Let's talk about 'em. I hate them.so.much. I have one right now and they make me cranky. They throb, I can't smile or laugh, eat or drink without feeling the pain. They blister over and I wake up with little spots of blood on my pillowcase. I have to throw out all my lip glosses and chapsticks and get a new toothbrush. It's one of the lovely gifts my husband gave to me:) I get these bad boys about 2-3 times a year, usually when I am really stressed or really sick. In the past 10 months I have had 3 already. Not cool. Meet my friend Valtrex that helps the pain (and humiliation) slowly subside. And it costs a pretty penny, too. Try $15 a pill! But, worth it.
And, I can not believe I am going to post pictures of the dreaded event, but here goes...
It's like Botox gone wrong
Please don't have nightmares from the picture!
I have not a spot of make up on and that thing growing on my face is terrible!!
These pictures are from my first attack. It was in April 2006 after living in NYC for a few months. I woke up one Saturday morning with my upper lip the size of a golf ball and freaked out! This was my face we are talking about and I had NO IDEA what had happened! Patrick thought it might be a cold sore, but he had never seen one so swollen. He had to leave to go to school, so I decided to go have it checked out and hopefully get something to help it. Remember, it is a Saturday, I am somewhat new to the city and have not established a doctor.
I put on my jacket and walk down to 3rd Avenue to hail a cab uptown to the nearest ER. Once I get through with the novel of paperwork, I am taken back and put in a tiny closet of a room and wait for the doctor to come in. After an eternity, the doctor makes her way and spends all of point 3 seconds with me. She takes one look at my lip, rolls her eyes (not really) scribbles something on a prescription pad and explains that I have a cold sore before she walks out. My mind is screaming at her! "WHERE ARE YOU GOING!!!??? This is my face! It is deformed and I have no idea why!"
Defeated, I grab a cab towards the pharmacy by my apartment and set myself up for another embarrassment. At the pharmacy counter, I hand the technician my prescription and step aside to wait. After a few minutes the tech calls my name. ("Wow. That was fast.") She then explains to me that the doctor has prescribed Abreva, an OTC cream. Embarrassed, I buy the cream and go home to lock myself up for a week.
As you can imagine, the Abreva didn't do a thing and I had to ride this one out. I couldn't work and I didn't really leave the apartment. My face hurt so much!
Damn you cold sores!
