Scenes from a Sick Bed
This week I have really concentrated on living through my sinus infection and double ear infections. It’s taken a lot of concentration. I don’t remember ever having been this sick. I broke down and went the to the doctor on Tuesday afternoon and she gave me some heavy duty prescriptions to help kick these infections. As if I wasn’t feeling bad enough, turns out I’m allergic to one of the prescriptions she gave me because I broke out in head to toe hives about 20 minutes after taking it that night. Then, yesterday, I got out of bed for the first time in almost two days and went to the kitchen to make myself some dinner. But when I stood there, I started getting lightheaded and dizzy, and the next thing I knew I was sitting on the kitchen floor. I tried to get up and walk back to my bed, but started getting sick to my stomach. I managed to grab my cell before I ended up sprawled out on my bathroom floor. I called Chris and he came home to help me. He fed me soup and Gatorade and put me back in bed. By late last night, I was feeling a little better. I think eating and drinking lots of fluids helped that. I stayed home from work again today (third day in a row! yikes!) and have been laying on my couch, trying to rest up. I am feeling much better, but still really weak. I can barely life this Thin Mint to my mouth…
Oh, nevermind. I got it.
So, days on my sick bed and here are the musings I have had:
1. Sadly, life does not stop just because you are sick. Babies still want to be held, big boys still need you to help them find clean underwear, and dinners must be made. I’ve managed to put life on pause a bit, thanks to Chris, but I guess the saying is true. There are no sick days in motherhood.
2. My kitchen floor needs to be swept. I discovered this when I came to and I was sitting on my kitchen floor surrounded by stray green peas, a Lego, a Gerber Puff, and a ball of some kind of tape.
3. I take turns in my book choices these days. I read one young adult novel that my students recommend and then I read one adult novel that I choose. I just finished my latest choice, “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult. My mother-in-law sent it to me for Valentine’s Day and it was fantastic. I would highly recommend it to any parent or teacher. It’s about bullying and the effects it has on children. It was really hard to read, and I almost put it down several times because I didn’t think I could handle it, but I’m so glad I stuck with it. Now I’m reading “The Battle of the Labyrinth” by Rick Riordan. It’s part of a series of young adult books about Greek mythology coming to life today. A lot of my dude students are reading the series, so I’ve been working my way through it, too. It starts with “The Lightning Thief,” in case you’re interested.
3. I don’t normally take medications. It’s not that I avoid them. It’s just that I don’t think they actually DO anything. This is an endless argument in my marriage. Chris insists they don’t do anything for me because I don’t take them consistently. I insist they don’t do anything for me because they just make you sleepy until you sleep through your sickness, and I can’t really walk around sleepy all the time (see #1 above). But this time, I’ve been too sick to argue and have taken my medicine around the clock like a good girl. The only thing that seems to make a difference is the Amoxicillin for my ears and sinus infection. That’s broken everything up like a charm. The jury’s still out on the other stuff…
4. I’ve never stayed in bed this long at one time before. It has been awesome! I just wake up, read, go back to sleep. Or, wake up, drink some Gatorade, go back to sleep. Or wake up, take some medicine, go back to sleep. For two whole days that was my routine and, even being sick, I loved it. I can’t tell you the last time I got to sleep all day in my bed. But by today I was ready to get up and out. I’ve moved down to the couch and I feel much more alert and active today. I’m still in jammies, but I think my body knows we’ve crawled out of the cave of pillows and joined the living again. My dad always said that was the best cure for a cold, anyway. So today, I’m up and moving around my house and feeling more like myself. Although, I do miss my bed.
This weekend, Chris has to work and so I’m thinking about shipping the kids off to my parent’s house on Saturday, just to give myself one more day of taking it easy before jumping back in the saddle, full swing. Here’s hoping that by Sunday I’m feeling better again. I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but I actually MISS running in the mornings! I hope by Monday I’m able to get back out there again.
I better to back to bed. Clearly, I have become feverish and am speaking nonsense.
19 Comments
Lisa
I hope you feel better soon Katie! Love your blog, btw 🙂
Mindee@ourfrontdoor
Ooooh . . . sleeping all day is almost worth being sick for. Glad you’re on the mend though.
I read YA fiction along with my own kids and I really enjoyed the Rick Riordan series. You should skip the movie though. It was terrible.
Kristin
Nasal rinsing is the BEST medicine for sinus crud! It helps flush all that gunk out! Trust me. I have to do it 2-3 times a day during allergy season and it cuts down on my Sudafed and I haven’t had a sinus infection in years (I used to get them at least twice an allergy season)! I don’t like the way meds make me feel, either, so it’s a win-win! :):)
Jessica W.
Kristin is right, flushing out your sinuses is one of the best things to do. As far as meds go, I’m with Chris. I do notice that you are using fake Sudafed and I don’t mean the generic. There are 2 kinds of decongestant, Phenphedrine and Pseudoephedrine. Phenphedrine is what you have there and personally, for me, it barely does anything. Pseuedophedrine works a lot better!! It is still OTC, but you have to get it from the Pharmacist. Just ask them for it (I like Advil Cold and Sinus personally). It works wonders!
Alaina
Hope you feel better soon! And this is belated but congratulations on the bloggie award!
Lorrie
I can sympathize with you. I was in your shoes all last weekend and am just now feeling like myself again. Here’s to you feeling better soon! But, it was a good excuse to catch up on some reading.
JoDee
I hope you are back to 100% soon! Random question — Do you and Chris really only sleep in a full size bed, or is that a queen? I can’t imagine going smaller than a queen. My husband (www.amancalleddad.blogspot.com) could probably write an entire post about how hard it is to get a good night of sleep with me crowding him and talking in my sleep…
Alice
I hope you feel better soon. I seem to have an ongoing cold/cough from all the different germs at uni. But I don’t think mine’s as bad as yours! Lots of bed rest is what I would suggest. Alice xx
Alice
Oops, forgot to add my URL. Alice xx
Amy V
Awe, poor thing. Hope you feel better soon!
PS
Where on earth did you find such a cute coverlet? I LOVE how colorful it is! Please share your source!
Lindsey
Hope you feel better very soon! I was going to compliment your bed spread like Amy did… It’s very cute! 🙂
Megab
Love your bedspread!!!! Where did it come from?!! Hope u feel better soon!!
Jenn
Being sick sure is no fun. Rest up Saturday and get better. Having your parents so close is definetly a plus on days like this!
lissa
One suggestion for sinus illness: oil of oregano. I suggest it to all my patients and it is really a fantastic thing. But…get it in capsule form…the liquid is nasty. Glad you’re feeling better though
HeatherM
I have this ridiculously low immune system, and have probably spent half my life fighting off respiratory illnesses. In my experience, the phenyl ephedrine you have there doesnt work nearly as well as pseudophed – the stuff you have to show your drivers license to the pharmacist to get. I would NOT do a sinus rinse like neti pot if you suspect a bacterial sinus infection, because it can rinse the bacteria through the entire sinus cavity, and exacerbate the infection. I have had this happen, and it was NOT fun. The mucinex (guafenesin) is great, but can keep you up at night so use it mostly during the day. And I find advil works better than tylenol for sinus pain, because Advil treats the inflammation from the infection.
Michelle
I hope you start feeling more like your old self this weekend! It’s incredibly hard to be sick when you are a mother, I’m glad you have a great husband to help!
Shelley
Feel better soon! Ive also just had a cold & a sinus infection – not nice. Unfortunately i didnt get to spend much time in bed 🙁
Trish D
Neti Pot Neti Pot Neti Pot! Since we’ve moved to New Orleans..this thing has been life changing for me! I realize that I sound like an infommercial..lol At the risk of sounding like my mother…you may also want to buy everyone new toothbrushes and wash your bed linens. Just to help get rid of the germs from your two day bed fest. Personally, I think by Sunday…a couple of good mimosas will kick you back into the land of the living 😉
Julie W
My husband and I enjoyed the Percy Jackson books but are LOVING the Heroes of Olympus series that comes after them. We are both eagerly awaiting the next book! Highly recommend!