Well kids, it never rains but it pours. Mind you, in this case it’s probably the best time for something like this to happen. As Laura reported two posts ago, I had a very sore, very lousy weekend. Now, I realized that I might have pushed myself a tad too hard, but it’s not like I had gone out running or playing a team sport, or otherwise banged my brain-pan around. What did I ever do to put myself flat on my back, exhausted and in pain?
Well, with the onset of a few spots two days ago, we think we know: Chicken Pox.
You see, I never had chicken pox as a kid. Close to a decade ago, Jon and I went and had the relatively new vaccine to more or less eliminate our chances of ever getting it. This was back when it was so new that it wasn’t covered by OHIP, and had to be administered by a tropical disease specialist.
I remember that he gave Jon the vaccine right away, but expressed extreme skepticism that I had missed it in my 35 years on the planet. He suggested, friendly but firm, that I had had a subclinical case and never knew. And while I doubted that, I agreed to a mere blood test. After all, if I didn’t have the antibody, it would be very wise to get the injection: in an adult, chicken pox ranges from debilitating (for a month or more) to life-threatening.
A few days later I got a call to return ASAP, and when I did, I was treated like the world’s first pregnant man. “Please, sit down,” he said gently, as though assassins were everywhere. I got two vaccines over a month (kids get one, adults get two), and that was that. Interestingly, they didn’t know—and still don’t—how or whether the vaccine results in shingles down the line, if indeed it does. I guess the longitudinal population is still too young. (FYI: Shingles is caused by the virus that causes chickenpox. Even after its defeat, it takes hold in nerves and stays dormant. Decades later, for some, it reawakens as shingles.)
Anyhoo, my little surprise is what’s referred to a wild-type VZV: something got through the biological radar, but in no way is it serious. The pox themselves are a mere 12 or so, clumped on my neck and upper chest. They don’t even itch, and they’re already halfway through the cycle. The worst part of it were the symptoms that compounded my concussion symptoms, just before they appeared.
So I’m just in public quarantine for a few days, until these little suckers crust over. I find bending down hard, and it’s easy to overexert myself doing minor chores, but otherwise I’m not feeling it. Anyone who has had the chicken pox before can come to visit—they’re in no danger of getting re-infected—but I can’t go out, not to the store, not to the dog park.
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Kristen Chew says:
July 15, 2008 at 11:26 am (UTC 0)
Holy crap, Peter! *stares in amazement* I’d start looking into exorcisms.
I had the chicken pox when I was 29, and it was a full-blown, full tilt boogie case. Thank god for antivirals (which are very expensive, but worth it). So your “you must have had a sub-clinical case” doctor can keep quiet about these sorts of things, I should think. 🙂
Well, it sounds like it’s better than a bump on the head, says John.
Peter says:
July 15, 2008 at 11:56 am (UTC 0)
Ha!
Don’t mistake the good tropical disease doctor—once he realized I hadn’t had the pox, he wanted the Secret Service in to protect me! The thing is that 90% or more of adults have had the chicken pox, any adult that walks in and simply claims he’s extra-ordinary is to be doubted, or at best, tested. The fun was seeing the guy, who was always quiet and friendly, turn on a dime into my midwife/crisis counsellor.
To John: Ya, but I’d have rather had neither, or just the pox. Concussions really suck. 🙂
John Chew says:
July 15, 2008 at 7:05 pm (UTC 0)
I’ve had chickenpox four times and shingles once, thanks to an apparently very forgetful immune system. We asked our family doctor about immunisation for Jamie and she said that she’s skeptical about the efficacy of the current shots, because the drug companies keep coming out with evidence very few years that the old ones didn’t work at all, to support a switch to a new product.
Peter says:
July 15, 2008 at 8:32 pm (UTC 0)
Four times? Ow, was your immune system out of the country on business or something?
Well, the new vaccines may be better, but the ones we got 8 or 9 years ago have served us well. The drug companies probably don’t want to hear from us! There are breakthrough cases like me in the literature and they are minor. There can be serious, permanently damaging cases of real chickenpox, even occasionally in kids, so we chose to inoculate the two-thirds of the family who hadn’t suffered from it.
Given the horrors stories I’ve heard from two neighbours who had it in adulthood (pox lasting 1-2 months, incredible itching, pox appearing everywhere—even eyelids, eyes, tongues, inner mouths, etc.), I’m not regretting my decision.
paul says:
July 15, 2008 at 9:35 pm (UTC 0)
well, peter’s just one upping everyone on the planet today. And here i was gonna complain about hitting my hand with a hammer…hey it was a big hammer:-(
On the bright side after pretending to be a flying squirrel (ya know peter they don’t fly so well either) maybe in a day or two he’ll forget he was sick.
So you’re not allowed on the streets eh…Ooohhh. new halloween costume idea! think sign around the neck, you reach into a candy bowl and it’s all yours:-)
seriously hope all is better soon. all this cheering you up is tiring.
paul
aiabx says:
July 16, 2008 at 11:03 pm (UTC 0)
He says it’s chicken pox, but I’ll give odds that it’s actually some kind of alien disease that will destroy the earth if Peter leaves quarantine, just because it’s that kind of summer.
Peter says:
July 17, 2008 at 7:52 am (UTC 0)
Wow. Hard to resist a challenge…