Caroline’s Kitty Corner

Well, so this isn’t entirely true. I actually really like the sun. Unfortunately, it doesn’t like me very much. I don’t tan in the summer, I burn. My skin is so light that some people have said that it looks like I never get out. This is, in effect, mostly true, but there’s a good reason; one that I tend to forget about each year until I am painfully reminded.

During my senior year of high school I was around some kids who had Chicken Pox. I’ve all ready had it, thank you very much, so I wasn’t overly concerned. Unfortunately, the same virus that causes Chicken Pox is also responsible for a couple of other things. Not long after being exposed to these kids, I developed these major sores on the right side of my neck. They were painful and itchy. I had a really hard time turning my head, and my right ear felt like it does when I’ve got an infection. It took several doctors, and about three weeks of no treatment to discover that the source of this problem was caused by Herpes Simplex Virus 1. Don’t confuse this with HSV2, which is the genital form; I most likely wouldn’t be writing about that if it were the case. Anyway, there are also a couple of other names for this, the most common one is Shingles. Unfortunately, unlike Chicken Pox, this is not a one-time deal.

My first outbreak was, as I said, during my senior year, and the dermatologist I saw attributed it to being around the kids with Chicken Pox. The next time I got it I did at least know what it was, but not what caused it because I hadn’t been around anyone. It turns out that because this thing stays dormant there are several things that can trigger it. One thing is stress. I’m pretty sure it was during my first semester at college, and that was the semester from hell, so I’m not surprised that I broke out.

Since then I’ve had it several times, and in most cases it’s been okay. I broke out around the time Jim and I got married, (again probably due to the stress of planning a wedding), and other times. None of them were as bad as the first time as far as the discomfort, size, and number of blisters, with the exception of last summer. I went to the Wisconsin State Fair and spent several hours in the sun. A couple of days later, there it was, and it was awful! I can’t even begin to describe the way it feels, but people have told me that on me it looks like a giant hicky. It doesn’t help that it’s always right on my neck either. SMILE! So, add another way of calling up the magic, so to speak.

So, I know that putting myself in the sun can cause this thing to come to the surface, but I never seem to be able to remember. On Thursday when I went on my road trip I was in a car and the sun was coming in my window both coming and going because of the time of day. I didn’t even give it a second thought, until yesterday morning. I happened to reach up to the spot, and there it was; the beginning of yet another outbreak. It didn’t itch, and it really wasn’t all that painful, so I hoped that it wouldn’t be that big of a deal. Well, today it’s as annoying and painful as it usually is. So, this means I need to start making sure that I keep my hands clean, don’t touch the spot, and avoid, whenever possible, coming in contact with people. It’s contagious, and normally requires medication to treat. Unfortunately friends and neighbors, that’s not in the cards so it’s just going to have to do its thing and go away on its own. Just keep reminding me though that sunshine is not my friend. Sunshine is my enemy.

It kind of reminds me of that song that Peter, Paul and Mary did about the Lemon tree.

Lemon tree very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet. But the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat.