Well, the turmeric appears to have worked on one area of my leg. The other area was too far gone, I think. Perhaps the idea is to use it early on and not wait until things have progressed past the point of no return. I'm still going to keep taking it orally.
When I woke up feeling very ill this morning, it seemed like a very good idea to play hooky from church and go to the Med Center. A really good idea since walking is tortuous and sitting in a pew would be a killer. The pain is beyond the point of masking it and walking semi-normally. (I've been typing this perched on the very edge of my seat so that my thighs don't come in contact with the chair at all).
I was able to get in right away and saw a doctor who has seen me for this before, Dr. Meyers. He's a great guy - very informative, likes to sit down and chat. He remembered me, which is always nice. Makes you feel more like you're with your regular doctor when there is that warmth of recognition.
It turns out that our county has been having a major MRSA outbreak for the past 18 months (which falls in line with when I first had my problem). AND it is mostly effecting otherwise healthy individuals (like m). In a week the health department in conjunction with the local hospital is hosting a symposium to alert all medical professionals to the severity of the problem in our county. The Ohio Department of Health even has information about MRSA as the number one feature item on their website's front page.
Anyhow, Dr. Meyers ran a culture this time. The results should be in by Wednesday - but he's pretty positive it's MRSA. He said it's likely that I do keep picking it up from the gym (as I suspected). With that in mind, he gave me a plan to help prevent it. Every other day I have to shower with a cleanser that is used by surgeons when they scrub in. It's too drying to use daily - oh, and I only have to hit my legs with it.
It's a good thing I went today. I have cellulitis again. Cellulitis (sel-u-LI-tis) is a potentially serious bacterial infection of your skin. Cellulitis appears as a swollen, red area of skin that feels hot and tender, and it may spread rapidly. (You could practically fry an egg on the back of my thigh, that is if you weren't concerned about germs!) According to the Mayo Clinic: "Cellulitis may also affect the tissues underlying your skin and can spread to your lymph nodes and bloodstream. Left untreated, the spreading bacterial infection may rapidly turn into a life-threatening condition." BTW, it's completely unrelated to cellulite, the dimply fat that no one wants on their thighs! Not that cellulitis is a pleasure to have on my thigh either...
This was one clue that I probably have MRSA - the infection started and worsened rapidly - extremely rapidly.
I left with a prescription for Bactrim (a sulfa drug that has proven to be very effective against staph), which I have to take in a dosage of two (large) tablets twice a day for 14 days. I have to follow up with my physician in a week to make sure things are healing properly. If I get feverish, if things worsen, etc, I'm supposed to go to the hospital.
My pharmacist, Mike, knows I'm sick of this. He had his own advice. He wants me to do what was done for his brother who had a severe problem with MRSA since being burned in an explosion. He said I should make a solution which is the equivalent of 1/4 cup of bleach to 10 gallons of water and wash my legs with that weekly. He even recommended sitting in a tub of it.
I mentioned being in terrible pain. Excruciating, actually. I have a very high pain threshold, brought on by a mother who felt that everything was "not that bad" and told us things like, "Oh, you're just a hypochondriac like your father." Once our Siamese cat freaked out when I went to pet him as he was watching a train set in my brothers room. His hind claw severely gashed my hand, very deeply. Instead of taking me to the emergency room, my mother cleaned the wound and stitched it herself. She had a stash of sutures and needles at the house. The scar has faded a bit over time, but it's a constant reminder of the pain of Mom stitching me together instead troubling herself to take me to the doctor. She was an operating room nurse and we always joked that it was the perfect job for her because the patients were unconscious. She had no compassion when it came to us kids being sick. My sister and I learned to be very stoic - or to do our best to separate from the symptoms and remain light-hearted. (My oldest sister and brother aren't quite as stoic, nor do they joke when they're ill - they just suffer until someone forces them to a doctor).
That's my story. I've got a gazillion things to do in this week before the wedding and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be out of commission at least for the rest of today and tomorrow. (I'm very optimistic about the pain lessening up enough by Tuesday to really get things done).
~o~
About the wedding. The groom's mother's side of the family is Jewish, so they will be breaking the glass and all that. A cool custom, in my book. However, I am thankful for one custom that they will NOT be doing:
Apparently, there is a dance done at many Jewish weddings that involves two circles of people going in opposite directions. In their center, four men hoist the bride who is seated in a chair, up and down, up and down, to the music. When they're done with her, they grab the bride's MOTHER and start hoisting her around. No, thank you!
~o~
Twisted person that I am, if it is at all possible without being in agony, I am going to at least do some yoga today. The stress has me all tightened up and I need loosening where ever I can loosen w/o hurting my thigh.
