Sunday, December 8, 2013

Shingles on my Face

My plan for my new blog (this one) is to keep my personal stuff out of it. 

I will let this be an exception.  I have shingles.  On my face.  My right eyelid specifically.

My eyelid is so swollen and covered with lesions that I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a scar.  And it's incredibly itchy if I don't touch it, incredibly painful if I do.

The weird thing about shingles is (and I'm no doctor here so don't take this as medical advice) it's activated by stress, and the pain is worse when I feel stressed.  I'm very light sensitive as well (even more than normal).  It hurts when I blink.  The pain in my eyelid feels like it's in my eye, but my eyeball checked out okay by the eye doctor.  They think I will be in this misery for two weeks.  The doctor recommend taking Benadryl for the swelling and to sleep it off as much as possible.

I'm supposed to relax and de-stress in a permanent, long-term kind of way.

* long pause *

I'm not sure exactly how to do that.  I have a lot of stuff to do.  My house is a mess.  My impulse is to do something, anything.  I could probably relax if I could read, but my eye hurts.

Writing is the one thing that gives me peace, lets me escape to another world, and gives me the satisfaction of having created something even when I'm done writing.  So I will write. I will write a lot.  First I need a nap because the Benadryl is working....



4 comments:

  1. That's not a fun place to have it. Hope your family can help with the de-stressing. It is, after all. doctor's orders.
    Sleep and write, Tonja. Not much else you can do.
    And heal quickly.

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  2. Yikes! What a terrible thing to have happen. Glad something is giving you some relief, though. ((hugs)).

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  3. I'm so sorry to read this. I'm glad the Benadryl is giving you some relief at least. Take care.

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  4. Oh no, so sorry to hear this. Try to forget the messy house. What's important is you get the rest you need and find a way to reduce your stress, not easy I know, especially during the holiday season. Have you tried listening to audio books? It might be a good way to escape for a while and catch up on some good books.

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