Okay, remember the post below, when I mentioned that I had a few bug bites on my arm that looked awful?
Guess what? Not bug bites.
Poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac. Not sure which I got into while weeding, but it was one of 'em. And it has been years since I've had poison ivy, so I didn't realize what it was.
Also, the Calamine (tm) lotion we had in the house was left over from when eldest had the chicken pox. In 1997. Apparently that stuff doesn't last 10 years, because it didn't dry up the "bites."
By Saturday, it was bad. I was in St. Louis with the parents, when my dad id'ed the nasty stuff. By Sunday, it was spreading.
By Monday, I called in sick, because I had blisters on both arms, my stomach, and one leg. All up and down all four body parts. I was going through half-a-tube of the new Calamine (tm) lotion at a time.
My doc looked at me, sighed, and decided that at this point, the only thing to do was suppress my immune system. It was attacking everything, not just the original ivy. So I'm on pills to keep my immune system down for a couple of weeks, to let the nasty stuff work its way through my system.
I look like I've bathed in Calamine (tm) lotion. Aveeno baths are my savior. Thank God for Benadryl (tm).
I'll look just fine and dandy for my cousin's wedding. Maybe a pantsuit will hide the worst of it, assuming I can bear to wear it.
It could be worse. This isn't nearly as bad as when I had the chicken pox at 12. Close, but not quite there.
1 comment:
Oh, no! I'm sorry, S.
When I got chicken pox at age 21 (missing your wedding — I'm still peeved about that), my world was all about Aveeno baths, Benadryl, pudding and Jell-O. And many cold, wet washcloths, which helped calm the itching. The Aveeno baths really made the difference, though. I went through a lot of that stuff.
Hang in there...
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