Day 48 - Have I Mentioned My Nose?

Of course not since it is boring to hear people go on and on about medical issues and especially boring to talk about ones own troubles. But I'm gonna anyway since I'm at my wits end as to how to manage this one. 

Ten days ago when we left Hiker Town I started feeling something going on inside my nostril. I just figured it was dry air and a cracking membrane but when I woke up the next morning the whole inside of that nostril was blistered and itched like crazy. What? An insect bite maybe? Anyway I just treated it topically for the next few days with antibiotic cream, the only thing in the first aide kit that seemed possibly useful. 

Not being content to stay put, the blisters spread around and pretty soon they were on my upper lip and nose. Attractive. I just kept thinking that things usually resolve on their own so I tried to ignore it. Finally when I went to Lake Isabella I got some other over the counter ointments and oral anti-histamine tabs hoping this would do the trick. Nope. Nothing doing. 

When preparing for this trip I decided to include in my first aide kit a six day course of prednazone just in case I got swarmed by yellow jackets or found myself wallowing in a patch of poison oak. Since neither of these events have occurred (so far) the only thing that seems to make sense is that I somehow got poodle dog bush hairs inside my nose. It's said the poodle dog bush is way worse than poison oak for those who are susceptible to it so I can only guess this is what happened and why it hasn't cleared up on its own like PO does, at least for me. 

So what to do? I've been hesitating to take the big gun drugs but I can't think of anything else to do. Plus my Doc told me to be careful because this stuff can compromise your immune system. I called Angela this morning from the trail and talked with her and the Readers Digest version of the conversation is that I told her I wouldn't start the meds while I was hiking this section. But later today when I stopped for lunch I could see the blisters on my nose were spreading again. When chronic discomfort and frustration slide into abject misery I say, enough! I'm gonna start the course of drugs and just try to take it easy for the next couple of days. Hard to do when backpacking...

I would include a picture but I'm too vain,  and the ick factor is high with this one.  I can show you a picture of tonight's dinner. Grits, bacon, cheese and veggies.

 

Oh and guess what? Some kind person put this on the trail...

Could it be I am a quarter of the way to Canada? Yahoo!