Most people know that I'm not a touchy, feely kind of gal. The idea of getting a back scratch or foot rub just kind of makes me shudder. Until about September.
It started pretty simple and not too big of a deal. Just a spot here and there would itch. I could forget about it after a while. But as time went on it consumed my entire body. Head to toe! My ear lobes, my kneecaps, my toes, my wrists, my everything. I'd wake myself up (and Layne too) from scratching at night. I dreaded night time because it got so much worse at night.
So these past few weeks it got to where it has been pretty much the only thing I thought about. I wouldn't go anywhere that I didn't have to because I needed to be home where I can scratch anything at any moment. And needless to say, my skin has become calloused and yes, blood has been involved. My dear husband has been super duper awesome and scratching me whenever I need it, even in the middle of the night. They are those really deep itches so the kids just didn't have the muscle required for any real relief. Although, I have scarred Josie for life after making her (yes, making her) scratch a spot that I couldn't reach and can't describe on my G rated blog.
At first I thought it must be the change of seasons. So I went though a huge bottle of lotion. One night Layne was putting some on my back and he told me that my skin wasn't dry at all. So that wasn't it. I thought that maybe I was missing some minerals or vitamins, but more of them just made me nauseous. I tried to eliminate different food groups. Non of those seemed to be it. I talked to a doc (not my usual doc) and he said that since there wasn't any rash or hives and it was all over it was probably psychological. That makes sense. There were a few things that had me busy and stressed. So I figured I'd wait out the holidays to see if the stress of the season was the reason. It just got worse. Benadryl could have been pink tic tacs for as much help they offered.
On Christmas Eve Layne had had it. And a rash had finally appeared. Our Dr. office was closed so he took me to Urgent Care in Marysville. That doc didn't even look at the rash. All he did was walk in, ask me if I was pregnant, handed me two prescriptions, and then wished me Happy Holidays. I remember this last part because as I was walking out I was thinking, 'the holiday has a name dumbbell. Merry Christmas!'. I've been a little testy and on edge since I hadn't been sleeping. It wasn't a nice thing to think, being Christmas and all, but that is what happened.
The thought of feeling normal again seemed like a dream. I went right to the pharmacy and filled my Prednisone and Atarax Rx. Merry Christmas to me! I was so pumped.
Let me just say that I've just experienced the most horrible 12 days in my life. Why I let it go on that long and why I thought I had to take the whole round of pills before I got help is beyond me. I was going crazy. Me and Prednisone are not friends. I now know that it can induce insomnia. I probably slept 2 hours a day and when I did fall asleep I wasn't in a deep sleep and had the weirdest dreams. I felt like my skin was crawly and jittery & that only induced more itching. Night time was torture. I literally walked laps around my house all night. This past Sunday at church I sat down to play the piano and could not do it. Justin probably could have one handed it better. If I wasn't near tears then I was yelling.
Layne had to leave town yesterday. He was very concerned about how I was going to get all my scratching taken care of with him gone. And he really didn't want any more permanent scars on our children's memories, so he made me this. The kids call it Mom's Rake.
If that isn't true love, I don't know what is. Ü It still make me giggle when I see it, but let me tell you. It is dang awesome. Even the kids use it. You can really dig into that deep tissue itch.
After I got home from the airport yesterday morning (probably not very safe to drive that far with no sleep, but I got home) I called the Dr and got an appointment. When Dr. D. walked in he looked at me and asked me what I was on. I asked what did he mean and he said your skin is all lit up, what are you taking? I showed him and he looked at me and asked why on earth I didn't come in sooner? I didn't have an answer that made any sense so I went on and on about nothing and told him that he had to fix me before Layne got home because I wasn't sure how much longer he was going to deal with the crazy lady I had become.
He said that whatever I'm reacting to is in my blood stream and that is why it is a full body itch fest. So now I have three more prescriptions, but guess what, they seem to be helping! I forgot to mention that about Sunday I had started getting a cold and by yesterday that had turned into a sinus infection and pink eye. So if I didn't have that 'crazy' look in my eyes before, the pink didn't help.
I slept pretty good last night. This morning I got the kids (the two that weren't puking) off to school and went back to bed and didn't wake up until 1:00 pm! When I finally woke up my first thought was how peaceful my body felt. The yucky drugs are getting out of my system and I'm starting to feel human again. The itch isn't gone (the rake is sticking out of the top of my shirt right now) but WAY better. So much so that I was able to sleep all day. That in itself is amazing. So high five to Dr. D and a smack across the head for Cassie.
That is my story. That is why I haven't been myself. Why I haven't been able to do more that I absolutely have had to do. Why everyone here has stayed out of my way. I don't know that anything has ever consumed my mind and life as much as this has. What I do know is that I should have gone to my doctor months ago. (Yes, just like Layne told me to.)
