I've learned that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 percent of the population carries the type of staph bacteria known as MRSA.
That's a lot different then the last thing I heard about MRSA which was about 5 years ago when it was something horrid and you were going to pretty much die from it if you got it.
I've had it for several months....but I didn't know it. I kept getting these little red "pimples" that I presumed to be ingrown hairs since they were on the top of my legs and on my stomach. These pimples would fill with pus and be so painful until I drained them- which just made them hurt worse. Once I started draining them, they just kept filling back up and it took about a week each time and lots of band-aids, gauze, peroxide, and draining to get them to go away. I have a scar from each one I've had. I had a pretty gross- in perspective- one in October that I sent a picture of to my aunt for her opinion. She knows a lot about health related things, etc. She said to just keep cleaning it, etc. After that I had a few more, nothing too bad though. About a month ago, though, I got one and as soon as it went away, a second one formed immediately *when the previous ones had at least a week between them* and then a third one while that one was still draining. The third one got pretty severe. I couldn't even leave a gauze pad on it for more then an hour or two before it needed changed again and it was really really deep and so painful that if Lucas even grazed the area around it, it hurt so bad. I had been sent a picture to my aunt of this one after about 3 days when it looked, what I thought, worse then any I had had yet. She told me to keep doing what I was doing and it should go away. She said I did need medical attention, but she also understands that we are beyond poor (poverty line...what's that?!) and that I don't have insurance. I kept at it for a few more days, but it just kept getting worse. I sent her one more picture and she told me to get help- it was bigger then I could handle on my own.
So, I went to the ER- simply because any doctor requires payment up front, and we don't have that. They more or less just put me in the very back room after admission and left me there for a good hour before anyone even came in to see me. The doctor came in, looked at it for like 30 seconds, stuck a giant swab in it and rubbed it around. That hurt worse then anything- maybe even more then child birth :O. He then said I had an abscess and would prescribe antibiotics for it. The nurse came in...cleaned it all up and bandaged it. He then gave me a shot in my rear and some pills to take. They sent me on my merry way and told me to call the doctor's office Monday to get the culture results.
I started taking the antibiotics- your run of the mill Kelflex and Bactrim DS. I didn't really think anything of it, although they did knock me out and keep me out for a couple of days- but I think that was the infection giving it's last shot at me.
I called on Monday and the nurse called back a few hours later. Confirmed who I was then kind of sighed a little and didn't say anything for a few seconds. She then told me that the culture tested positive for MRSA and that if it wasn't going away or if it came back I would have to come in for different medication. Thankfully, in just those 3 days, it looked tons better. I haven't missed a dose of my antibiotics- as I don't want it back...it's gross, it hurts, and it can be life threatening. I almost waited too long to get treatment. It could have turned out a lot worse then just a skin infection.
Today, it's almost completely healed and I haven't had any more "pimples" sprout up- which hopefully means it's sleeping for good!
MRSA sucks. I always said I wouldn't get MRSA....I also said I wouldn't ever have a baby, lol.
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