health update
Last week I noticed some pink bumps forming a short straight line and a "z" on my right side and thought that the skin issue I had two years ago was revisiting. To treat that problem, I took - for the first and last time - steroids. That was one of my worst weeks ever. I was hungry all of the time - like at 3 am. The hunger would wake me up and I'd eat a mini-meal. It was ridiculous. The steroids also made me extremely irritable, to put it nicely. I do recall apologizing to Ron quite a few times that week. In any case, I thought my developing rash was that same issue and tried to avoid going to the doctor because I did not want a repeat of that week. But when I started developing mini-blisters and one showed up on my forehead, I *had* to make an appointment.
Turns out, I've got shingles. At first I was like, "What the hell is that? Is it serious?" But my main concern was the immediate bug-eyed reaction of my normally laid back physician. It turns out that she had the shingles a few months ago and I think that her bug-eyed reaction was simply her immediate recognition of lovely rash. In case you're wondering, the shingles and chicken pox share the same strain of virus. So, although the shingles are not contagious, I can transmit the chicken pox. Therefore, I am to avoid children, pregnant women, and people who have not yet had the chicken pox. Luckily, I'm not in the pain that I've read about and my rash is pretty small comparatively. So far no shivers, either. Thanks to access to a bunch of medical databases, I've learned all about this condition and have seen some quite gruesome photos.
The touch of my shirt irritates my rash, which both itches and hurts. I thought I was going to go mad at work on Friday. By 3 in the afternoon, I was ready to rip my shirt off.
Last night I woke up at 5 am because Ron grabbed my hand from incessant scratching of my side. I was grateful when he brought me a cool compress, which temporarily stopped the itching.
Schoolwork has been beating my butt lately. So I've spent many nights over the last two weeks working on assignments 3 or 4 hours after working all day. It's been tough, but I can almost see graduation! I read that shingles might due to stress, but studies seem to be inconclusive. Hmmm…
Turns out, I've got shingles. At first I was like, "What the hell is that? Is it serious?" But my main concern was the immediate bug-eyed reaction of my normally laid back physician. It turns out that she had the shingles a few months ago and I think that her bug-eyed reaction was simply her immediate recognition of lovely rash. In case you're wondering, the shingles and chicken pox share the same strain of virus. So, although the shingles are not contagious, I can transmit the chicken pox. Therefore, I am to avoid children, pregnant women, and people who have not yet had the chicken pox. Luckily, I'm not in the pain that I've read about and my rash is pretty small comparatively. So far no shivers, either. Thanks to access to a bunch of medical databases, I've learned all about this condition and have seen some quite gruesome photos.
The touch of my shirt irritates my rash, which both itches and hurts. I thought I was going to go mad at work on Friday. By 3 in the afternoon, I was ready to rip my shirt off.
Last night I woke up at 5 am because Ron grabbed my hand from incessant scratching of my side. I was grateful when he brought me a cool compress, which temporarily stopped the itching.
Schoolwork has been beating my butt lately. So I've spent many nights over the last two weeks working on assignments 3 or 4 hours after working all day. It's been tough, but I can almost see graduation! I read that shingles might due to stress, but studies seem to be inconclusive. Hmmm…