On The Mend

I am on the mend, after two months of dealing with what seemed like a never ending respiratory illness. It appears that a change made in medication triggered an allergic reaction that basically wreaked havoc on my lungs. Now that I am off the medication, my breathing has improved, and I'll be back to yelling at my kids in no time. As I told Lynn over at Free to Eat, my kids have been getting away with murder around here! LOL!

My stepfather is also improving, thank goodness. He actually spent close to two weeks in the hospital. The infection he contracted is a strain of staph infection, MRSA. It is what the medical community calls a "superbug" because it is resistant to many of the more commonly used antibiotics. Poor O now has to wear this apparatus--at least for the next two weeks or so--that supplies a steady stream of antibiotics to the affected area and keeps it closed to avoid a new infection. My stepfather actually has a hole in his side where this infection once lived. I cannot stress to people out there enough; if you have a wound that appears swollen or blister-like please get it checked out. This MRSA can eat away at flesh and rapidly travels throughout the body. It is also easily transmittable through casual contact; in fact, this illness is very commonly spread in hospitals. A hospital in Central Florida had about 40 people come down with it in the same hospital--only 6 people came in with the illness. Now that I've sufficiently scared everyone, I will say that my stepfather is getting better and stronger every day. He says he'll be back at the horse farm soon--he misses his babies.

My uncle also came home from the hospital, and he is feeling well. He has been placed on dialysis while doctors try to find a kidney for him. Members of the family who are physically able to be organ donors are being tested; and the hope is that someone will be able to either donate one to my uncle or give one to the organ bank. In the meantime, my uncle is resting at home and enjoying time with his grandsons while he waits for good news.