I’m sick. :( It started as a bad cold, and then a patch of itchy rash appeared on my back. I was so...

I’m sick. :( 

It started as a bad cold, and then a patch of itchy rash appeared on my back. I was so anxious over the thought of it being either a) bed bugs or b) a recurrence of the severe, head-to-toe case of hives I had five years ago (it was a terrible reaction to a virus) that I nearly had a full-blown panic attack at work on Friday. My apartment building is downtown, terribly-maintained, and other floors have reportedly had bed bugs, though always much lower floors than mine. My mom came over and checked thoroughly, and found nothing. I started taking antihistamines to treat the hives, though the rash didn’t look like hives. It spread. It’s half itch and half burning pain.

I got in to see my doctor this morning, and apparently I have shingles - and the best part is, it was almost certainly brought on by the intense level of stress I’ve had with this vaguely-alluded to bad thing that’s been going on in my life lately. Perfect cherry on THAT sundae. Thanks, universe! So now I have an anti-viral med, a prescription-strength topical cream for the rash, and an anti-anxiety med to help deal with the stress bit. It would also help if my apartment had water (they do regular shut-offs through the whole building for maintenance, and today is a shut-off day), if I had hot water even when it’s on (apparently they’re replacing a boiler or something, with zero idea of when we can expect to be able to shower in something other than ice-cold temperatures again), and if I weren’t so bloody overworked these days. But at least this will help control how much adrenaline is coursing through my veins… 

The best part of shingles is that, once the rash has faded, I can expect the intense nerve pain to set in. Whee! Send a good vibe my way, would you? 

PS: Please don’t reblog this post!