Monday, November 30, 2009

Allergy to Penicillin Sucks

There is no way to sugar-coat that. Sorry.

My ear infection or whatever it is, is back. I saw the doctor in early November. My regular doctor wasn't available so I happened to luck out and get an appointment with his wife. There was lots of fluid in my ears so I was put on an antibiotic and given a new script for my allergy meds, patted on the head and sent on my way. I took the antibiotic the full 10 days, as I was supposed to, and I take the allergy meds every night as they make me sleepy. After 10 days, I felt very well.

The ear pain returned on Friday.

It's a dull ache all day that is mitigated with aspirin, but that only masks the symptoms. I need this gone. Hence, another visit to the doctor and this time, it was my regular one. The fluid is back but my sinuses are clear. It's just my right ear this time. I awoke over the weekend with a stabbing pain on the right back side of my head which chased a stabbing pain in my right ear. Then, it would settle down to this dull ache. My doctor doesn't know if the pain is related to the pressure on the ear drum from the fluid or the pressure of the swollen ear canal. No wax so it's not that.

I have ear drops now. Those weren't that expensive, but I'm allergic to penicillin and cannot take any of those derived drugs. This means I have to take the designer antibiotics which don't have the lovely $5 charge for the co-pay and almost no generics. $45.00 later, I have a 10-day supply. Just out of curiosity, I called around and my charge for the same amount would have been the same at the 3 other pharmacies I checked. It's the nature of my insurance, I guess.

This better work. If I'm not better in 10 days, I'm to call my doctor and I'll get a steroid to reduce the swelling in my ear. If, for whatever reason, that doesn't work, it's off to an ENT. I keep thinking, when I hear that, that I'm going to see one of those tree creatures from LOTR. I do have to admit that last night, as I was falling asleep with my ear throbbing, my mind wandered to Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, and that ear thingee Khan put in Chekov's ear. (And I saw that involuntary shudder you just did.)

Ah popular culture. Helps to define exactly how I'm feeling.

Beverage: Coke

Deb

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