spinster-in-training

I should be going back to sleep now, but I have to wait about 30 minutes for the humidifier to reset itself (after auto-shut-off this morning) before I can get it to start back up again, so I thought, “Hey, go waste some time on your blog.”

I stayed home yesterday and finally went to the doctor. I didn’t see my regular doctor, since she’s not in on Mondays. The lady I saw, she was nice, but a little off. She didn’t really want to give me antibiotics, which I totally understand. (Laurie Garrett’s The Coming Plague has put the proper fear of antibiotic-resistance in me, if nothing else, so I prefer to leave antibiotics as a last resort.) However, I’ve already missed a ton of work, I’ve spent a whole week trying to deal with this *without* antibiotics and it’s just gotten worse, and – most pressingly – it’s moved into my chest and it’s affecting my breathing, so I wanted to boot it in the ass already. I normally use my rescue inhaler maybe once a week, and I’ve been using it multiple times a day. Not good. There were some quirks that reduced my confidence a little bit, but those could be due to the fact that I just don’t have the rapport with her that I have with my regular doctor. The clincher, for me, is that she ended up diagnosing me with a sinus infection and the beginning stages of bronchitis “or something similar.” (What would that be? Pneumonia? I feel like, thanks to the asthma, I should be more familiar with chest problems, but I can’t honestly think of any infections that are “similar to” but not actually bronchitis.) Also, my seasonal allergies are on overdrive, and the crazy swelling is blocking the sinus infection from draining and clearing up, so it’s just staying in there and festering. So, seems to me to point to antibiotics. And she did (somewhat grudgingly) give me a script for antibiotics, as well as a sample of nasal spray for my allergies. But she tried to press for me to just go get a neti pot and try that for a week, and then “we’d see” if I needed antibiotics. I’m just saying – a sinus infection and the beginning of bronchitis seem like two very good reasons to put me on antibiotics already. And I really don’t see how irrigating my sinuses with saline is going to help get any infection out of my bronchial tubes. I got in the nasal spray and two doses of the antibiotics yesterday, and felt markedly improved this morning, so that’s that, as far as I’m concerned. (My sinuses and chest feel much better – still not great, but much improved compared to yesterday and the last week. But I didn’t sleep very well last night, between coughing and having to pee so much and so frequently from all the hydration – plus I had to sleep in the lazyboy again, because if I wasn’t more or less upright, the coughing was too much to sleep at all. And I have the best husband in the world, because he came and slept on the couch, so I wouldn’t have to sleep alone, and in case I needed anything. My darling hubbin! Best ever! But so I’m wiped today, and now that my cough is actually productive, is it pretty fucking gnarly. It’s just long, and gross-sounding, and then I start gagging, and the stuff I’m coughing up is DISGUSTING, and then I’m exhausted afterwards – so I’m not foisting that on my coworkers, especially when I’m wiped out and cruddy-feeling and already inclined to stay home. And also my stomach is jacked up from all the dayquil, and now the antibiotics. And the not-sleeping last night has made me weepy today. So, stayed home.) Anyway. Also, I was reading up on nasal irrigation (since I do have Simply Saline at home, although I’ve only used it for moisturizing on the rare occasion), and apparently it’s not such a good idea if you have a sinus infection. Irrigation could make the infection worse, or could help it to spread, or could encourage pseudomonas. So, I’m going to pass, and try it as a preventative, with my daily Claritin, to stave off my seasonal allergy bullshit.

On happier notes:

-In the doctor’s office, before my appointment, I saw the cutest couple (well, aside from me and my hubs, hee). They were just adorable to each other, and were both wearing vintage clothes, and looked like a couple straight out of a 1940s photograph. I’m afraid I stared a bit obviously at the girl’s hair – it was really nicely styled, though. Almost made me regret getting mine cut. Almost. (It must have required some amount of effort, and probably some curling and some product. Although depending on her hair, it could have just been bobby pins and nothing else. But for me to do it would require curling and product, and let’s be honest: I’m most likely not getting up any earlier in the morning to do that and be all cute for work. I mean, not that I begrudge work any cuteness – truth be told, I prefer to go in feeling all put together and made up and cute. It tends to help me feel more alert and productive. But I also like to not get up at ungodly hours, which means hairstyling time is limited to about ten minutes, maybe fifteen.)

-When I left the doctor’s, I wasn’t feeling so hot, but anyway, this young girl (about twelve, I’d say) was walking a standard poodle (the huge ones), and he got out of his collar. And then proceeded to run like a crazed fiend around the parking lot, totally ignoring the girl’s efforts to get him back, and widening his loops so he got closer and closer to the street. I didn’t want to get out at first, because the last couple times I’ve tried to help catch an animal, it’s been fruitless, and I felt like ass and not up to running around after a hyper dog. But I was driving the minivan, and this crazed poodle was speeding around the lot faster than I could keep up with, and I didn’t want to hit him. (Greg thinks if I’d backed out slowly enough, it wouldn’t have been an issue, but I don’t know. I’m a good driver, but I rarely drive the minivan, and I don’t think I’ve quite got the feel of its size yet.) The dog had seemed mildly interested in me when I left the doctor’s office, and I was hoping to cash in on that, so I got out, and made use of what I’ve learned from one summer working a kennel and a couple dog-training classes/books/videos. To wit: squat down, stretch your arms out wide, and call the dog in a higher-pitched voice, and sound excited. I don’t know why this is supposed to work, but damned if that dog didn’t immediately beeline over to me. And then I held him and took some licks to the face while the girl put his collar back on. So yay.

-And lastly, the humidifier is ready to start back up, and my cough suppressant seems to have kicked in, so while I’m still coughing it’s not unendingly. Naptime! Finally.