I Need A Vacation and Kiddo Viruses Take #2

I know I just ended a four-week holiday break not that long ago, but I sure could use another respite ... this past week has been a series of comedic errors that have worn me out!

During this past week, I was stationed in Bettendorf for my outpatient community pediatrics rotation. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there; the doctor was terrific, and the kids were very cute, slobbering cesspools of wintertime infection. I stored my coat and backpack near the confidential shredder box and when leaving one night accidentally dropped my car keys into the padlocked box ... to which the entire office staff had a good laugh. Once we located the key code, I was on my way ... that very same night, my kind hosts Deb and Fred pointed out that I was eating my ham with the meat serving fork. Guilty as charged. I had been thinking while we were visiting that the fork was quite wide, and when I looked down at my plate, there waited my personal version. The following evening after clinic I had to fill my van up on gas. I must have been pretty tired, because when I went to remove the spout, I stood there for a few seconds watching gasoline pour out everywhere until it clicked that I should have shut the tank off first. Sigh ... nothing like donating five bucks of gas to the cement earth and smelling pretty fragrant afterward.

Wednesday afternoon in the clinic I developed a dry cough, and by mid-morning Thursday, I woke up with painful muscles and joints, a runny nose, nausea, dizziness, and fatigue. Enter influenza. I managed to drive home and crawled in to bed at 10:00 a.m. and stayed flat on my back for 24 hours straight. I cannot remember the last time that I slept that long --- perhaps in the womb? I'm feeling much better now --- just a runny nose, sore throat, and rattling cough remain, but I'm on the upswing! Thank goodness I got the flu vaccine this year, or else my symptoms would have been much worse and lasted much longer ... my preceptor in Bettendorf told me that he was sick his entire first year of residency while on pediatrics. He called it one of the "professional hazards" of working with little ones ... great. So much to look forward to!!!