**-Surprise at the beauty of the sea around Ōshima; people from mountain villages do not know the sea**

When I came here, I thought that it would be a poor place for human habitation. My strongest impression when I arrived was surprise at how beautiful the ocean scenery was, since I was from a mountain village and had never known the sea.

#### **5) Hard to determine how to shirk patient labor**

#### **-Difficult living here; was given a lot of slack in my upbringing so I was especially slipshod and let things take their own course**

I strongly felt that it was a lot of trouble to live here, at least at that time. Before I came here, I lived comparatively free, as you could say that I was given a lot of slack in my upbringing, so my lifestyle here was inevitably much too negligent. What I understood from others here was that I did not do a single thing; this is because I did not feel like doing anything and so I slacked off every day, living a haphazard life and really letting things take their own course.

#### **-How to shirk patient labor**

When I arrived, patient labor was waiting for me. I was immediately given my share of work, but all I could think about was how to shirk my duties.

Listener: What kind of work was it?

Yamamoto: It was called outpatient treatment assistance and involved things like wrapping bandages and giving injections after the nurses had changed wound dressings. In the injection room, we had to sharpen the needles and sterilize them by boiling. After this was over, we helped the nurses clean.

The work was easy, but the hygiene was poor. I got out of most difficult work, like attendant work or nursing work at the sick ward, because I had other people do it for me.

### **-My work was covered by a patient working fervently to support his wife and children living off the island**

Listener: Were there people who immediately would do the work for you?

Yamamoto: There were. Unlike me, who had no work experience and came straight from student life, there were people there who were married but their household was not yet on firm footing. They had children and so even though the wages were meager, they would work double or triple shifts to send money back to their wives. This kind of person would even take on unpleasant work, and I would ask people like that to cover my work.

**-Poor reputation; pushing around adults despite being young and energetic; did not worry about criticism**

*Quality of Life - Biopsychosocial Perspectives*

**Transcription below:**

**(Listener: Mikako Yamaberi) I. Troubled times**

who opposed forced quarantining?

**choice but to enter the sanatorium**

**continue school**

immediately.

contact with him.

**and to schooling**

send it to you."

**university hospital**

**Appendix: Mr. Takahisa Yamamoto's life review (an excerpt only from** 

**Makiko Kondo. Oshima Seisho-en: Life Review of Aging Japanese Hansen's Disease Survivors - Deeply Deeply Closing Our Eyes in Order to See What We** 

**Chapter 3: The Story of Hansen's Disease Survivor Takahisa Yamamoto** 

**1) Contracted the disease during junior high school under the old system (7th–11th grades); hospitalized at university hospital; returned to hometown to** 

**-Contracted the disease in 9th grade; diagnosed with macular leprosy at** 

Yamamoto: I contracted the disease at the end of 9th grade. Once 9th grade ended, I immediately submitted a request for a leave of absence from school and was examined at the Kyoto University Hospital. I was told, "There's no mistake, this is macular leprosy." When I asked, "do you have inpatient facilities," I was told they did. Instead of returning home, I assembled the items I would need as an inpatient from a rental bedding store and was admitted to the hospital

Listener: Wasn't Kyoto University Hospital where Dr. Noboru Ogasawara was,

Yamamoto: Yes, Dr. Ogasawara was there, although I did not have much direct

**-Hospitalization for one year at the university hospital; return to hometown** 

So, I was hospitalized at the university hospital. Since my condition did not change after more than a year had passed, and because I was young and hospital life was boring, I decided to return home. At the time of my return, the doctor said to me, "You must be careful. You won't be able to have peace of mind without being careful for 3–5 years, so even if you go home you will have to go to the hospital again. If you don't want to come here, send money for the medicine and we will

By the time I was back home, the educational system reform had changed the schools. The school that I commuted to by train had been incorporated into a high school built in my local area. A teacher from that school came to invite me to enroll, saying "How about resuming your education? You can come back at any time

**-Money for medicine spent for fun; new macules; it was too late, there was no** 

I started school, but instead of sending the medicine money from my parents to Kyoto, I had a fun life with my friends. I had just one red macule [as one of the initial symptoms of Hansen's disease, white or reddish-brown, flat or slightly raised spots called macules appear on the skin and are not characteristically painful or itchy] on my thigh, but then one appeared on my face too, and I thought, "Ah, now

I made up my mind. I learned enough information while I was at the hospital

without having to take a test." I entered that new high school. **2) Disease worsens; prepare to enter the sanatorium**

that I realized that I had no choice but to enter the sanatorium.

**the section that discusses spiritual pain)**

**1. From contracting the disease until arrival at the sanatorium**

**Truly Should See. USA: Orizon Research Publishing; 2019**

**260**

it's all over."

I had a bad reputation. People would say, "He's young and energetic but he doesn't do work like the others and instead pushes around his elders." People thought so badly of me they would chew me out, but I did not care too much about that. Since I was living a hopeless life after coming here anyway, I did not worry much about being told what to do.

#### **2. Troubled times**

#### **1) My life was over; thought about death**

#### **-My life was over, and I could only keep breathing**

Listener: After discovering that you were sick and before you formed the resolve to come to the sanatorium, I believe you had significant internal conflicts. What are your thoughts on this?

Yamamoto: Yes, I thought, "1) My life is over. I'll just let the cards fall where they may. The only thing left for me is to keep breathing. 2) If I find myself going in too dire of straits, I should just end it all right there." But I wasn't able to die that easily, either.

#### **-Death was constantly in the back of my mind; I asked myself why I was alive**

3) But about death… I constantly had the idea of death in the back of my mind. When I came to the sanatorium there were 11 of us in a 24-mat size room (about 40 square meters). 4) I could only be free during bedtime, so when night fell, I would lay out my sleeping area, get inside, and think about why I was alive until I fell asleep. 5) I always thought long and hard about that, even though it was troublesome, since I did not have any goals or hope for being alive. I could not help asking myself this question.
