so I've been pretty effing sick for the past three or four days. so sick that I decided to go to the doctor, which I am usually very hesitant to do. I was afraid I had mono, actually, because my glands are swollen around my neck and I've been completely exhausted and lethargic since about Sunday night.

so yesterday I went to the doctor. she began her examination, asked me questions, etc., and then said, "I think you have mumps." I said, horrified, "REALLY?" and laughed a little. she said, "Yes, I think you have mumps. I'm going to go look in a book to see if there are any tests we can run because I haven't encountered mumps in a while." nevermind that I've been vaccinated twice for the disease. after a few minutes, the doctor came back in and told me they'd have to run a few blood tests. she said all I could do was go home and rest and take Tylenol 4x/day until I felt well enough to go to work. at that point, I'd no longer be contagious. I asked her how I could've possibly gotten the mumps if I'd been innoculated twice and she told me that sometimes the vaccines don't take. I could've sat next to someone on the bus who was infected, she said, and just gotten unlucky.

well that certainly won't give me an obsessive-compulsion about people on public transportation!

I went to the lab services desk to wait for the blood test time. when I was brought in, I told the woman I really hated needles and she looked at me with genuine concern. she started probing my arm for a vein, but my skin must be exceptionally opaque or my veins must be exceptionally deep because she couldn't find one. but that didn't stop me from starting to freak out! she went for my hand, which I actually preferred. I screwed my eyes shut and turned my head as far away as possible so I couldn't possibly see anything that was happening. I stuck my thumb between my teeth and tried not to think about what was going on, but it was taking so long that I started hypervenilating and almost passed out from the grodiness of it all. did I mention I'm a baby?

when the woman was done collecting my blood, I asked to lay down for few seconds in the pass-out chair and she brought me some water. I was fine after about a minute and I thanked her for being so understanding. she looked at me and said, affectionately, "You're welcome. I hope you get over that now, baby."

I'm still unable to look at the tiny scab from the puncture of the needle, and just thinking of the small bruise on the back of my hand makes me weak.

anyway, I have the mumps. the fucking mumps. I don't recommened you get the mumps, my friends, because it really blows. when I told a coworker what was wrong with me, she was literally speechless, and when I told another coworker, she started laughing hysterically. so that's that. I'm going back to the couch now to pray I don't develop menengitis, a possible complication, and to watch yet another episode of Changing Rooms.

ttfn.