Panadol Culture

Sometimes inspiration comes in very strange ways. [You can quote me on that]. As I mentioned in my Apology Post, I was recently sick. During this dreadful period, I naturally decided to visit the doctor. But being the indecisive person I am, later on in that very evening I had a change in heart. So, when my friend unquestioningly questioned; “So yuh gonna go by the doctor tomorrow rite?” my response surprised both of us alike.

Maybe it was the aggression of the fever doing the talking, but I crudely vented about the fact that I was going to have to spend one hundred and fifty dollars for a doctor’s visit, only for him to prescribe Panadol and maybe a nasal spray for my overactive sinus and conclusively suggest I drink cool, clear liquids at all times.

This was the remedy and I could recite it off of the top of my aching head. With this frustration, it struck me. Panadol seemed to be the Trini ‘go-to’ cure. The Almighty Panadol was an uncontested staple in our sick diets and it seemed to be the remedy for virtually any ailment. According to me, this reflects the Panadol culture of Trinidadians.

Panadol is not taboo in Trinidad. It is a commonly-accepted part of our culture. If we have a fever, we take Panadol. If we have a headache, we take Panadol. If we’re feeling indescribably ill, we take a Panadol. If we don’t opt to take it on our own, we end up taking it through suggestion.

Girl 1: “Girl, I doh know na, I feeling rel sick.”

Girl 2: “Yuh want a Panadol? I have extra strength.”

 Whilst there are countless other products on the market, Panadol is the safe option because we’ve been taking it for countless years. We’re not innovative. We don’t prefer to try new things, new methods, new approaches, and new governments.

The government in itself contributes to this Panadol culture. The Trinidadian citizens are sick all year around. Sick with debt, lack of amenities, traffic, crime, injustice, poor public sector service. The list can go on and on.

However, we witness the Panadol culture in full effect during the pre-election period. During this time, Panadol Extra Strength and Multi-Symptom are used conscientiously as a fast-relief of the population’s pain. Houses are distributed, minimum wage increases, grants are made, roads are paved, highways constructed and new facilities are built.

It’s the same cycle of sickness yet the fast-relief of the Panadol distracts us. We become blind to the pattern of behaviour that we allow. So, instead of nourishing our bodies and our population with good things throughout the year to boost our immune system and invigorate us, we run ourselves into the ground fete after fete, allegation after allegation, one dead body after the next. Then at the eleventh hour, we turn to quick-fix, the same old Panadol that we’ve been taking for years to momentarily relieve our pains.

References:

MacDonald, S. (1986). Trinidad and Tobago: Democracy and development in the Caribbean. New York: Praeger.

Shah, R. (2015, March 8). Buying and selling government. Retrieved March 28, 2015, from http://www.trinidadandtobagonews.com/blog/?p=8660

Those in need must get houses. (2015, March 14). Trinidad and Tobago’s Newsday. Retrieved March 28, 2015, from http://www.newsday.co.tt/letters/0,208312.html