On the eve of my birthday, I was hit hard with the flu. My dinner party cancelled, I took some nighttime cold/flu medicine, and drifted in and out of a feverish stupor for the next 3 days. I had a lot of time to think, hence the list featured here...
The Top 5 Things I Hate About The Flu
5. Kidney Punches
Maybe this isn't something you've experienced, but it was something that I dreaded during this flu, and illnesses past. I kept myself pretty medicated to keep my fever down, but in that short lapse between dose 1 wearing off and dose 2 kicking in, I could feel the fever come raging back through my body in the form of (what I call) kidney punches.
No, no...not just a backache induced by a fever. But, an intense, sharp, throbbing pain that would get me right at the kidneys. All I could do was curl up in the fetal position and gasp through the pain until it subsided. I kid you not, it was as if the Keebler Elves had abandoned their cookie tree and found me with fists of fury and sharp knives. I shudder at the mere memory of it.
4. Skin Irritation
When the kidney punches would subside, I would go stand in a hot shower. It just helped me feel better. However, (TMI, possibly, for some people...) I found that the loofah and moisturizing body wash I use every day, without any problems, made me feel like I was rubbing sand paper on my skin. It was the strangest thing. And, it only felt like that during the height of my fever spikes. Am I the only one...? Regardless, it was rather annoying, not to mention uncomfortable.
3. TV
This is a strange one, but I rarely just 'channel surf.' I have a handful of shows I record on my DVR, and I watch them on certain days at certain times...a typical day for me goes like this: wake up, prepare for work, morning devotions/prayer time during breakfast. Work until 3:45, gym (I've been a slacker), go home, prep for next days work, shower, take care of dinner, evening devotion/prayer time, watch a show or 2 on my DVR, bed. It's not that I'm 'holier than thou' by any means. It's taken me a long time to become disciplined enough to maintain regular devotion/prayer time, and I really enjoy it.
But, I was so sick, I could barely sit up, so I spent a lot of time laying on my couch, mindlessly watching television, or sleeping. And, I found it becoming...boring...Sure, I could have skipped it, but in those moments when I couldn't sleep, I did like to have the TV on for noise, or simply a distraction.
TV: a love/hate relationship.
2. Fever Crying
True confessions, and a blessing on the man who I someday marry...I have horrible crying jags when I get sick...for no.reason.at.all. It's like my body gets so maxed out from fighting off the infection, it just takes a nosedive off the emotional cliff. It's awful. And, to make matters worse, I was already congested, so crying was NOT helpful.
There were a couple of times I woke up in the middle of the night and burst into tears. No reason. I was already delirious, drugged up, and feverish. Might as well cry, too.
1. Forgetfulness
I would say I have a pretty sharp memory. But, when I am sick, it all goes out the window. And, I think it makes it worse when you live alone and have to fend for yourself. Typically, that's quite fine with me. But, this time, I think my brain was taking a holiday, because I kept forgetting ridiculous things. For example: I needed to make soup. The instructions said boil water. No biggie. I would set the water on the stove, crank up the temp, and then FORGET I had done it. It wouldn't be until I heard a strange hissing sound and saw billows of steam rising from the stove that I would remember I had even turned the stove on. Or, that I was going to make soup. That happened more than I'd like to admit. I hate the feeling of forgetting something...especially something important, like turning on the stove or oven, and not remembering I did it...drives me nuts.
There you have it, folks. My own little list of things I hate about the flu, besides the flu itself.
Stay healthy, everyone!!
Just say boo to the flu!
