Thursday, August 19, 2010

I Hate Little White Bags

Good grief. What a druggie I am. 

Sometimes, I HATE it when I'm right.

Yesterday, as I was coughing, hacking, wheezing, and dripping with perspiration in the doctor's waiting room, between gasps I realized two things.

First, I knew that people were cringing and moving as far away as possible from me, and I didn't blame them.

Secondly, I had a suspicion that when I left that appointment, I would be carrying that dreaded crisp white bag bulging with new pharmaceuticals. To add to the already horrifyingly full shoebox of meds already sitting in my pantry.

Dang. *cough* *hack* *wheeze*

After a discussion and a thorough exam, the doctor left the room and returned with an ultrasonic nebulizer loaded up with albuterol and saline solution. As I inhaled the strangely salty mist, the doctor began explaining what he thought my problems were.

"Well, I think you've got some asthma going on here. I don't think it's the allergy-induced asthma, but rather an asthma type of response to a bronchitis. Your airway passages are dry due to the Sjogren's syndrome and they're over-reacting to the bronchitis. But regardless of cause, it's really making your lungs unhappy."

I nodded, unable to speak since I had a large blue plastic tube stuck in my mouth. Which is probably a good thing since in my cough hack wheeze - induced crankiness, I probably would have said something along the lines of, Well, duh! I had that figured out already! 

He went on to discuss the merits of various medications, and as I listened and the nebulizer worked it's magic, I felt my breathing ease slightly. Thank goodness.

So. I was right, and I did leave the clinic with my white paper bag. And after figuring out the machinations of inhalers and spacers, and enjoying the effects of codeine cough syrup, by night time I was feeling much better. I had to grudgingly admit that sometimes the contents of crisp white paper bags were not so bad, after all.

*cough* *hack*

By golly, I think I've lost the wheeze. Can't wait until the cough and hack are gone.

1 comment:

annie said...

Whatever does the job to make us better is fine by me. I used to be anti meds, but sometimes you need them to survive. Glad you're doing better,Julia.

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