The Germs Have Me on the Ropes

Oh, Natalie Dee. You do amuse me.

I've fought it for five weeks now, but my allergies have invited some of their germy friends to come on over, and now I'm sick. It's just goopy, coughy, "so tired I'll curl up on the floor" sick, though, not one of the more challenging GI bugs. You know the kind: you end up sitting on the toilet while you puke into the trashcan. If you've never experienced that, count yourself lucky.

I try to keep my personal area as germ free as I can without being neurotic or Felix Unger-ish about it. At work I'm barraged by germs, because I'm in the minority of people who believe that it's good manners (not to mention less gross) to cover one's mouth when sneezing or coughing. Oh, it's a germ extravaganza where I work, and you'll never hear "Sorry about filling up the immediate area with my germs." Tsk, tsk.

And for the sake of those of a more delicate nature, I won't even go into the daily barrage of rude noises emanating from certain offices. All I can say is that when my kids (both of whom are boys, mind you) do the same, they always follow with an "excuse me."

So it's about 10 of 4:00 on a cold, gray Saturday afternoon. After coughing until 2 this morning, I'm in prime condition for a nap. I'm still bound and determined (note to self: find out where that expression originated) to avoid a trip to the doctor's office for antibiotics, but I'm getting closer all the time.

Oh, and I just have to add that those three days of sick time I get each year are long gone, naturally. The germ originator? Well, that individual has all of this year's sick time, plus time carried over from previous years. That's bound to happen when you show up for work, regardless of how sick -- and infectious -- you may be.

Enough whining: bed calls.

I've had just about enough of these headaches

I just love Natalie Dee.

I've been taking decongestants for at least two weeks now. I've been using Ocean nasal spray (awesome stuff -- it's helped me dodge my 2x/year sinus infection this fall).

However, I still have the sinus headache I woke up with today. And it's all because of my stupid allergies to something ... something stupid, I'm sure.


I wouldn't mind having a runny nose, truly. I could even come to accept my chronically puffy, bruised-looking eye bags. But I can't come to terms with these headaches. So, I will be taking my usual way out: half of a Tylenol PM. Hey, if I can't get rid of the headache, at least I can escape it.

Here's hoping that I wake up refreshed tomorrow, ready to kick some butt or at least ready to tackle the laundry.

Still in the Land of the Living

I just love Demotivators, in case you haven't already guessed.

Just a quickie post because I'm slowly crawling back from the brink of oblivion. Nothing like having a headache, being dizzy, and so tired you want to just curl up into a ball to make you appreciate the wonders of antibiotics and a kick-ass prescription decongestant.

I thought I'd done my tour of duty six weeks ago when I had a sinus infection. Usually I enjoy those little episodes just twice a year. This year, however, must be special, because I have yet another sinus infection.

Bless my doctor, though. He knows when I show up in his examination room, I'm not just looking for sympathy. I want to know what's wrong and I want him to tell me how to fix it, pronto. Even if I don't leave the office with a prescription, just knowing what's going on and about how much longer I'll have to put up with it is a relief.

I'm wondering if my lovely deviated septum is causing these problems ... and, if it is, if I can get a perky new nose -- oh, and a nondeviated septum via an otolaryngologist's knife. (I just love that I can both spell otolaryngologist and say it, too. Um, that's an ear/nose/throat doctor. I used to work in an office that was just crawling with doctors, that's how I know.)

So the headache is gone, the fatigue is lifting, and the ringing in my ears is growing a bit more faint. Yep, by this weekend I should be in fine fettle. I'll be in great shape to deal with the carpet in the boys' room -- I got the sinus infection, but they got a GI virus (as did DH). Somehow, I'm thinking I got the better end of the deal all around. Still: ugh.