Bummer

I'm a little nervous with this flu. I tend to think these things are overhyped but then i have also been a victim.

When I lived in Colorado there was an outbreak of West Nile Virus. I was hiking and got bit my a mosquito. A week later i was sick. Really sick. I went to the hospital and told them I thought i had West Nile. They sent me home saying i didn't - that only 50 or so people had it. A week later i was really sick and couldn't move my neck. My doctor said "You can't have west nile. it's still pretty rare." I asked her to do the blood test anyway. When she called me a few days later she said "i can't believe it but you tested positive." There was nothing you can do and since i had it for a month already they couldn't do the spinal tap either and she said I'd just get over it.

I began getting really sick. I couldn't eat or drink anything without getting sick, could hardly walk and my legs would give out as i went down stairs. I would lay there on the floor puking up water watching the news say "There are now 130 cases of West Nile. 30 deaths." and swear that i was going to be number 31. Not many were dying from it and most got over it in a few weeks but I was extremely sick. I don't complain much about pain but it was horrible.

After two months of missing work and weekly visits to the ER when my pain got too bad (they just shot me full of morphine so i'd leave happy as an idiot) my boss was getting irritated. She didn't believe i was really this sick over West Nile because most people got over it in a week to two weeks so she forced me to go to a doctor of their choice. From that appointment I learned that not only did i have West Nile Virus but also Encephalitis and Meningitis. Long story short is I almost died - mostly because no one believed me so i didn't get proper medication and when they did figure out what it was it was too far in to do anything about. I had lost 20 or so pounds and I was already super skinny and didn't have that weight to lose but I couldn't keep anything down. It is very rare for someone to get all three like i did. Out of 110 cases, only 1 will, and many who do will die. My right leg still gives a lot of problems especially on long drives or when i'm fasting. I can't fast all 30 days because of it. I don't know why exactly but it gets so severe that i can't walk. My brain had swollen so bad that I had chronic headaches for a few years after.

So....there may be a lot of hype about this Swine Flu but it does happen and it can be you and it can be your kid so please take precautions and protect yourself. Don't get all paranoid but also don't put yourself at risk.

I was bummed that i didn't get to go to my favorite rummage sale today, the one i wait months on end for but crowds right now for me are a big no no. School for LD is on my mind and if the numbers keep rising i'll quit sending him. If I didn't have a baby in the house I probably wouldn't be so worried but with her being 4 months old, i am. NJ/NY has the most cases and we are smack dab in the middle of farm country and there's a lot of people who commute to NYC in our area. I'd be lying if i said I wasn't nervous because I am. I know it can happen even if the odds are small. I know for me it was a very slim chance i'd get so sick but I did and that leaves me a little freaked about this current flu. Just my two pennies.