Do you all type when you are sick? I woke up this morning with a sore throat and a stiff achy

neck and my body was kind of stiff all over, but I ignored it, got the kids off to school, and went about my usual routine of having my morning coffee and reading the paper.  I don't start work until noon every day.  As the morning wore on, my body got achier and achier and I started having chills and basically had to huddle under three blankets so I would quit shivering.  I took my temperature and it was 102.3 and I'm wonder if I have strep throat or something.  I tend to pick that up about once a year and amy pretty familiar with the symptoms.

I couldn't bare the thought of calling sick especially because I work at home and I always think it's kind of lame to call in sick when you don't physically have to go much farther then down the stairs.  I always feel extremely guilty whenever I have called in for illness in the past.  Do you guys feel that way?  Like we're somehow not entitled to take sick days because we already working from home.  I mean, I have them accrued and I am truly sick, why should I feel bad about taking one when I actually need it?

Anyway, I took a handful of Motrin and the aching has eased up and I'm sweating like a pig so the fever broke for now, and now I just feel really tired and would love to lay down and take a nap, but just feel like I shouldn't and dread the idea of calling my boss.

Oh well, guess I'll suffer through like I always do.  Every once in a while working at home doesn't feel quite fair. 

• Do you all type when you are sick? I woke up this morning with a sore throat and a stiff achy - MissouriMT
  • My boss always says "I'd rather you take the time to get well because we need you for the long - ICMT2
  • also funny this should come up, as I, too am sick-- - KPS
  • Funny you should ask - (sm)
  • If it's strep, you'll need to go to the MD. (sm) - Misha
    • Lucky thing for me my MD is in the office tomorrow morning, so I made an appointment for tomorrow. - MissouriMT
      • Wish I could help. I'm currently available. :o> (nm) - Misha
  • Everyone needs to take a sick day now and then! - max
  • Gosh, you really should get some sleep - You are ill

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It started with a mild sore throat, then went to a REALLY BAD sore throat, tickly throat so I coughed and couldn't sleep, started getting a runny nose, then sinuses stuffy/sinus headache, sore throat got worse - was starting to think it was strep.  Yesterday was the worst; felt like crap.  Last night - started to feel better!  Finally last night I was able to SLEEP.  Today I have felt SO much better.  Not back to normal, but at least I was able to drink a cup of coffee.  Every other day I have poured myself a cup and then it just sat on my desk all day.  My throat is MUCH better and althought I am getting twinges of pain in it from time to time, it's not constant like it has been the last several days.  I don't like this, whatever it is!

I would think it was strep except DD had it too and she got over it.  She said her teacher had it and the teacher said her doctor told her it's a viral thing.

My legs from the calves down, and especially my ankles, have been swollen

since about the first part of February.  I walk around like a "weeble-wobble" doll.

And I thought, gosh, am I too fat?!, eating too much salt?!

Why don't they go down overnight or when I prop them up?

Well, finally I found out that I probably have Hoen-Schoenlein (or something like that) purpura.

They say it recurs.  It usually is in kids, but can happen in adults. 

IT HAPPENS AFTER A SORE THROAT.  It is in the autoimmune family.  Sometimes they will give you steroids for it -- but mostly you have to just ride it out. 

They really don't know what causes it - but like I said they do suspect it comes in correlation with a sore throat.......and I have had that horrible flu that hit in Feb and I have had recurrence of the flu/sore throat about every 6 wks (as do a lot of  the folks I know). 

They say the purpura/swollen legs and ankles can last for 6-8 wks or longer.

So, if you have really funky swollen legs and don't have luck with them going down after leaving off salt, drinking plenty of water, and not drinking caffeinated drinks -- it may be HENOCH-SCHONLEIN purpura.

What is HSP?

Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP or anaphylactoid purpura) is a form of blood vessel inflammation or vasculitis. There are many different conditions that feature vasculitis. Each of the forms of vasculitis tends to involve certain characteristic blood vessels. HSP affects the small arterial vessels called capillaries in the skin and frequently the kidneys. HSP results in skin rash (most prominent over the buttocks and behind the lower extremities associated with joint inflammation (arthritis) and sometimes cramping pain in the abdomen.

What causes HSP?

HSP occurs most often in the spring and frequently follows an infection of the throat or breathing passages. HSP seems to represent an unusual reaction of the body's immune system that is in response to this infection (either bacteria or virus). Aside from infection, drugs can also trigger the condition. HSP occurs most commonly in children, but persons of all age groups can be affected.

What are symptoms of HSP?

Classically, HSP causes skin rash, pain in the abdomen, and joint inflammation (arthritis). Not all features need be present for the diagnosis. The rash of skin lesions appears in gravity-dependent areas, such as the legs. The joints most frequently affected with pain and swelling are the ankles and the knees. Patients with HSP can develop fever. Inflammation of the blood vessels in the kidneys can cause blood and/or protein in the urine. Serious kidney complications are infrequent, but can occur. Sometimes a biopsy of skin and/or kidney is used in assisting the diagnosis, which is typically made based on the clinical findings.

Symptoms usually last approximately a month. Recurrences are not frequent, but do occur.

p

Yes but this new keyboard I have is not as slanted as I am used to.

For the past couple of days my legs have been aching nonstop.  I walk 30 minutes per day for exercise and make sure to take breaks and get up out of the chair.  I don't know what is going on but it is really driving me nuts.  It makes it very hard to sit here and push this pedal.  I'm hoping it will go away in a day or so, hopefully as quickly as it started.

Anyone else have this problem?

Of bad dictators and QA that takes up for them!!!!  I am sick to death of:

1.  Doc saying paragraph after every sentence.

2.  Docs never dictating the first name of doc they are writing to.

3.  QA asking us to insert certain sentences in certain places for certain doctors who do not dictate them.

4.  Docs wanting their own specific headings but not dictating them.

5.  Docs who ramble, never saying period.

6.  QA asking us to **fix** their grammer, mistakes, fragmented sentences, and verb tenses and sometimes when we do, we are docked points for **not transcribed as dictated.**

7.  QA not wanting anything sent to them, stating **researach medical terms and facilities you are not familiar with.**  If they are not there to help us out, what are they doing there????

8.  Docs, NPs, and PAs who do not know how to dictate, pronounce, or spell.

9.  QA asking us to use BOS, but not knowing it themselves.

10.  Doing work I do not get paid for.

Before QA became involved, in years gone by, if a doc's dictation was awful - then that is what he got for transcription and more times than not, they would straighten up and make a better effort.  Not now - we or QA has to almost do the dictation for them!!  They are the ones with the medical degree - not us.  What happened to us just transcribing what is dictated.  Why can't they be responsible for what prints out??  If someone could let them know how much trouble their dictation style causes, it would cut my transcription time in half.  My list could go on and on.  It is a terrible time to be thinking about getting out of the business, but if this crap keeps up - I have to give it some serious consideration.  The job just AIN'T what it used to be.

What do you do for a stiff neck from working at the computer too long?  Mine is killing me today.

Your other new symptoms sound like maybe (guessing here, I'm not a doctor) - trigeminal neuralgia (?).  I'm not sure - but maybe read up on it and possibly reconsult with your neurologist.  I hope you feel better real soon though!!! 

Smart Gloves.  Google them.  They're wonderful.  About $20 bucks apiece but well worth the money.

Carpal tunnel type straps.  Wal Mart.  $10 bucks apiece.

I have both and I alternate.

I ended up with numbness in my right index finger, but after buying these, it just went away after a few weeks.  My fingers and wrists have some discomfort on occasion, but nothing like they were before.

One more thing, and I know people that do this, if you do "pound" the keyboard with your fingertips, relax those hands, elbows and shoulders and just tap. If that doesn't work, you may want to get a better keyboard.

Good luck!

   I use elbow pads to save my shoulders & neck, but find that continually resting my elbows on anything (or keeping them bent at a 90-degree angle or greater) for any period of time exacerbates the pain.  My problem is bone-spurs in the elbows - combination of arthritis and/or overuse from sports, etc.  But typing, sleeping with it bent, etc. do make it worse.  I've found gentle exercises on the machines at the gym to be helpful, provided I don't overdo it.  I also use glucosamine & chondroitin supplements for a knee problem that might help a little. 

Sometimes sleeping curled around an extra pillow, with my arm stretched out underneath it to help prevent it from being over-bent, seems to help.  Also avoiding over-use.  I try to keep my med. dictionary on my desk during the day, so I don't have to reach for it, and when I first take it off the shelf in the morning, I do it while standing up to lessen the stress on the joint. 

When it does flare up, I've experimented with different pain remedies to find what is most effective.  While aspirin works best on some of my parts, my own elbow pain seems to respond best to extra-strength Tylenol, and second-best to two ibuprofen (even though the bottle says take just one.)  And the neck and shoulder pain is best relieved by Flexall cream, second-best by ibuprofen. 

Best of luck finding the right cure! 

In a way it's nice to know I'm not the only one who has this problem.  Not that I wish pain on anybody... :)

Fortunately, I did not need any injections.  I had physical therapy--heat, iontophoresis, and exercises--and anti-inflammatories. 

The occupational health physician I saw also recommended a keyboard tray adjusted so that my arms were at a 90-degree angle while typing.  I know someone mentioned having their arms at that angle made it worse, but my problem at that time was having my keyboard too low so that my arms were going down.  Changing the angle did help.

Now when I have a flare-up, ibuprofen usually helps as well as a topical gel called Biofreeze which I buy it from my chiropractor but some independent pharmacies carry it, also.