I have had bronchitis and a sinus infection for the last two weeks and today I am finally starting feel more like myself. Gone is the cotton wool sensation in my head. For such a simple condition, it’s been quite a journey. It started two weekends ago with a series of sneezing jags on Saturday afternoon. I did notice that the grocery store chicken wings I purchased for my lunch that day tasted like flour. I thought it was the wings, until I ate dinner that night and it also tasted like flour. By Sunday, I was coughing, sneezing and blowing my nose regularly. I thought it was just a nasty upper respiratory infection since I didn’t have a temperature. Rest, liquids, and a dose of Aleve (for my sinus pain) and I didn’t feel better by Tuesday afternoon, so I called the clinic and made an appointment for the next day. I had to go out Tuesday evening, and realized from my shortness of breath that matters were a bit more serious than I thought. I took a cab to the clinic that evening. Diagnosis: bronchitis. Took my scripts to be filled and went home with doctors orders to stay at home until the Columbus Day.
Wednesday and Thursday, I was wheezing badly. I felt like some had walloped me in the back. Toupie, my pet companion, was giving me concerned looks as I alternately growled or squeaked with every breath. I had also been experiencing episodes where I noticed a slight increase in my heart rate. I decided to not use the inhaler I’d been prescribed. That did nothing to calm the heart rate episodes. Looking up the drug on line, I noticed one of the side effects was an increase in heart rate.
Called the clinic on Friday and asked for a changed of antibiotic. On Saturday the doctor who’d seen me on Tuesday called to say that what I needed to do was go to ER. I argued that until I started the prescribed meds my heart rate had been normal. She became quite agitated and insistent that I go to the ER and that if I came into the clinic; the ER is where she would send me. I decided to not take the meds, wait until Monday in the hopes that I could see my regular GP, who is a pulmonologist. Fortunately, he was open on Monday. One listen to my chest, and hearing about the meds I’d been prescribed, and he immediately identified the combo of the inhaler and antibiotic as the problem. He changed my inhaler, gave me a nose spray for my sinuses and sent me off.
By Tuesday morning, I was feeling better. Still woolly headed and any exertion (like washing dishes) leaving me ready for a nap. By Wednesday evening, the wheezing had stopped. Thursday, I slept again on the futon instead of in a chair. And this morning, I feel clearheaded and can hear.
Despite being home for over ten days, I haven’t made much progress on my Berkeley cardigan. Many is the time during the last two weeks when I’ve awaken to find the knitting in my lap. One time the yarn was still entwined in my fingers ready for me to purl the next stitch
The weather has turned so unseasonably chilly that the building heat came on this week. I am taking advantage of my renewed energy to put away summer clothes and pull out my fall and winter items. It’s also put me in a slight knitting emergency. I want legwarmers and fingerless gloves in addition to the coat and hat that are on the needles.
Most of the DVD’s from Netflix, I’ve had to watch two or three times.
Berkeley Square – follows the stories of three nannies in Edwardian London. The period costume and set designs were amazing. Too bad such meticulousness wasn’t applied to the plot. It was soapy to the extreme. Even that could have been tolerated. But they finally lost me when one of the upper class characters says to a servant, “You get my drift.” Just can’t imagine Mrs. Bellamy saying that to Rose.
The Glittering Prizes – hadn’t seen this BBC series since the 70’s. It really holds up and I think I more appreciate some of the ambiguities the characters face as their life choices played out.
Midsomer Murders – I am a scary place with this series. I think I’ve seen all the ones save two or three in the Netflix catalogue.
Cambridge Spies – I’ve only seen disk one. I don’t know whether it was not being able to stay awake long enough to see the first couple of episodes from start to finish or that there was something so indistinguishable about the actors that I couldn’t keep McLean, Burgess and Philby straight. I only managed with Blunt because he was blonde and portrayed by Samuel West.
The new season of Inspector Lewis just keeps getting better. It is a fitting follow on to the Morse series. It wasn’t too long into Inspector Morse when the focus of the series for me became Lewis. Morse had become rather predictable, whereas Lewis continually became shaped by his experiences and his exposure to Morse. That character growth continues into the new series and it’s nice to see that his partnership with Hathaway is being developed with deft complexity.
Wednesday and Thursday, I was wheezing badly. I felt like some had walloped me in the back. Toupie, my pet companion, was giving me concerned looks as I alternately growled or squeaked with every breath. I had also been experiencing episodes where I noticed a slight increase in my heart rate. I decided to not use the inhaler I’d been prescribed. That did nothing to calm the heart rate episodes. Looking up the drug on line, I noticed one of the side effects was an increase in heart rate.
Called the clinic on Friday and asked for a changed of antibiotic. On Saturday the doctor who’d seen me on Tuesday called to say that what I needed to do was go to ER. I argued that until I started the prescribed meds my heart rate had been normal. She became quite agitated and insistent that I go to the ER and that if I came into the clinic; the ER is where she would send me. I decided to not take the meds, wait until Monday in the hopes that I could see my regular GP, who is a pulmonologist. Fortunately, he was open on Monday. One listen to my chest, and hearing about the meds I’d been prescribed, and he immediately identified the combo of the inhaler and antibiotic as the problem. He changed my inhaler, gave me a nose spray for my sinuses and sent me off.
By Tuesday morning, I was feeling better. Still woolly headed and any exertion (like washing dishes) leaving me ready for a nap. By Wednesday evening, the wheezing had stopped. Thursday, I slept again on the futon instead of in a chair. And this morning, I feel clearheaded and can hear.
Despite being home for over ten days, I haven’t made much progress on my Berkeley cardigan. Many is the time during the last two weeks when I’ve awaken to find the knitting in my lap. One time the yarn was still entwined in my fingers ready for me to purl the next stitch
The weather has turned so unseasonably chilly that the building heat came on this week. I am taking advantage of my renewed energy to put away summer clothes and pull out my fall and winter items. It’s also put me in a slight knitting emergency. I want legwarmers and fingerless gloves in addition to the coat and hat that are on the needles.
Most of the DVD’s from Netflix, I’ve had to watch two or three times.
Berkeley Square – follows the stories of three nannies in Edwardian London. The period costume and set designs were amazing. Too bad such meticulousness wasn’t applied to the plot. It was soapy to the extreme. Even that could have been tolerated. But they finally lost me when one of the upper class characters says to a servant, “You get my drift.” Just can’t imagine Mrs. Bellamy saying that to Rose.
The Glittering Prizes – hadn’t seen this BBC series since the 70’s. It really holds up and I think I more appreciate some of the ambiguities the characters face as their life choices played out.
Midsomer Murders – I am a scary place with this series. I think I’ve seen all the ones save two or three in the Netflix catalogue.
Cambridge Spies – I’ve only seen disk one. I don’t know whether it was not being able to stay awake long enough to see the first couple of episodes from start to finish or that there was something so indistinguishable about the actors that I couldn’t keep McLean, Burgess and Philby straight. I only managed with Blunt because he was blonde and portrayed by Samuel West.
The new season of Inspector Lewis just keeps getting better. It is a fitting follow on to the Morse series. It wasn’t too long into Inspector Morse when the focus of the series for me became Lewis. Morse had become rather predictable, whereas Lewis continually became shaped by his experiences and his exposure to Morse. That character growth continues into the new series and it’s nice to see that his partnership with Hathaway is being developed with deft complexity.
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