Maybe its TMI, but misery loves company

I've had a sinus infection brewing the last few days. This is actually no surprise to me, because this month is the first month I've spent every day in the hospital, and as everyone knows, hospitals are where sick people go to share their germs with each other (and infect the well people too). Seriously though, there's just A LOT of germs in the hospital, and even though I've been washing my hands 20 times a day, I knew I would probably get sick since my immune system isn't used to that kind of barraging exposure anymore.

In addition to the germ factor, there is the fact that my body is still getting used to its new hours of operation. I'm the kind of girl who wants to stay up until midnight and then get up at 9:00, but on this IM rotation, I've got to get up around 4:30 most mornings. YUCK! That would make anyone sick, right? And since I'm not used to the sleep schedule, I'm usually running out the door without breakfast and without taking my "vitamins." Now, this isn't my February confession post (I'm planning on typing that up this weekend) but my mini confession is that although I'm in medical school, so I know that most herbs on the market have no conclusive peer-reviewed studies proving their effectiveness, I take quite a few herbs (usually daily) that are supposed to boost the immune system. I'd swear by them, because when I forget to take them, guess what? I get sick.

Well, starting last night, the sinus infection took a turn for the worse--and today I feel like total crapola. I ache all over, my sinuses feel like they're on fire, and I have a rip-roaring sore throat. I still went into the hospital today. Why? Because hospitals are where sick people go to infect each other and get the well people sick too.

The fun doesn't stop there! No WAY!

This evening, I've started having symptoms of a UTI. You know, feeling like you have to pee all the time when you really don't, and when you do pee you feel like you're peeing fire. Yeah. Good times. Having learned my lesson the last time I had a UTI, (for those of you who haven't read that post, look it up in my archives for an amazing laugh at my expense), I called my personal pharmacy (SSFB) and since she didn't have what I needed, I went to the quick care. It was about 8:00 pm, and they closed at 7:00. Lovely. Remember this, people, if you have an emergency, but its not an emergency that you want to wait 6 hours to see a doctor for, (which is what would happen if you went to an ER here with symptoms of a UTI) try to have your emergency before 7:00 pm. Otherwise? You're SOL.

Now, I shouldn't really be surprised about the UTI symptoms starting. Not really. The #1 reason for getting a UTI if you're a girl is not peeing after sex. This is not the cause of my problem. The #2 reason for getting a UTI if you're a girl, however, is squatting instead of sitting when you pee (because you can't fully empty your bladder when you squat) or holding your pee for too long. This is the reason I got the UTI. The toilets at the hospital where I am currently rotating are DISGUSTING! Honestly, I would rather sit on a toilet at the Chevron than at that hospital. Because of this, I have been 1) holding my pee until it is not humanly possible to hold any longer and then 2) squatting instead of sitting. This is the perfect recipe for a UTI. Also, as I mentioned earlier, I haven't been taking my "vitamins" which include daily cranberry pills as prophylaxis for UTIs.

But does the fun stop there? Of course not.

My period also started tonight. This means that there is a possibility that they'll make me have a catheter instead of doing a clean catch when I show up at the Urgent Care first thing tomorrow morning.

Bad news comes in threes, right? There's all three--sinus infection, UTI, Period. A perfect little trifecta of misery.