So maybe one of you 'bioengineering' or 'doctor' types can chime in, but I have a theory.
When your significant other, the person you live with and spend all your time around, gets sick, their immune system goes to work killing off the virus, and what you get is all of these weakened, nearly dead virii flying off of their body and smacking into yours. And, much like an immunization, this weakened version of the sickness helps your body build up an immunity to the disease so that you don't get it. This explains why when either Jess or I gets sick, the other usually doesn't. This goes further to explain parents often get sick from their kids. Children don't have as developed an immune system, and so therefore the virii flying off of them are fully formed, and instead of getting immunized, you just get sick. I await my nobel prize with baited breath.
So I'm feeling a lot better. I was only out of work for about a day and a half, and am rapidly coming up to 100% strength. Jess, on the other hand, being the work-focused, highly driven (to save time off for vacation), girl that she is, has made quite a game effort to get into work and get something done, but has only been in for a few hours this week. She's actually taking the whole day off again to try and rest, and when I told her to sleep as much as she wanted and only call me when she woke up I didn't hear from her until 1:30. She's still got it pretty rough. Thank goodness for my husbandly immunity. Hopefully she'll be able to finish recovery over the weekend and start the week off fresh. She's mostly just been tired and worn down, no doubt from fighting off the dreaded H1N1.
Yeah, we're pretty sure that's what we got. The general symptom list is 'general flu-like symptoms', such as aches, tiredness, and nausea (we both got to use a bucket on monday night), and then also a fever, which Jess definitely had, (thermometer verified!) and I probably had (I felt really cold!). And it lasts for a long time. Unless your wife gets it first. Like I said, Jessie is still recovering, and is mostly just tired. My only lingering systems is a loss of appetite which, in some ways, isn't *all* bad.
So let me take a moment to brag about weight loss. I'd like to point out that most of my progress has been made gradually, step by step, and is accompanied by a wide variety of healthy foods, veggies included, mom. (V8 is good stuff!) I'm just eating less of it. Only a little bit of weight loss has come from the fact that I didn't eat anything heavier than a piece of bread for about three days there. For reference, my 'high weight' happened right after I got back from xmas. I was 230 pounds. Last time I weighed myself, (in the morning, which is always less, but it makes me feel better), I was at 210 lbs. I haven't been that skinny in a long time, and I even got my first 'hey, you look like you're loosing weight' comment, which always feels nice. The real discovery here is that I don't need to eat as much as I thought I did, even if it's good for me. Less still fills me up. Guess that's part of getting older. My exercise regimen has dropped off somewhat, as I've decided to stop doing Ving Tsun in favor of...something else yet undecided. And there was also the fact that I was sick for a few days there, but I'm actually excited to go running again soon. Imagine how much easier it will be! 20 lbs. Yay!
Progress still marches on in contractorland. Perhaps unsurprisingly the contractors discovered that they couldn't get access to the 3/4" pipes they wanted in order to run two showers at once. Just the 1/2" ones that were already there. So the cost of the project got bumped up a bit. Also, the shower pan they wanted to install turned out to not be available until just today, so they're a bit behind schedule, too. But nothing catastrophic, certainly, and everything has been accomplished with skill, good communication, and excellent craftsmanship. We're pleased. If you guys are very nice, I may post a few pictures later today when I get home. I think they'll get to start working on the tiles on Monday. Exciting!
Also, someone should remind me to write the story of the RSVP project I did back in college. It's been lost to history, a bit, but it was a fun class that I'll bet parents and grandparents alike would like to hear about. Cheerio!
-N
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4 comments:
Um, I've got half an answer for you- but as someone who also wonders why the hubs NEVER comes down with what I've got, I don't have a whole answer and I still wonder.
If you have an influenza virus, it enters one cell and makes 1,000 new viruses more or less like it- you are right that there is variability, some of these viruses will not be as virulent as others. But, from the perspective of your immune system, they are all equally bad and will be removed with impunity. If your immune system finds one, it kills it- there aren't usually 'part killed' viruses flinging off in snot and stuff.
My response to why kids make there parents sick and spouses tend not to is that kids are gross, whereas grown ups tend to avoid smearing their boogers on things and coughing into each other's faces. (citation needed)
Influenza is highly contagious, and tends to have a particular set of symptoms. Did you get vaccinated or something? Could that be the difference?
I am sorry Jessi is still feeling crap- you should take her in to a doc if she hasn't turned around soon. No point in suffering in the age of modern medicine. Tell her we hope she feels better!
Well, there is quite good history to suggest that the opposite process can occur. Sandlin may recall from the Great Flu of 1918, the real disaster was during what was referred to as the second pass. That is, the viruses that came through and survived the immune systems of the original hosts, were the toughest, meanest and ultimately most destructive to later victims, so keep your Nobel shelf clear for some other brainstorm. There is clearly survival value to being exposed to and successfully dealing with infections. Its a major part of civilization being able to urbanize and not be swept away by sequential plagues. Its just not a fun thing to deal with. And congratulations on your weight loss. At that rate you'll be back at your birth weight before next Christmas!! Love Dad
Jess is definitely on the road to recovery, it's just a pretty long road. She has had a pretty rough cough but I think I may have finally convinced her that she should stop trying to do things until WELL AFTER she feels good. Hopefully this will slow her down enough for me to catch her and force her to sleep.
She actually did go into the doctor where they discovered that she is sick. I was mostly pleased that they listened to her breathing and verified that there weren't any secondary problems worth treating. Also, whenever we mention doctors to other people they tell us all about how when they went to get treated for the flu the doctor prescribed antibiotics, which seems very silly to me. Unless they were Placebonex brand.
-N
I like to imagine that ppl are very ignorant about what it means to have "the flu." Sometimes they might mean sinus infection, or influenza virus, or anything in between. Some need antibiotics- some totally don't.
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