THE MAIN REASON YOU HAVEN'T HEARD FROM ME
I did not wish for this to turn into a dreary medblog, but this is one reason no one has heard much for me in the past week, other than the fact that internet access was at least ten dollars per hour.
Thursday: around noon I noticed three bumps on the inside of my right arm. They looked like poison ivy. By night they were worse.
Friday: My whole right arm was fire-engine red and swollen. So was part of my left. And my chest, my stomach, my underarms and the backs of my knees. I looked like a burn victim or something. Benadryl Gel did nothing for it. Cortizone 10 did very little. My mom, who has been a registered nurse for more than 50 years, had never seen anything like it. We went on the hotel tour of the old city and the pharmacist at Puerto Rican Drug (?) said it was a definte allergic reaction and gave me ten non-prescription Benadryl capsules in a little Ziploc Bag. I told her I needed something topical IMMEDIATELY so she recommended some aloe vera gel.
Saturday: I woke up looking and feeling worse. We went to the front desk and were told there was no "house doctor." No one would tell us where a doctor's office or an urgent care center was -- we would have to go to the local ER or have a hotel-referred doctor come to our room. We opted for the latter. The woman was younger than me and suffered from a horrible case of acne. At least I had the sense to know acne is not contagious. Still, this is not reassuring when you are suffering from the rash of a lifetime. She gave me a shot of cortisone and one of Benadryl, both of which did a number on my brain and body. Plus about a hundred dollars' worth of prescriptions to be filled at the local Walgreen's, after a cab ride for two. At this point I would have gladly had the woman shoot me up with morphine just for some relief.
Thursday: around noon I noticed three bumps on the inside of my right arm. They looked like poison ivy. By night they were worse.
Friday: My whole right arm was fire-engine red and swollen. So was part of my left. And my chest, my stomach, my underarms and the backs of my knees. I looked like a burn victim or something. Benadryl Gel did nothing for it. Cortizone 10 did very little. My mom, who has been a registered nurse for more than 50 years, had never seen anything like it. We went on the hotel tour of the old city and the pharmacist at Puerto Rican Drug (?) said it was a definte allergic reaction and gave me ten non-prescription Benadryl capsules in a little Ziploc Bag. I told her I needed something topical IMMEDIATELY so she recommended some aloe vera gel.
Saturday: I woke up looking and feeling worse. We went to the front desk and were told there was no "house doctor." No one would tell us where a doctor's office or an urgent care center was -- we would have to go to the local ER or have a hotel-referred doctor come to our room. We opted for the latter. The woman was younger than me and suffered from a horrible case of acne. At least I had the sense to know acne is not contagious. Still, this is not reassuring when you are suffering from the rash of a lifetime. She gave me a shot of cortisone and one of Benadryl, both of which did a number on my brain and body. Plus about a hundred dollars' worth of prescriptions to be filled at the local Walgreen's, after a cab ride for two. At this point I would have gladly had the woman shoot me up with morphine just for some relief.
posted by Numerologist at 9:39 AM
<< Home