Backpackin'

Sick, sick, sick.

I have not posted to this site for some time because of a cascade of illnesses that had me down and poor. Back in May I was massaging a client who told me near the end of the session that they had a sinus infection and a fever. When someone has a fever they are likely infectious. We have come to a time in our culture where being sick is not a reason to stay home. We load up on symptom-masking drug store meds and head off to work or school or whatever to spread illness among each other.

The day after the massage, I was down. Six weeks of increasingly potent antibiotics and that was over. But the antibiotics killed off a lot o fthe “good” bacteria in my gut, including the bacteria that keep the Candida fungus (the real name for what we call a yeast infection) under control, which started a two month, painful and debilitating fight. Candida is no big deal, unless itgets to vital organs, and then it can kill you. Oh joy.

Candida suppresses your immune system.  So as that began to subside, I got thisbizarre bacterial infection under my left eye, which made my cheek swell up like I was some hairless, bright pink chipmunk. Back to the doctor.  (They’re naming an exam room after me). The doctor tells me he is prescribing a very powerful $6 per pill antibiotic because if this doesn’t get gone in two or three days I will be hospitalized to keep it from getting to my brain and killing me. More joy.

Well the antibiotics killed the bacteria, but did such a number on my stomach I had fever and chills and diarrhea for six days and could only eat liquids for a while and lost seven pounds.

Anyway, I’m back and we’re planning on hiking another section of the Appalachian trail this fall.

Unless of course someone breathes on me.