Its Not Just A Cold Anymore

I got a cold last Sunday. This is day 8. While I feel better mostly, I know better than to push myself. Hence I stayed home mostly for a week. I did not go to the gym. I did not contaminate my knitting group full of cancer people who would not welcome germs. I didn't take my 88 year old father to his doctor appointments. I skipped all July Fourth events. I didn't do much of anything beside catching up on my knitting and going on an emergency kleenex run when I ran out. (And getting stung by wasps when I inadvertently discovered the wasp nest six feet from our front door.)

I did all that on purpose. My goal is not to be sick for two weeks.

Last night we actually went out to dinner. It was nice. Then I went to bed at 9 pm (not that it was that early for me). But it was very nice to get out.

Tentative plans for today include going out to lunch with a friend. That's it. I am not going that far. I am not staying out for long.

Tomorrow I hope to go to the gym and meet a friend for coffee on the way home. I am feeling better and will slowly return to normal but will not push myself.

With a compromised immune system, I have to be very careful. (Think of when you were in chemo and told to be careful with exposure to germs.)

Unfortunately, I hope to look forward to another 30 years of this. But I'm still here.

A Request For All Those With A Cold

Please, a request to anyone with a cold who wants to go out and celebrate the holidays: Please DON'T!

I have a compromised immune system and met some friends for brunch last weekend. One of whom, the one sitting next to me, had a cold and said she had had it for a few days. 36 hours later I started feeling like I had a cold too.

Because she didn't want to stay home and take care of herself, now I have a cold and may or may not be able to celebrate the holidays with my family. Never mind all the other people she has exposed to her cold. She went to work every day except one that she took off. She went to all her family get together's including school sporting events where she was in big crowds.

Where I used to work, there was one guy who always came to school when he was sick. Finally I said something to my boss who said something to him. When one person has a cold for a few days, I have one for at least two weeks.

So, if you have a cold and want to join in the holiday celebrations, please give the biggest gift you can to others, just stay home and don't risk sharing your germs.

All of us chronically ill people with compromised immune systems thank you.

Germ Exposure and Common Sense

I had a great craft fair on Saturday. I had a table at a busy craft fair and had some great sales. Between sales I chatted with the women in the booth next to me. Both our booths were set up so that we squeezed behind them on the same side. They had several friends stop by and chat with them for a bit.

One woman pushed right up front to talk to them behind their booth, with her cold and told them loudly that she had a bad cold and then about one of her chemo patients who had also stopped by the booth earlier in the day. She sneezed a couple of times while there as well.

I was appalled that she was out at a craft show with her cold. She had shoved into the booth with her germs and sneezed on people. And she was a chemo nurse and treated patients while sick.

And she sneezed on me. With my compromised immune system.

I know, I know that I am the one with the compromised immune system that is way more susceptible to germs than the average person. I know that I am also the one who goes out in public and increases my risk of being exposed to germs. But I do expect that most people will have the common courtesy and common sense of staying home when they have a cold.

I used to work with a guy who would come to work when he was sick. And he didn't seem to care if he shared his germs. I finally complained about him because if I got a cold I would be sick for two weeks.

Yesterday I was supposed to go to a friend's funeral but I woke up feeling like I was coming down with a cold. That meant for me I had to stay home to rest and hope I don't get really sick. Grrr. And I missed the funeral.

Where is the common sense in the world these days? Keep your germs at home please.

When is a cold not just a cold?

When your immune system is compromised. That is when. What did you think I would say? The flu? Well that too.

In the middle of all this moving chaos (we hope to sign lots of papers tomorrow and are staying in a hotel for 3 nights in transition), I have a cold. Not a very good cold either. I feel like crap. Last week I had the flu. Before that I thought I had an ear infection.

Chronologically its this: On Dec 11, I went to the doctor because I thought I had an ear infection. The doctor said they weren't sure it was an ear infection but because of my medical history (my favorite phrase - NOT), they gave me antibiotics. I felt better after a few days but never completely well.

Then on December 23, I woke up with the flu. The kind of flu where EVERY joint in your body hurts and you are running a temperature for two days. I stayed in bed and took my temperature and pretended I was getting better.

Finally on January 2, I developed a scratchy throat which turned into all kinds of congestion and a nose that runs like a spigot. And here it is on the 6th and I am still not better. This isn't good.

Tomorrow is buy-and-sell-a-house-day. If I could, I would stay in bed and watch bad Lifetime Movies and not go anywhere. But since we are in a hotel and I have to sign lots of things, I will pretend I am healthy.

Friday is get up at the crack of dawn, check out of the hotel, stop and grab breakfast on the way (before the sun rises at 7 am) and head to our new house. Then after the movers get there and we give them a tour of what goes where, I will drive down to our old neighborhood and pick up the cats around 9 am and come back so I can watch everyone else do lots of stuff and be decorative. I hope my husband puts our bed back together so I can sleep - after the movers leave and the cable guy does his thing).

Finally Saturday I can begin to try to take care of myself. Maybe. A normal person wouldn't be sick this long. Its just my immune system and health crap that doesn't heal up anymore.

I'm not whining. I said I wouldn't use my blog as a place to whine. I am just trying to cope. And if I go to a doctor, I am sure they are gong to tell me to do things like drink fluids, take OTC medications, and get lots of rest. Things I don't have time to do until we move.

Don't you wish you were as healthy as me?

Wash Your Hands

What is the single most important easy thing you can do to improve your health? Wash your hands. Often.

Now that I have rheumatoid arthritis and am on immune suppressing drugs that make me much more susceptible to colds and infections, I am becoming a germaphobe. I will not alter my lifestyle and avoid crowds, malls, movie theaters, and other groups of people. Nor do I believe in those stupid hand sanitizers which help create super bugs which are resistant to treatment.

But I do believe in hand washing. When I go to the gym, I wash my hands before I work out and I wash my hands as soon as I am done with my work out. And I try to remember to wash my hands when I come home from being out. As well as when cooking, before eating, etc.

Friday at the gym I was speaking with a woman as she was washing her hands after working out. She said that since she started washing her hands regularly, she has had fewer colds herself.

It amazes me how many people do not wash their hands, even after using the bathroom. I am particularly disgusted by people who do not wash their hands after using the bathroom and then use the gym or eat in a restaurant or other places. Speaking of restaurants, menus are disgustingly germ covered.

You can try all kinds of arguments with me about washing your hands and how it might dry out your skins or any other silly reason. The real reason for washing your hands is to clean germs (and dirt) off of them so you don't carry them around with you and on to other places. You can always put lotion on your hands if you are concerned about dry skin.

I was quite pleased to read this article about hospitals do to prevent infections and the top item on the list was hand washing.

If you get home at the end of the day and can't remember washing your hands, do yourself a favor and wash them.

The killer bacteria

There is killer bacteria at your doctor's office, in the hospital scope, in the air, on the ground, and on the nine things in your house dirtier than a toilet seat. All those unvaccinated people are going to spread measles and other diseases. People with compromised immune systems should take extra precautions to avoid these bacteria. Blah, blah, blah.

And how am I supposed to avoid doctor's offices anyway? I am a regular visitor. There has been so much new recently on all these topics. And I couldn't care less.

I am the poster child for immune system issues, bad health, and all that. And I take zero precautions. Other than being normal and avoiding sneezing, coughing people.

Isn't there anything else on the news anyway? Where are we in terms of a cure for cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia? And lymphedema if we are on the subject of cures.

The killer bacteria are out there but so are many other ailments that warrant news, research, and cures.

Please Don't Contaminate Me

It is flu and cold season and Ebola is looming around as well. I got my flu shot. My immune deprived body does not handle germs well these days. My husband got a flu shot too

 It is a good practice for everyone to get a flu shot these days. It can save you time off, your health, etc. I was asking co-workers the other day if they get flu shots. One of them said she never gets flu shots but if she got sick, she would stay home and not come to work. Another one  has a thing about needles and never gets shots if she can avoid it. I think she would stay home as well. One sniffle in the office and I could end up sick for two weeks.

I can live with that.

It greatly irritates me when I see people using public restrooms and not washing their hands. Especially at the gym. Icky poo!!! That's another no-no as far as I am concerned and common sense. I wash my hands when I arrive at the gym and after working out - and after using the bathroom.

And Ebola. That's a nasty one. I think I'll stay off airplanes for a while.

But in the meantime, just get a flu shot and wash your hands.

Germs, germs, germs, and more germs

Germs are everywhere. We need the good germs to build our immune systems. I am not a germaphobe..... You will not find me using hand sanitizer unless there are absolutely no other choices. I do practice the basics. I wash my hands regularly and especially when cooking, before and after the gym, after using the bathroom and all that. But 100% germ killers aren't good. They kill the good and bad germs.

 With my immune system I am told that I should avoid sick people and blah-blah-blah. I ignore that part and live my life. I refuse to live under a rock. I go out in public. I don't hang out with people with a cold.

But there are a few germs which concern me. The flu so I get a flu shot. Maybe I'll get a pneumonia shot as well. I also have gotten the booster for whooping cough and the others. I am concerned that if Ebola got here, we would have problems. That disease that is affecting children all over the Midwest is not a good thing.

We need to have ways to get rid of the bad germs but keep the good germs in life.

I can't decide

No this isn't about cancer. It does say 'breast cancer blog' but my life isn't all about cancer - which is a good thing.

My problem/decision today is - allergies or a cold. I flew back from DC last week and was exposed to all sorts of people. As I blogged on Saturday, I am not feeling that great. But after sitting on my butt for two days instead of getting exercise and not feeling better, I have decided I need to go to plan B. Ignore it.

I can't decide if its a cold or allergies so I am going to ignore it. I have too much to do this week to be sick so I am going to pretend I am not sick. If I get sicker, maybe I'll do something about it. But right now its a stuffy nose, a sore throat and generally feeling blah. And no, please do not recommend Benadryl or other antihistamines because I am allergic. But thanks for the concern.

I am going to work this morning and then the gym, provided I don't turn into a pumpkin in the meantime....

Immune systems and all that.

I guess I have a crappy immune system.... Or that's what they tell me. Nothing to do with cancer but that pesky chemo crap probably did something to my immune system during treatment. Now I have RA and the methotrexate definitely has messed up my immune system. Someone else's sniffles can make me sick for weeks.

But I usually just ignore my immune system and do what I feel like. Call me a rule breaker if you want.

When I was in chemo, they (the proverbial 'them') said I should avoid crowds and not to go to the mall, movie theaters etc. I didn't go to the mall or movie theaters. But I did work for the local community ed program in the office of a local high school. I am sure there are barely any germs in a high school. Just a few thousand teenagers. I wasn't concerned. I worked with a paranoid germaphobe and let her be concerned for me.

This week I took my immune system compromised body through two airports (twice - there and back again (as Bilbo would say)) and sat in meeting rooms with other immune systems. I was probably exposed to about 10,000 other people, give or take 5,000. And I even rode the subway to minimize exposure.

Now that I am home, I feel tired and my back hurts (that's nothing new there).

I might have a sore throat but I am sure that is just be allergies. I'll may get to the the gym later. In the meantime I am doing many loads of laundry.

A very real problem

Drug resistant bacteria are now a real problem world wide. Think of the world before antibiotics where a simple cut could kill someone if it became infected. I find this very scary. As someone with multiple health issues, I am deeply concerned about getting a germ that can't be cured because it is antibiotic resistant.

The causes of this are multiple (from my layperson understanding):

• Doctors over prescribing antiobiotics for ailments that do not require them.
• Patients not taking entire doses of antibiotics so that the germs are not destroyed but adapt and become resistant to the antibiotic.
• In the food industry, livestock is given antibiotics for some silly reason - this leads to low level exposure that help build resistance.
• Discarded antibiotics end up in the water supply - this also leads to low level exposure that help build resistance. 

Now the problem is much more rampant. The World Health Organization recently released a report on this topic.

"Antimicrobial drugs are one of the foundations of modern health care – something we all hope to rely on when we get sick with ailments including pneumonia, urinary tract or blood infections, diarrhea or sexually transmitted diseases, Fukuda says. These infections occur worldwide on a daily basis.
But because of overuse or misuse or improper use of existing treatments, the ability to fight these infections is getting harder and harder, he says.

In its first global report on antimicrobial resistance, released Wednesday, the WHO says " a post-antibiotic era – in which common infections and minor injuries can kill – is a very real possibility for the 21st century."..."

"Conservative estimates in the United States alone suggest 2 million people get antibiotic-resistant infections each year, and at least 23,000 die because current drugs no longer stop their infections."

This is the part that is most scary to me:

"Some people may wonder why they should worry. Fukuda says that anyone who gets a serious infection, develops cancer and needs chemotherapy or requires any kind of surgery could be in a bad situation with no drugs left to treat them. The same is true for premature babies or malnourished children.

After two cancers and eight surgeries, and penicillin allergies, am I going to end up this way?
 
"Bottom line," says Fukuda, "we should expect to see that there are going to be some people who have untreatable infections."

The WHO says there's a need for a global action plan, including:
– better use of vaccines; – basic hand hygiene to reduce infections, such as washing hands; – reduction of non-health uses of antimicrobial drugs;
– support of research that will lead to new and better diagnostic tests; – and better surveillance, to get a better overall global antimicrobial resistance."
 
A lot of this is up to the patient/consumer. We should not demand/expect antibiotics unless they are for an infection. If given them, we should use them properly and finish the entire dose. We need to demand meat that has been raised without antibiotics. We need to go back to the basics and wash our hands and take care of minor injuries before they become infected.

Its too scary a world for those of us with not the best health.

I was never a believer

Okay this is not along the lines of my usual blog posts. But this news crossed my attention span this morning so it is my topic of the day. In my opinion the best antiseptics known to man are:

1. Alcohol - Scotch and Vodka might disinfect your insides but I mean the kind for the exterior of your body.
2. Soap and water.
3. Mother's spit - when they spit on a tissue and clean their child's face and hands.

No where on this list is antibacterial soap. I never believed in them. I have friends who buy them by the caseload and use them to disinfect everything in range. They use antibacterial soaps in their kitchens and bathrooms and use antibacterial wipes on everything else.

I never believed in them. I always thought they were either too harsh or creating mega germs. It was a marketing ploy. "We have the really good soaps, they kill more germs so you must buy them".  I think of the antibacterial wipes as just moving the germs around....

Now the FDA wants the soap manufacturer's to prove it. There are concerns about some of the ingredients affecting humans:

"Further, some data suggest that long-term exposure to certain active ingredients used in antibacterial products -- for example, triclosan (liquid soaps) and triclocarban (bar soaps) -- could pose health risks, such as bacterial resistance or hormonal effects."

About 2,000 individual products contain these products, health officials said.

"Our goal is, if a company is making a claim that something is antibacterial and in this case promoting the concept that consumers who use these products can prevent the spread of germs, then there ought to be data behind that," said Dr. Sandra Kweder, deputy director of the Office of New Drugs in FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

"We think that companies ought to have data before they make these claims."

Studies in rats have shown a decrease in thyroid hormones with long-term exposure, she said. Collecting data from humans is "very difficult" because the studies look at a long time period.

Yes if they say something they should be able to prove it. I'm glad I was not a believer.

Germs and me

While in chemo, I was supposed to avoid exposure to germs (public places, germy people, unwashed vegetables and fruit, etc) because my immune system was compromised and I might get a 'bad' ailment as a result. I was very good with that advice. I ate lots of fruits and vegetables and did whatever I wanted. I went shopping at the mall and went to work, went to parties (when I wasn't nauseous), and went to the beach.

Basically I ignored that part of the advice and did whatever I damned well pleased. I was in cancer treatment. I was special. I had to look after myself first and had enough to cope without worrying about the stupid little things.

Now with RA, I am on Methotrexate which (I need to learn how to spell and) has all sorts of 'lovely' side effects. I cant wait:

• according to WebMD, it can cause temporary hair loss which will return after you stop taking Methotrexate. Now there is something I can't wait. I still have my wig. If that happened I would talk to my doctor about a different treatment option. It is a relatively rare side effect but after my chemo hair cut I am not allowing this to happen again.
• according to the fine print from the pharmacy, it says (in all caps) that this medication may lower my resistance to infection. I should wash my hands regularly and avoid germs, blah, blah, blah. I can go to AARP and find out how to avoid germs in public places. They advise not touching restaurant menus, condiment bottles, doors in public places, soap dispensers in restrooms, and more. (I'm not old enough for advice from AARP. Well they think I am but since I am still 37, I'm not.)
• It can also cause liver problems, bone marrow issues, blah, blah, blah.

Well, I will be a good patient here. I will learn to spell it. I will live my life as I want. I believe a little bit of germ exposure is good to keep you healthy. But I am not stupid and will not go visit people with the flu.

Germaphobia

When I started to go to the fancy gym, other than the fact that I am one of the younger people there, I decided its full of germaphobes. There is a big dispenser of towelettes and most people carry a couple around to clean the equipment after they use it (and sometimes before as well). I have never attended a gym with such a huge group of people focused on germ control.

To be cool and fit in, I try to remember to grab a couple towelettes and carry them around through my workout. I admit I am not as conscientious about using them as others are. There are some who don't touch anything without a towelette between them and the surface. I think they are a bunch of germaphobes who are moving the germs around with the towelettes. I don't really think they do anything.

What I do is to wash my hands before I work out and again after I work out. I think that is much better than the towelette option. The towelettes don't do much for removing germs - maybe just move them from equipment to equipment. I prefer to think that hand washing will prevent me from bringing in the germs and also from taking any more home with me.

I know there are all sorts of nasty germs and the worst ones to get from gym equipment are MRSA - drug resistant infections - that can eventually kill you if you aren't careful or have a compromised immune system. During flu season, I think gym equipment can be a good source of flu germs. I also think if you need a petri dish of germs gym equipment along with grocery carts will provide a good source of germs.

Myself I am more worried about cancer cooties than germs. Most germs have cures. Cancer cooties have been proven to cause long term health issues, cause the use of medications with nasty side effects, surgeries, and lots of medical adventures and have a high death risk associated with them.

But since we don't yet know how to cure the cancer cooties I'll stick with handwashing as my first line of defense.

Life in a paranoid society

I go to the gym - the new high tech, cool gym, where I don't stand around like an idiot looking at the machines trying to figure out how to use them - and everyone there carries around the sanitary wipes to protect from germs. So I don't look like an idiot, I use them too but I really don't think they do much more than move the germs around... My theory is I wash my hands before I work out and after. A little soap and water goes further than the little wipe things.

If you ride a subway, bus, or any other public transportation (taxi anyone?), think about the germs you touch, breath, etc. Or grocery carriages? Or entrance and exit doors to buildings? Or those wheel chairs at hospitals and airports? Or... and the list goes on.

Then its headlines that a hospital notifies people of TB exposure - that's almost as important as a data breach at a bank. Or you hear about cases of measles, HIV, head lice, or other contagious diseases. And what does it do? Make us all paranoid. We are going to get a germ and DIE! We are doomed! No need to wait for the real Rapture, a germ will get us in the meantime. (Did you scratch your head after I said 'head lice'?)

Personally I don't think a little dirt or germs really hurt us. They allow us to build up some natural immunities which protect us from the really nasty stuff. I mean there is no need to hang out with someone with the flu but there is also no need to go overboard with disinfectants. And they are only building disinfectant resistant germs anyway.

But yes it is all in your head, they are not out to get us. If you don't believe me, I'll cough some cancer cooties in your direction.

Rambles and travels with public bathrooms

We have visited several public bathrooms over the past week. There was the really nasty one at the convenience store/truck stop. There was the really nice one at the conference hotel where the floor to ceiling doors on the stalls did not have locks and you just had to hope no one opened the door on you because you really couldn't tell if they were taken. There was the really tiny ladies room with two stalls between all the giant conference rooms that always had a line. There were the ones way far down in the basement of the museum, past the coat check, gift store, etc. that required a good five minute walk.

Most of these were updated with the latest in sanitary touch free devices. You know the toilets that flush automatically, the sinks that turn on automatically, the hand dryers or paper towel dispensers that are motion sensitive. But they all seemed to be lacking in one way - soap dispensers. I did not see one touch free soap dispenser anywhere. So if you took advantage of the touch free everything, you failed on the quest to remain as germless as possible simply by opting to use soap. Is this a marketing opportunity? Don't even get me started on what I think of public bathroom toilet paper. It runs the gamut from extra soft to nearly paperbag....

Anyway, today we are on a quest to obtain bottled water. There is a giant water main leak in metro Boston that has prompted the local water system to provide untreated emergency water for sewage and fire fighting and bathing but it is not clean enough to use for drinking and must be boiled for a minimum of one minute. As we are not home yet, we will take the opportunity to stop here and purchase vast quantities of bottled water (preferably in 2.5 gal jugs) to bring home with us to get us through the coming days. Unfortunately the pipe that broke is 10 feet in diameter and is custom made so its not like they can go to the warehouse and pick up another one. Life continues to be an adventure.