O WRETCHED ME
Since I first fell ill last Friday, I've been thinking, "Well, even though this is annoying and prolonged and I'm miserable, at least I'm not throwing up and hating everything about my life." Oops.
This morning I awakened with an even more massive migraine and nausea, and threw up into the toilet and a bucket. I couldn't even keep down water, which reminded me of India and brought me to that awful place where you question every decision you've ever made (particularly the career-related ones -- you know, like choosing a non-traditional path with no benefits, no security, no income and NO SICK LEAVE). Yes, it felt like the end of the world.
Gridlife saved me from myself by setting outside my door some ginger ale, tissues-with-lotion and Vitamin Water. When my dehydrated self finally awakened again at 12:30, it was all I could do to haul the groceries to the kitchen and figure out how to get a can of soda out of the case. I gingerly took a sip of the ginger ale, which miraculously stayed down. So I ate a couple of crackers, which made me feel like vomiting again. I avoided the problem by sleeping and sleeping some more.
At 3PM the head was still pounding hard, and the stomach was massively agitated. At this point at least part of the headache was caused by a lack of caffeine, but the thought of drinking coffee or tea made my stomach toss even more. So, figuring that wide-awake-and-possibly-without-pain would be preferable to tossing-and-turning-with-the-world's-biggest-headache*. I bit the bullet and took an Excedrin Migraine (a legal speedball featuring the holy trinity of Acetaminophen, aspirin and caffeine). It turned out to be my first good decision in many years; by 4PM I could lift my head and even move about a bit without vomiting / wanting to cut off my head / getting lost / falling back down again. Thank Durga for OTC pharmaceuticals.
It also seems that the sore throat has also gone into remission, the sneezing has stopped, the cold sore has shrunk and the snot factory is on strike.
Perhaps I will be able to practice yoga again one day -- possibly even in this lifetime.
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*Now there's a memoir of marital dischord I'd like to read.
Feel Better!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you're feeling better. I laughed when I saw you stole my line about the Holy trinity - Acetaminophen, aspirin and caffeine.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nbc10.com/health/5822518/detail.html
It may sound like fingernails on a chalkboard to hear this but mom was right about ginger ale for tummy aches anyway.
According to researchers, not only will it settle your digestive tract, ginger warms you up and relieves some arthritis.
Free radicals go to work in the stomach to decrease nausea.
Scientists say fresh ginger root is best but ginger ale, ginger tea and even ginger snap cookies will do the trick.
Just make sure they're made with real ginger.
And according to my mom, when you're sick you should drink ginger ale at room temperature so it doesn't shock your upset body by being too cold.
I just got over something similar to what you had. The best part about being sick is how great you feel when you realize you're well. The contradiction between the two.
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