Remember when your mother told you to drink plenty of fluids, wash your hands, get sleep, and go straight to the doctor when you have a fever or cough? LISTEN! I have had pneumonia, which turned into a lovely case of acute bronchitis. At first, I thought I could handle it myself (tylenol, nap, cough drops). I didn't want to miss work, because that is hard on the kids and the rest of the teaching team. Then, I got very, very scared when I spent a night completely awake - every moment - coughing, vomiting, with a temp of over 100 degrees and with an ever-increasing blood pressure. The Urgent Care doctor (very nice) told me that my bp was going up because I could not get enough air into my lungs. Now, three days since Urgent Care, I continue to cough greenish-yellow stuff, I nearly pee in my pants every time, and I have just stopped running a fever...have had a breathing treatment in the clinic, have two antibiotics, and my own inhaler.
So, don't be like me...get your butt to Urgent Care if you have any sign of a fever, a productive cough, a sleepless night, etc.
MY THANKS go to the people who helped me: Angelica (who told me so, and who brought a bean burrito - the first food I'd eaten in two days), Mary Anne (who took control of my classroom and sub - a lot of work for her ...I owe her BIG TIME), my mom (for being a typical mom and for getting me there and back again), and Sharley (for arranging my subs, even when I called at the last moment).
Friends are the most valuable thing we have on this journey!
