Flu? What flu?

[thewayne]

I don't understand flu. Statistically I should have had flu several times over the last decade or so. I don't know if I have. This is not to say that I haven't been sick, severely at times. I've had fevers that jumped up and down, sometimes accompanied with some nasty bouts of vertigo. But I've never had muscle/joint aches aside from spending too much time in bed, and I'd get those from colds or food poisoning.

I always thought that flu entailed nasty expulsions from both ends of the body, and the only time that happened was when I had the forementioned food poisoning or something ghastly happening in my stomach (perhaps as a pre-cursor to food poisoning), in the latter case I'd take an Alka Seltzer and normally one of two things would happen: I would feel better or I'd throw up and then I'd feel better.

I found out a year or two ago that flu is more respiratory, but still, I don't seem to experience the same symptoms as anyone else. I do get respiratory infections pretty easily, frequently they develop from me getting a cold, but they don't have high fever with them. This year, not counting my just-completed bout of nastiness, I've had three respiratory/sinus infections that required antibiotics to take them out.

Now THIS illness did not start as a cold. Now about three weeks ago or so I could feel something wrong in my chest, respiration-wise. No sinus infection, but a 102 degree fever (over 4 degrees above my normal temperature). I was pretty miserable. And I was frankly amazed that when I called in to the doctor that I was able to get an appointment 50 minutes later! Quick shower, out the door, $175 in meds and office visit later and I'm sitting here typing and breathing easy.


My brother, on the other hand, is amazingly sick right now. He might have caught what I had, I don't know. I tried to keep myself fairly seggregated from my parents and him while I've been in Phoenix, still.... Well, he got really sick Wednesday night (my parents are fine). Fever, really achy muscles, horrible cough.

Won't see the doctor. Won't take his temperature because he knows he has a fever. Mom thinks he won't see a doctor because they'll tell him to quit smoking.

Sigh.

Comments

[magic-rat.livejournal.com]

One thing that might be aggravating your respitory distress at the moment is the current level of air pollution here in the Valley. I'm not saying that's the only cause, but that it might have made it worse than it would have been otherwise.

Oh, and about your brother, he sounds like a certain other brother that we both know (and whose name I could probably mention since his Internet presence is strictly limited to MMORPGs).