I've got good news and bad news. Given my nature, I've always thought it best to start with the bad and end with the good, then we don't end with a bitter taste in our mouth!
First impressions are everything, right? Well, sorry Hawaii...I know you meant well, but I wasn't left with a great first impression! Let me explain...
My parents surprised me with the idea of a family vacation to Maui for a graduation/Christmas/all-over celebratory trip last Christmas. After much research, a lot of planning, and 6 months of waiting, we finally headed off to Maui on June 12th. Everyone was happy and healthy and I was excited to visit Hawaii for the first time ever!!!
The flight was long, but things went over well. The resort was GORGEOUS! We stayed at the Fairmont Kea Lani in Wailea and holy cow was that place stunning. I only wish I could have actually utilized the resorts amazing amenities for the entirety of the trip!
Friday (full-day 2): I came in from the beach EXTREMELY exhausted. Everyone was sunburned a bit from the day before from using spray sunscreen, not the rub kind (DON'T USE SPRAY SUNSCREEN!), and I thought that was my reason for feeling pretty icky. After showering, I collapsed on my bed (hair still wrapped in my towel and all) and slept for I don't know how long. I had no appetite and was just blah all over, so my dinner that night consisted of bread.
At that point, my back started hurting, too. Earlier that day (while boogie boarding) a wave snatched me, tousled me about, and bounced me back up after smacking me into the sand. I thought for sure this was why my back was hurting. My neck was also really stiff. I also didn't want to drink anything - water just did not sound good. I laid on the couch and curled up in a blanket, shivering my butt off. I was shaking uncontrollably and had chills like I'd never experienced before. I got very little sleep that night and eventually moved downstairs to the family room to watch t.v. until I could get comfortable. That didn't happen. Instead, I got sick, and then moaned on the couch for all hours of the night in complete discomfort.
Saturday: The family took off to go visit the Lavender farm on Maui while I stayed inside my room with shades drawn, sleeping until 2pm. I still couldn't eat, didn't want to drink, and had more back pain than I knew how to handle! I was miserable.
I went to bed at 8:30pm that night, and woke up thinking I'd gotten a good night's sleep. When I looked at the clock, I realized it was only 10:30pm. Crap. I flopped around my bed trying to get comfortable for the next 2 hours until giving up again and heading downstairs to watch even more late night HGTV.
Sunday (AKA Father's Day): Per my request, we packed up and drove north to Maui's only hospital, Maui Memorial, the next morning. I was in SO much pain I couldn't even really talk to the people trying to check me in to the hospital. I finally got a room and they hooked me up to an IV for a fluid drip. They also took blood to run tests. Our mystery came when the doctor came in asking if I'd been hiking in CO lately. Um...nope? Not even close.
He suspected I had Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Have you ever heard of this? Yeah, we hadn't either! My sunburns started looking more rash-like and all my symptoms matched up, including having unusual results in my blood tests concerning my liver counts. Not good. He put me on antibiotics, pain killers, anti-nausea medicine, etc., and sent me out the door. The miraculous thing was that the fluid fixed my back pain - I couldn't believe it!
Needle count: 1, Blood viles drawn: 2? (I keep my eyes closed for this part), Sickness count: 1, Prescriptions in my purse (some prior, most new): 7, Diagnosis: Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (??)
We got home from the hospital, I took my concoction of drugs, and slept. I woke up, got sick, but then felt better. We went out for dinner that night, but I couldn't manage to eat ANY of my food. I took a couple of bites and decided any more would result in disaster.
{goofing around on the beach, but this is to mainly show the rash breaking out on my leg}
Monday: I slept through the night that night (YES!) but still didn't feel great the next day. The antibiotic was making me super nauseous all the time and my rash was getting itchier and itchier. I had to cancel our ziplining trip (the ONE thing I really really wanted to do), but we still headed to Lahiana to watch Michael's surf lesson and explore the town.
I had to stay out of the sun, so I was in a long dress, a long sleeved cover up, and a hat, and I was SO hot and uncomfortable. I was sick and tired of ruining everyone's fun, so I tried to put on a game face to make the day a happy day without draining the life source from everyone, but I just couldn't keep up. I walked slowly, I was hurting all over, I was still nauseous, and I couldn't stand for more than 2 minutes without needing to sit down. Clearly, fun was not being had. We finished up and headed back to the hotel so I could rest more.
I eventually got REALLY sick that night. That prompted us to go BACK to the hospital on the eve of our departure from Maui. Yikes. The ER was not very helpful, but they pumped me with more fluids and drew more blood. The doctor offered no solution other than admitting me to the hospital and having an Infectious Disease Specialist look at me the next day. Not an option! We went against doctor's orders and left the hospital so I could sleep in my bed, but not before they stuck me two more times to draw blood for blood cultures. About 5 hours later, we finally left and got home just before 4am. What a happy start to my mama's birthday!
Needle count: 4 (1 previous), Blood viles drawn: 6?, Sickness count: 3, Prescriptions in my purse: 8, Diagnosis: Still RMSF...dumb.
Tuesday (AKA Mom's Birthday): We packed up and moved out after getting a few measly hours of sleep. I was sad I never got to really explore the resort or enjoy the yummy food. We got to the airport, boarded the plane, and I *thankfully* slept for the majority of the 5 hour plane ride. No illness there. But then we had to spend the night in the Seattle airport and sleeping on the floor of baggage claim is not my idea of fun. I was uncomfortable and cold and could not get good food in me before needing to take off on our Denver leg of the trip. It was early, I didn't have more than a few saltines in me, and I had to take my antibiotic. Needless to say, that led to a whole new plane experience for me. Hooray for those little white "sickness" baggies they put in every seat. *smacks head*. That was uncomfortable. I slept the rest of the trip, and then had to say goodbye to Karrah in the airport (poor thing was brought along on this trip and then didn't get to have any fun because of my dumb body). Then my family headed back home.
Sickness count: 4 ... oops!
Wednesday: We immediately went to see my doctor at home and they were stumped! Meggan said it is NOT RMSF, so hooray for that. They drew more blood, did a strep test, and we'll hopefully get the results back soon.
Needle count: 5 (4 previous), Blood viles drawn: 12?, Sickness count: 4, Strep Test: 1, Prescriptions in my purse: 9 (only using Benadryl now, though!) Diagnosis: MYSTERY!
Until then, I still have these rashes, they still itch, and I'm still not 100%. I'm eating more, but it has to be minimal to balance my nausea. I'm just glad I'm not in the state I was in a few days ago, but I certainly wish I could have been healthy to enjoy Maui. C'est la vie, I suppose! More happiness to come in future posts, but until then, there's my Maui saga of medical hell!
