Quarantined at home with Shingles!

This is me today

How the hell does a healthy 35 year old get Shingles? 

Last week I noticed a bump on my head, right in the hairline. I also had a nasty ear ache, but assumed it was from me going swimming for the first time this summer.

My throat hurt and I had a swollen gland beneath my right ear. I figured it was back to school germs that were going around.

I am allergic to mosquitoes, my skin reacts with warm raised welts whenever I get one. So when I had raised bumps on my forehead I thought I was attacked by mosquitoes and they were laying West Nile Virus in my ear. 

I have taken more ibuprofen in the last week than I have in the past three years. 

See I don’t put much faith in pills or doctors, haven’t seen a doctor in many years. Even though I  take care of sick immuno-compromised people for a living.  I trust in my bodies’ ability to heal with rest and  nutrition. I am basically stress free these days. Yes I am of the generation that got to experience chicken pox as a kid. 

Yesterday at work, I couldn’t even get my contact lenses  in. I had one very swollen eyelid. The Nurses were digging around in my scalp. Nobody had an otoscope. I just thought something was in my ear. 

They all said you need to be checked. The benadryl I took was helping nothing. 

One of my patients brought the newspaper in. I turned to my horoscope like I always do. It said something along the lines of take some personal time schedule an appointment with your doctor…

Someone was kind enough to come in and finish my shift, (Karma for me, I was actually working for someone else who was out sick). 

I went to the insta-care because I don’t even have my own doctor. He took one look at me and said “Oh, You have Shingles”

Waaaa!

A few days ago my sister said, “It looks like you have an STD on your face”. Gawd! I’ve never even had an STD or even a cold sore. Haven’t even had a boyfriend all year. See no stress!

The doctor was very worried about my eye and took me into a different room, put some dye in my eye and checked it out. Said it looked fine. But it is still my ear that is bothering me the most. The welts are now full on blisters around my one eyebrow. 

Gave me an anti-viral prescription. And an excuse from work. Which I am realizing now is just what I needed. I have more than 200 hundred hours of sick and personal time that go mostly unused. 

So I am quarantined at home. Nobody to drink beer with. Only the dog loves me.

So I am making zucchini bread from Paula Deen’s online recipes.

Or Betty Crocker’s?

They both look good.