Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Listen to Your Mama, Lessons from the Shingles

It's not much of a secret that I had the "S" word all of October and continue to suffer. I'm talking about Shingles. Although I have heard of worse places to have them, mine were pretty bad. The sore was on my right upper back, but the lymph nodes under that armpit were swollen and most of the itching and pain was in my right breast. So if you have a nanny cam in my house, or are one of those hackers able to spy via the laptop camera and you've seen me for 6 weeks sitting on the couch holding my breast with my eyes closed while moaning, let me just state for the record that it's not what you think. 

Anyway, there are some things I learned from having survived spending so much time in the jaws of hell, and since I'm feeling up to it, I thought I'd share them with you. Some are positive lessons, others I feel lucky to have survived.

Like: 

~ "Ouch" and "pain" are four letter words.
 
~ Someone needs to contact the Merriam-Webster people, Shingles needs it's own dictionary. Because "ouch" and "pain". though 4 letter words, just don't cut it. Now "agony", "excruciating", "torturous", those words are at least in the ballpark.



~ Multiply time by a factor of ten to interpret human time into "shingles" time. So if they say your pain meds will work in 1/2 hour, that's 5 hours in shingles time. And if they say the duration of the disease is 3 to 5 weeks, that's like 30 to 50 weeks forever in shingles time.


~ I probably should have lead with this, the hardest learned lesson: doesn't matter how old you are, listen to your mama, dammit. 
 

Don't be like Karen, the shingles version | Graphic made by and property of www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics #humor


~ Pain meds do double duty. Not only do they block some of the pain for a little while, but they allow you to sit in the house and not give a damn that there are dirty dishes in the sink and the laundry's not done. No wonder they're addictive.

~ Between the pain, the fever, the inability to wear certain clothes, your being contagious, and your fuzziness from the meds, you're pretty much stuck in the house. So you get to not wear a bra. For days. And if you were capable of smiling (ever again), you would.

~ You don't care what's for dinner. You don't even care if there's any dinner.

~ While we're on the subject of food, and this lesson was probably the hardest of all, because I've believed, really believed, for my whole life, but it turns out that chocolate does not make everything better. {{sob}}. 

~ Once you go off all of the pain meds, turns out a bit of whiskey and bourbon can do what chocolate cannot. Who knew? Well, besides me. 


Spiked Hot Cider is a warm comforting drink for a cold day, a party or a holiday gathering. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #drink

Spiked Hot Cider

Spiked Hot Cider is a warm comforting drink for a cold day, a party or a holiday gathering. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #drink



~ There were lots of lessons mama taught you, but one (that I, anyway) missed out on is when you can't pick your arm up, and you can't put your arm down what you do with it.

~ When you can't lay on your back, can't lay on your front, can't lay on your side and fall over when you attempting to sleep standing up, don't try standing on your head. Turns out desperation is not the mother of invention. Inevitably that just won't go well. And "ouch" doesn't cover it.

~ While we're on the subject, sleeping on the toilet doesn't work out either.

~ You will forget everything: what you're thinking, what you're doing, what you need, when you took your meds, what time of day it is, everything. Except the pain. You will never forget the pain.

~ It hurts to yell. And you should have known that before you sat down to watch football. If it hurts to talk, you damn well should have figured out that it hurts to yell, duh (so much for my reputation as a stable genius).

But:

Thanksgiving is in two days and my son flies in from Boulder tonight. I'll be making a turkey with all the trimmings even if it kills me. We'll have a fire in the fireplace, football on the TV, and I'll be using my new re-found ability to smile. And let me tell you this, I will be thankful for my family, I will be thankful for the food on the table, and most of all I will be thankful for the wisdom of my mom, who I will never EVER be caught not listening to again. Amen.



Baking In A Tornado signature | www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics





Spiked Hot Cider        
                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients (per drink):
8 oz apple cider
1 TBSP caramel syrup
1 oz Jim Beam Apple
1 oz Fireball whiskey
whipped cream 
1 TBSP caramel

Directions:
*NOTE: I make each serving individually in microwave safe mugs, but you can heat the cider in a pan on the stove, and transfer to your mugs.
*Heat the apple cider in a microwave safe mug in the microwave for 2 minutes. 
*Stir in the caramel syrup and both liquors. Top with whipped cream and drizzle with caramel.

18 comments:

  1. Yikes! Sorry you had to go through that.

    I had seen enough friends go through the battle with shingles that I stalked Walgreens pharmacies (twice!) until I found one that had the vaccine. I know it's not 100 percent effective, but I'm hopeful.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I hope you got the second version of the vaccine that's given in 2 shots a few months apart. I had the first version, not knowing there was a second better one.

      Delete
  2. I love mulled apple cider, but I've never spiked it. This sounds delicious and is probably more enjoyable without shingles. Hope your days of discomfort are soon behind you and stay there! Happy Thanksgiving. Safe travels to your family as they make their way home.

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    Replies
    1. My days of discomfort are finally behind me and I am feeling better. Now I just have to hope my son can get here from Boulder, they're having quite a snow storm today.

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  3. I am so sorry you had to endure this. I think it's number one for diseases that don't (usually) kill you, but you wish they would. I am in awe that you kept up with everything and all of us when you were suffering so.
    So many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!
    P.S. My bunch of teetotallers is going to try your cider recipe with just the caramel and whipped cream. I'll let you know how it goes! ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, so many things. Right now I'm hoping to be thankful that my son's flight isn't canceled tonight. Wish me luck!

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  4. I am so sorry you had to go through this. I am thankful that you are well enough to prepare Thanksgiving Dinner. Prayers that your son makes it safely from Boulder.
    I am probably old enough to be your Mother, so follow your Doctor’s advice as to when you should get that shot.
    Happy Thanksgiving!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for all the kind wishes. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family too.

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  5. You really were in deep! Pain is not something that unless you have experienced it can resonate with others adequately, in other words, everyone who thinks you should be better by now just should shut up and you will tell them when you are better! Happy Thanksgiving

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for the support, Haralee. I am, finally, better.

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  6. So sorry, Karen. My husband had shingles and they sound horrible. He said they were very painful. Hope you feel better soon!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Laurie, they are excruciating. It's such a relief to start to feel better.

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  7. I've seen others go through shingles - I got the original shot as soon as I was eligible for it. The stories of reactions to the Shingrix have put me off but they are nothing like what you went through. Plus, my original vaccine may be pretty ineffective by now, anyway. So, time for a drin@ That spiked cider sounds good. I love fireball whiskey! Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. So funny, I can't tell you how many people today have told me they love Fireball too. I have another recipe coming up using next month as well.

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  8. I remember when Tim had shingles, it was painful for him and not something I would like to suffer from

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm sorry to hear that Tim suffered with them too, they really are miserable.

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  9. Shingles suck no doubt. I remember my grandmother being hospitalized for them once.
    Glad you’re on the mend. Now pass the toddy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So glad to be feeling better, and able to have a drink when I want, too.

      Delete

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