It's more than just a headache...

Ok so here is the long story of why my face looks like I took a beating. I wish I could say someone knocked me out... I wish I could say I was in a horrible accident... I wish I could say Buster's tail whacked its last whack... I wish I could say its not as bad as it looks... but I can't! 

On Friday afternoon I came home from work feeling like I was getting a pimple on my eyebrow above my left eye. GREAT... another reminder that part of my body is hanging on to my least favorite years of life (adolescence)!! Starting early in life, probably around 12, I started breaking out regularly. These have not been your average breakouts... they have been UGLY. Often resulting in huge knot like zits that were OH so painful! They have been the cause of a few scars and many self conscious years. They have continued through college and into my adult years. I have dreams of the day that my skin will change but I don't count on it. I'm sure I'll always have issues... I just pray my kids don't have the issues I have had. 

Anyways -- (That was quite the detour...) 

So Friday I came home feeling like I was getting a pimple above my left eye. Total inconvenience but it is what it is. It became more and more tender as the weekend went on but never really 'grew'. On Sunday Andrew and I decided I would call a dermatologist and try to get my breakouts under control. Anyways When I woke up on Monday I had a HUGE headache and my WHOLE forehead as swollen. By the time I got to work it was down and around my eyes. The office administration and other teachers encouraged me to call my doctor and get it checked out. I called my general practitioner and they got me in that day. She gave me a prescription for an antibiotic and an ointment that would treat me for STAPH infection. (If there is ever an infection to freak out about ... Staph is it!! My face wasn't bad enough to take a sample to get tested so she was just guessing...)  She said to go home, take it easy and keep a warm damp compress on it, she told me to call her if it got any worse. 

This is what I looked like Monday when I got home from the Doctors office and getting my prescription filled... 

By Monday at 4:30 this is what I looked like. My head at this point is killing me. I've been taking 2 ibuprofen gel caps every 4 hours and it would give me at the most an hour of relief where I could stand to get up and go to the bathroom and rewarm my rag and such.

 I freaked out at that point! I called my doctors office and they had JUST closed their phone lines down. It was all I could do not to get in my car and drive there. If my head didn't hurt so bad I might have. Andrew came home early and took me to the ER here in town. We sat there for over and  hour and nothing... so we decided to go to a clinic in town. They were getting ready to shut down and we were the only ones in there so I got right in. The doctor there gave me a shot to treat me for a STREP infection. Apparently you can get strep in your skin. The shot was a booger! I can handle shots... they don't freak me out or scare me. Once I saw this one I started getting shaky. It was in my hip and for the next day it felt like someone had frogged me!! The shot itself was also painful. The needle was thick and long, and there was a lot of stuff in it! YUCK!
Anyways - by the end of Monday this is what my face looked like... a little better.

 Tuesday morning was fall picture day at school. I was kinda freaking out. Someone suggested big hair and jewelry! BINGO!! I can do big! Big will be distracting ...

 Ok so it isn't so distracting... but perhaps if I wear my reading glasses for pictures... will that help??

 Yeah that wasn't good enough. So I got resourceful! A paper sack. Did you ever make a face out of a paper sack and wear it on your head. I never did... so I thought today would be a great chance to do just that! Then I remembered that I teach PreK. And showing up with a bag face just wouldn't be acceptable.

 That night was a little better. My headache was getting much much worse. I could hardly stand to move. I managed to get a little sleep and this was what I looked like on Wednesday morning... This was as much as I could smile. It was not good.

This was Thursday morning. On Wednesday I was in tears and called the doctor to tell her about my headaches. She prescribed a pain medicine (loritab) that didn't help much the night before. She also said that she wanted to see me ASAP on Thursday.

So Thursday I went to the doctor and they gave me yet another antibiotic. The goal is for it to either dissolve, or all be localized so they can lance it. Whatever happens... I'll be ok with. I'm just ready for the headaches to go away. I'm tired of laying on the couch and balancing a warm rag on my head. Luckily the Loritab is helping me sleep some, however, it is making me quite loopy. I feel like I've had a glass or two of wine...

I also have a great friend Jamie who has brought me dinner 2 nights this week. She made my day! Tuesday she brought me Chicken and Wild Rice soup and tonight she brought us a fancy pesto lasagna and Caesar salad! It was delish!! I am so blessed to have such great friends here in Bartlesville to take care of me!! Thanks Jamie!!