Thursday, November 15, 2012

I am most certainly NOT down with the sickness...

On Tuesday morning I woke up feeling crummy.... the usual sinus infection-type feeling: stuffy, sore throat, and general fatigue.  I took myself over to the campus nurse and was told that they were booked, but she could see me at 8:30 on Wednesday morning. Okay... that's plenty of time to get myself on antibiotics and well.  Tuesday night was dreadful... I was exhausted and woke in the middle of the night shaking and chattering with cold.  At some point that evening I sleepily took my temperature... 102.  Shit. 

Wednesday morning I found out that the campus nurse couldn't see me because I'm pregnant and the liability insurance doesn't cover her in that area.  So I went to the doctor.  The doctor was sure it was a sinus infection, but gave me a flu test just in case.  Yup ... its the flu.  She told me to immediately call my midwife and that I was at "high-risk for pre-term labor."  OMG FREAKOUT TIME!!!

The midwife's nurse said I couldn't take anything but theraflu and to rest and drink plenty of liquids. If I'm not better in two weeks *two weeks!* come in to check for pneumonia.  If I get constant back pain, puking, or a fever over 103 go to the hospital. FREAKING OUT. 

I spent yesterday in bed feeling generally crummy and feverish.  I did -- in between hours and hours of napping -- do a bit of library girl research (aka... reputable sources and whatnot).  Okay... if you are pregnant and have the flu there are three concerns 1) that you'll have a crazy high fever that will mess up the baby, 2) dehydration, 3) the flu impacts the lungs enough to become pneumonia. So basically I need to keep my fever down, hydrate like a mofo, and flush everything out.

I can do this.  Operation "flush that crap out" began yesterday.  I'm ingesting Theraflu, EmergenC, water, herbal tea, and chai.  Loads of broth and juicy fruits are in the mix as well.  I'm irrigating my sinuses 2-3 times a day. And resting.

Lots of resting. I'm really bad at resting. I like doing something all the time as I am of a mindset that I'll sleep when I'm dead as I've things to do.

As of this point I'm feeling better and I haven't had a fever since last night.  Fingers are crossed that I get well soon.  I think that I possibly have what Atticus had last week and maybe this strain of flu is brief.  I know this sounds odd, but since I was 18months old every time I have the flu my legs don't work.  I'm seriously.  When I had the flu as a baby it infected my leg muscles....now each time I get it I have horrid leg pain followed by a brief inability to walk.  This is the first time I've ever had the flu and not had leg pain.  I guess you could say I'm looking on the bright side ... I'm not doing a half-zombie crawl to the toilet.  Positivity for the win.

8 comments:

Andi said...

Hang in there! Keep up the fluids and irrigation and resting! Sending all the good thoughts.

Amanda said...

I had full-blown influenza when I was six months pregnant with Ambrose. It was horrible! I had to go to the hospital two days in a row to get several liters of fluid pumped into my veins through an IV, on top of the 16 glasses of water I was drinking already every day. It was April, well past flu season, but both Morrigan and I got influenza within a day of each other, and I was sick for over a week. Ugh.

Sending you all the best! I'm glad to hear there are at least some bright sides...

Susan in TX said...

So sorry that you are down and hope you have a quick recovery!

Alex (The Sleepless Reader) said...

Yikes! The nurse couldn't come because she wasn't covered, really?! At the start of my pregnancy my doctor also told me that since it was a winter pregnancy I was likely to get every bug around. So far, so good, but still have the worst months ahead!

Get well soon!

Debi said...

:( Oh my, I do hope you're feeling better so very, very soon!!!

Amanda Roper said...

Thanks for the well-wishes! I am feeling much better today.

April said...

Ew, same here. Feel better! Let's both take the opportunity to read, read, read :)

Susan said...

I hope you feel better soon. It's awful to be sick when you are pregnant. It's hard enough being pregnant! I don't recall getting sick during any of mine, for which I am thankful. Take care of yourself and the little one inside you.