Offensive

I have been sick during every vacation and family trip for the last, oh, three or four years. Colds, headaches that won't go away, pregnancy malaise - you name it, it's felled me at least once in recent memory. I have a feeling that Liza's grandparents think I'm faking in order to get a break from childcare, but hopefully the mucous helped convince them otherwise.

Thursday I started to feel a tickle in my throat at bedtime, the tickle that means I have stuff dripping down the back of my throat, and it's only a matter of time before I have to wear the box of tissues in a side holster and sleep propped up at a 45-degree angle. It is, of course, only a few days before we fly to Jason's family's house for Thanksgiving. Yet another vacation where I'm doomed to snot and foul moods.

But this time I have decided to fight back. Fueled by comments posted on one of the blogs I read regularly (http://thereignofellen.blogspot.com/2006/11/request.html - yay! Ellen is posting again!), I have decided to throw every possible potential fix at this cold, in hopes of warding it off, or at least reducing its severity so I don't sit around in a foul-tempered coma for most of my trip.

Friday I started my mother's patented "gargle hot salt water and spray your throat with Chloraseptic a few times a day" routine.

Saturday I went out and got some Cold-Eeze lozenges and some of the Zicam nasal swabs, and I've been using those in combination with my mother's routine all day yesterday and today. I've been sucking down herbal tea with lemon, and keeping the humidifiers cranked up, and trying to get some rest (except last night when I stayed up late to finish the sweater). I've been irrigating my nose in the shower (don't ask), and washing my hands like I've got OCD. Today I even split a can of Double Noodle Chicken Soup with Liza, that's how desperate I am.

Sunday - Throat's still scratchy, stuff is still dripping and draining and making it hard to sleep. Zinc lozenges don't taste particularly bad, but they take FOREVER to dissolve, and you're not supposed to chew them, so just about the time I finish one it's time to start on the next one. The Zicam swabs aren't too bad - much less nasty than when I used to get impentigo as a kid and had to have gooey antibiotic smeared inside my nose. I have no idea what they're supposed to be doing, but at least I feel like I'm doing something official and medicinal.

I'll keep you updated on whether I manage to kick this sucker before we leave for the holidays. Unlikely, but even if I manage to keep it to low-grade sickness for the length of my trip, I'll be happy.

UPDATE: Sunday night sucked, with the draining and the coughing and the stuffyness and the sleeplessness. I think all these remedies are full of shit. Monday morning and I feel marginally better, although still with the sore throat and drippy everything. Still doing the Zicam and zinc, still gargling and Chlorasepticing when I remember to, still relatively miserable. I broke down and got some Benadryl Allergy Sinus, which so far hasn't done squat to help with any of my symptoms. I remember the good old days, when I'd take a Dayquil and could actually feel my cold symptoms get better within half an hour or so. But now one Dayquil keeps me wired for half a week, as does anything that actually helps dry up my nose. Stupid drug sensitivities. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got another bowl of chicken soup with my name on it.

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Meanwhile, Jason has the hellacious cough that even the "I think this might be a controlled substance" prescription cough suppressant can't shut up, and Liza's taking antibiotics to try to fend off whatever's been making her snotty for four weeks and has given her the beginnings of a sinus infection and an ear infection. I hope my in-laws' immune systems are ready for us, because we're dragging an entire laboratory full of nasties home with us.