Recovering

It's been a very long week. I've spent much of the past 9 days in bed, but I seem to finally be coming out of it. I'm still not sure how much of this has been a virus and how much has been a reaction to the Valtrex, but this was certainly no ordinary crash.

I've had heavy congestion in addition to my normal crash symptoms, so I suspect I caught one of the viruses that's been going around among my son's friends. In fact, my son is home sick today - congested and totally worn out - so he's probably got the same thing now.

You would think that being on a strong anti-viral would protect me against viruses, but I guess it doesn't work that way! From what I understand, anti-virals are very specific (as opposed to some of the broad spectrum antibiotics). Being on anti-virals can also make you more susceptible to bacterial infections. I started on Zithromax yesterday for what seems to be a sinus infection, after my congestion got worse again.

The worst part about this latest crash was a severe bout of depression this weekend. It was obvious to me that it was a biochemical shift - it happened so suddenly and for no apparent reason. In fact, I was feeling a bit better physically when it hit me. Suddenly I was turning trivial things into terrible tragedies, seeing problems where none existed, and sobbing uncontrollably. Others on Valtrex and Valcyte have described this same sort of sudden, severe mood swings. Knowing what's causing it doesn't make it much easier to deal with - for either me or my husband. We were both relieved when it passed.

I'm determined to recover by tomorrow so that I can attend an annual board meeting. It's a once a year thing that amounts to about 1/6 of my annual income, so I don't want to miss it! Fortunately, it's just a short train ride to New Jersey for me and a half-day meeting. I'm feeling much better today, so I think I'll be able to make it tomorrow. Now I just hope my son gets through this quicker than I did.