Icky Sicky
I've been effectively useless since Monday night, when I started to get the beginnings of a cough and sore throat. Tuesdays are always my busiest, with two classes to teach plus whatever else, and the symptoms built until I also had a runny nose, plus headache, plus loss of appetite, plus lethargy, plus burning head/freezing body, plus the worst body aches, a mix of shooting pains through my hips and legs and constant pain all over, and every time I felt chills (which was also almost constant) it added a new kind of pain, a tingling stabbing. Plus fever of 102. But it was Tuesday, and there was no way I couldn't go teach my night class--not after we're already down three weeks this semester thanks to weird scheduling/holidays. So I went, and had no voice, and alternated between cold sweats and shivering, and probably made a great second impression on that class. I just hope I didn't get anyone sick (especially cause they'd know who to blame . . . great example I set, when I definitely don't want them coming to class contagious).
Wednesday morning nothing had improved and my throat and cough were growing worse, so I decided to go to the doctor. Only to learn that because the last time I went to the general doctor was 3.5 years ago, they struck me from the records, and it would take them a full day to get approval or something to get me back on and sign me up for an appointment. I was already feeling super crappy and emotional and didn't appreciate feeling like I was being punished for staying healthy and not running to the doctor over every little cold. I thought about waiting till the next day but was feeling so horrible, and plus I figured I either had strep or the flu and so needed to start getting treatment soon so I might somehow be well enough to sing in Saturday night stake conference. So I went to urgent care (and was super happily relieved that the copay was only $35--I was expecting double that).
In the clinic they did a swab test for both flu and strep, and confirmed that it was flu, which apparently was fairly unusual--they haven't had an outbreak here. I also apparently had a fever of 104 (!). I got prescribed Tamiflu ($50 with insurance, ouch--I have since determined it is definitely less expensive and less inconvenient to just get the flu shot, which I kept putting off . . .).
I think the Tamiflu is supposed to be some great amazing drug but I'm not sure it's been that helpful. The body ache/chills finally decreased some Thursday, and were gone yesterday; having that gone made a big difference, true. My throat is so tight and irritated though from coughing, which has gotten worse, despite prescription cough syrup--sometimes I wake up from violent coughing outbursts and have almost vomited a few times from the force. I had to speak in a whisper all of today, which makes things interesting when you're trying to parent a toddler (FYI: the singing for stake conference tonight was canceled. Fortunately I wasn't the only one sick/to blame in the group, though). Another weird symptom that developed is achy eyeballs. Whenever I shift them around to look at stuff, they hurt. If I gently press on my eyes, they hurt. And I've had a low-level nausea appear for a few days, only to finally disappear today as my appetite starts to return (I finally ate real food today! Papa Murphy's pizza, delicious).
Speaking of achy eyeballs, I had about 4 lj entries I wanted to write tonight, but I don't know how realistic that is, as my eyes are already blurring and rebelling.
Will has watched waaaaaay too much TV this week, because that was the only way I could get away with being a motionless lump on the couch. And he drank out of my water bottle Wednesday--I'm just hoping his having actually gotten a flu shot will save him. He did have a fever yesterday and has a cough and snotty nose, so we'll see. Jeremy is also sick, though with something else, but still with cough, stuffy nose, sinus infection, etc. I'm just hoping Will won't be sick for his birthday--he's been looking forward to it since November. We've had a birthday count down for the last 25 days.
Wednesday morning nothing had improved and my throat and cough were growing worse, so I decided to go to the doctor. Only to learn that because the last time I went to the general doctor was 3.5 years ago, they struck me from the records, and it would take them a full day to get approval or something to get me back on and sign me up for an appointment. I was already feeling super crappy and emotional and didn't appreciate feeling like I was being punished for staying healthy and not running to the doctor over every little cold. I thought about waiting till the next day but was feeling so horrible, and plus I figured I either had strep or the flu and so needed to start getting treatment soon so I might somehow be well enough to sing in Saturday night stake conference. So I went to urgent care (and was super happily relieved that the copay was only $35--I was expecting double that).
In the clinic they did a swab test for both flu and strep, and confirmed that it was flu, which apparently was fairly unusual--they haven't had an outbreak here. I also apparently had a fever of 104 (!). I got prescribed Tamiflu ($50 with insurance, ouch--I have since determined it is definitely less expensive and less inconvenient to just get the flu shot, which I kept putting off . . .).
I think the Tamiflu is supposed to be some great amazing drug but I'm not sure it's been that helpful. The body ache/chills finally decreased some Thursday, and were gone yesterday; having that gone made a big difference, true. My throat is so tight and irritated though from coughing, which has gotten worse, despite prescription cough syrup--sometimes I wake up from violent coughing outbursts and have almost vomited a few times from the force. I had to speak in a whisper all of today, which makes things interesting when you're trying to parent a toddler (FYI: the singing for stake conference tonight was canceled. Fortunately I wasn't the only one sick/to blame in the group, though). Another weird symptom that developed is achy eyeballs. Whenever I shift them around to look at stuff, they hurt. If I gently press on my eyes, they hurt. And I've had a low-level nausea appear for a few days, only to finally disappear today as my appetite starts to return (I finally ate real food today! Papa Murphy's pizza, delicious).
Speaking of achy eyeballs, I had about 4 lj entries I wanted to write tonight, but I don't know how realistic that is, as my eyes are already blurring and rebelling.
Will has watched waaaaaay too much TV this week, because that was the only way I could get away with being a motionless lump on the couch. And he drank out of my water bottle Wednesday--I'm just hoping his having actually gotten a flu shot will save him. He did have a fever yesterday and has a cough and snotty nose, so we'll see. Jeremy is also sick, though with something else, but still with cough, stuffy nose, sinus infection, etc. I'm just hoping Will won't be sick for his birthday--he's been looking forward to it since November. We've had a birthday count down for the last 25 days.