargic. I took Mexican medication and it prevented me from having to use the bathroom, which was a Godsend because we were still traveling via Sprinter, 20 deep, hours away from home and sightseeing. Day 2 madrugada - it hit me all at once and I was the last one on the Sprinter that morning. Again, my body came through and kept all the noise at bay until I got home. Next day felt a little better, but still reeling from the hit to my body. I could not sleep at night from the pressure in my abdomen and finally I figured out that I just need to burp it all out (terrible sulfur burps). I was also coughing a lot of phlegm at night. I thought this was a separate issue, but after a quick Google it happens when the stomach acid rises to your esophagus. Then, I thought I had surpassed it all and on the road to recovery (Day 4). Now Day 5 and 6 I am back down. I'll spare you the details (well you have most of them), I can only be thankful that I have been spared vomiting. Now, everything I eat bloats me to such high discomfort, it is borderline painful. I cannot wait for this to end. But, I also have anxiety so my mind spirals a bit and toys with the idea that I caught a bug that will cause me chronic GI issues. . . but no, it will go away soon. The first bout of sickness, I do theorize was due to a virus/bacteria but after I got a bit better I will blame it on my diet - I am eating spicy, irritating, inflaming foods and a lot of sugar . . . I am definitely not helping the cause . . . might as well be throwing wood to the fire!

I am mostly surprised (not really) that there's still new bacteria that got me, when I have traveled to Mexico my entire life and if anything, I come from a pueblo and I have never gotten sick. Well it's never too late and you're never safe :-). FYI, aware I can get salmonella and e.coli in the US :'-). I just thought the Mayan spirits would spare me due to my good vibes.

After typing the above, I went on the internet and I think I know what parasite I am working with.... AHHHHHH. May be Giarda. You guys know I am a ride it out kind of girl (I recognize this is a mistake) so not looking forward to going to the pharmacy to get my one dose to help me out :-D (I am so silly....). Anyways, Google Giarda - he's a scary looking little sucker. 

Yesterdays food: spicy chilaquiles that I felt burn the lining of my stomach, a cherry ICEE, two scoops of sorbet, half a red bull, (I am pregnant with bacteria gases at this point), pizza, potato wedges, and a margarita . . . 

On to my diet of bland baby foods for the next week I guess. . . . .

On Tropical Diseases. I recently read a couple books on mosquitos and of course their whole schtick and purpose on this earth is to be vectors of diseases (please ask me and give me mosquito book recs). I was excited to come to Chiapas because it is one of the southern states that is susceptible to tropical diseases (don't get me wrong, we have some further up north too but Chiapas is always on the intake survey before you donate blood). Over chilaquiles yesterday, I asked my Chiapaneco brother in law about the status of malaria in the state and he laughed and said that's an African thing and equivalent to asking about Ebola. I was not very surprised to hear this since malaria is a rare disease, at least in North America, and with sustainable efforts for full eradication. Thankfully, he is a big Googler so immediately, he began reading out loud that malaria is present in Latin America, including Mexico in the states of Chiapas and Campeche. 

I found this website that's going to clearly be my newfound obsession. You can click by region and it is showing you real time Malaria risks by country. https://atlasvisualdelamalaria.org/paises/malaria-mexico/


As you can see from the headline below, the state of Chiapas accounts for 94% of all of Mexico's malaria cases (<300 cases). A director of Public Health (Miguel Angel Palafox Palacios, pictured below) states that this is due to two main factors: the transient nature of the state (there is high mobility from it's Southern neighbors) and also the insecurity that plagued remote areas that didn't allow for easy malaria control. 80% of the cases were due to the latter and originated in local communities. Good news is, there is more and more access to these rural communities to be able to administer treatment and preventative measures. Not only that, there is sufficient resources to work towards this initiative. 


But Malaria isn't the only tropical disease in Chiapas and the surrounding states. See CDC table below from the Mexico 2026 Yellow Book (I omitted the other Mexican regions but you can click to redirect you to the page). 

Well, I have to say, I am partial to Arboviruses. Which refer to "viruses transmitted to humans primarily through the bite of hematophagous arthropods, such as mosquitoes and ticks (term derived from arthropod-borne). They cause acute and sometimes severe febrile diseases (dengue, Zika, Chikungunya, West Nile), common in tropical areas and during warm seasons" Google


Did you know that even though Malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes it is not an Arbovirus? This is because Malaria is caused by a parasite (plasmodium), it is NOT a virus. Mosquitos are just vectors for both. And actually, the malaria causing parasite (plasmodium) is only carried by the Anopheles mosquito and the others by the Aedes mosquito. There is also another mosquito to complete the big three - the Culex mosquito. She is a vector for West Nile and Encephalitis. 

During the same chilaquile conversation with my brother in law, they confirmed that the above Aedes viruses are much more prevalent and in this order of severity (to your health) 1. Dengue 2. Zika 3. Chikungunya. My brother in law confirms he has had Dengue before (got it in middle school while he was living in the very house I am typing from). He had fever, diarrhea, full body aches and was down for about a week. I asked him if there's such thing as Dengue season, the way we have flu season, he said yes - in the rainy season (as suspected). He also told me that during this time, there are government campaigns where they go house to house handing out a powder product that you need to place into bodies of water in your house so that it can prevent mosquitos from forming. I imagine this is some kind of larvicide. 

After a search on larvicide, I recommend reading this next article by The Puerto Rico Vector Control Unit (an initiative of the private non-profit organization, the Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust) and checking out their site. I couldn't write anything better than they have already :-). Next two images by them.

That's all for today! Love ya!





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