Sulfa I Hate You - Part 2

If you haven't read this, you may want to. It's the first part to what this post is about.

I just got back from the doctor. He gave me Millipred DP (Prednisolone). It's an antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections. It is also a steroid that helps with swelling. I'll be taking it for 6 days. It's supposed to counteract my reaction to Methosulpate, which is in a lotion I was using.

What an allergic reaction looks like. You have to be careful not to itch because the hive can turn into blisters.

Then the doctor went on about my allergies. He wants me to see a doctor about building my strength up to Sulpha. Even the doctors at the allergy clinic don't try to take on the fight of an allergy to things like Sulpha and Penicillin. There is only one doctor in town that does. He said, "Alissa you shouldn't have to worry about what's in everything. It might get worse as you get older." My thought, I'll use natural lotions if I have to. Heck my Dad (Grandpa Spiehs) uses Olive Oil and I know people can use Coconut Oil on their skin as well. An allergy doctor is going to want to give me shots or under the tongue drops that will take years to combat this problem. If it does combat the problem, which I doubt it ever will, my allergies might acclimate themselves. Instead of being allergic to one thing, I could be allergic to something else. I have to mention that I've done pretty well with the mix of over the counter allergy meds and the use of the Neti Pot for seasonal allergies. Many people are allergic to Sulpha. At least I don't have a peanut allergy. People that have that problem can't even eat things that are made in the same factory as something made with peanuts.

This doctor had no clue what to do about my hematoma. I fell the first part of October. Hematoma is a big, nasty bruise. It concerned him. I think it's just because of the wide red reaction around it from the Methosulpate! He said that if I was a football player, he'd have me go to physical therapy.  He acted like he didn't know for sure if that is what I should do. He wrote me out a prescription to see a physical therapist. Mind you that he didn't want to see me in the first place about the hematoma. He wanted me to see a dermatologist. The dermatologist wanted me to see my regular doctor. I decided to say, "Screw them both!" and went to Urgent Care. The lady in the Urgent Care didn't seem the least bit concerned about my hematoma. She said that they take a long time to go away; the signs that it was itchy, raised and shrinking meant that it was healing.

The circle area is where my Hematoma is. The red area around it is hives from Sulpha.

What am I going to do? I'm going to take the Millipred DP (Prednisolone) to reduce my rash. I'll never use any lotion with Methosulpate in it again! I'll use Olive Oil, Coconut Oil or Tropical Traditions Lotion (Which has Coconut Oil in it). Once this rash clears up, I'll see how my hematoma looks. I'm not going to be running around the city of Omaha visiting all kinds of doctors for no reason at all.

You may be wondering, "Why don't you switch doctors?" I may. To be honest my doctor is very convenient. He's five minutes from my work. If and when I'm sick, I hate driving any sort of distance. Not to mention time off from work is less when he's so close. Usually my doctor is very blunt and to the point. I do like that quality. At least he was honest about not being sure what to do. Ideally I'd love to find a doctor that was like my son's pediatrician. He listens, he researches, he calls you back personally, he visits in the hospital on the way to his vacation, he does home visits for Emerson and he is nice. Doctors like that are hard to come by!

Today I Said, "Enough!"

A short recap for those that know nothing about what I am talking about: I fell in the shower/tub the first part of October. It was a bad fall. My leg was bruised all over, but didn't appear to be that dark. In the past few weeks I've noticed that a small circle (about the size of a large egg) itches like crazy! It's still discolored. There is a lump under the skin.

I call my main doctor to get an appoint. They wanted me to see a dermatologist. I called the dermatologist and they wanted me to see my main doctor.

My co-worker said, "Just go to UrgentCare." So tonight I did just that. I have what's called a "Hematoma." It's a really BAD bruise. It can be a big deal. My happens to not be. She said if it was in the back of my leg it may be a bigger deal. The fact that the lump is so close to my skin and itches is a good thing. It means it's healing. I'm supposed to keep lotion on it as much as possible. If it starts to get hot, bigger or red than I should go in again.

I'm so glad it's nothing to worry about. Now I can cancel my other unneeded appointment.

Today I Got the Run Around

The bruise I got in the beginning of October has never went away. I tripped on Isaak's play mat in the bathtub/shower. My leg stung and it really wasn't that colorful of a bruise. It was just was massive in size. The tissue was firmer than my other skin.

The size has gone down. What's left is a hard knot that is under the skin and the size of a large egg. It's a little discolored there. The skin in that spot dries out much more than my other skin and itches.

I didn't think too much of it. Like I said, it did get smaller. Since it won't go away, I did what everyone shouldn't probably do and looked online. What I found was that it could and probably is a "Hematoma." Sometimes ignorance is better, sometimes it's worse. What is it? A Hematoma refers to an abnormal collection of blood in the body that is typically the result of a broken or ruptured blood vessel. Hematomas can cause a minor skin bruise, or a collection of clotted blood that is deep within a muscle. Sometimes they shrink and go away, sometimes they don't and the sack of blood needs to b surgically removed. If it doesn't get removed, it can get so bad that a limb could need to be amputated. Ya that last part is where I decided that I should call my doctor. That's if it's really bad. Mine has shrunk down, so I doubt it's that bad.

I called my doctor and left a message with the nurse. Then she called and said that I'll need to see a Dermatologist. Then the Dermatologist office was away for an hour lunch break. Than I called back and they said, "It sounds like a Hematoma. You should probably see your regular doctor." I said, "They referred me to see a Dermatologist." She said, "Did they see you first?" I said, "No, but that's what my doctor said over the phone." She said, Ok."

I had to give them my maiden name. I haven't seen this doctor since late high school I think. That might be an issue in itself.

Now I have an appointment to see my Dermatologist at the end of the month.

At least I can have him look at my moles while I'm there. I don't think they are an issue because they haven't changed at all. Since I'm there, I might as well. I also have a raised, tiny mark by my eye. I'm sure it's just from getting older, but I'll have him look at that to.