not your average cruise

Steve and I just returned from our 5-day cruise to Catalina Island and Mexico. Half of the cruise was a blast and the other half was …um…interesting.

Day1: Super dizzy upon boarding the boat—oh man, I hope I’m not seasick the whole time. Too bad none of the food looks appetizing. Developed a painful cough about the time I got on board.

Night 1: Cold cold cold. Just couldn’t get warm and couldn’t sleep—was up wandering the boat in the middle of the night thinking to myself: “why didn’t people tell me to bring warm clothes on a cruise—I had no idea it could be so cold!” Thinking secretly to myself that I don’t really like cruises and I don’t think I’ll do another one again.

Day 2: terrible headache. Took some Tylenol and off to Catalina island. Had a blast snorkeling with Steve and his brother, Devin, and his wife Lena. That night was the “Formal night” on the boat and we ate lobster. Mine just wasn’t very appetizing—too bad --I must just have some seasickness. What is the point of all of the good food if you don’t have the appetite for it?

Night 2: COLD. Shaking uncontrollably because I’m so cold. Nauseated, dizzy, aching. Miserable night waiting for morning to come so I can get off the boat and hopefully feel better.

Day 3: A visit to the infirmary first thing in the morning. The cost to see the doctor: $80. I about decided to forget it and just get off the boat to see if I’d feel better, but the nurse took my vitals: Temp 101.5 (with Tylenol), Blood pressure: 82/40, Heart rate 103 (mine is usually 55). We decided to see the doctor. We later walked out of the infirmary with a doctors bill larger than the entire cost of my cruise, a diagnosis of influenza type A (50% chance it is swine flu), and instructions that I am to be quarantined to my room and I’m to wear a mask any time anyone is in the room with me. So much for going to Mexico.

Night 3: It is pretty weird to sleep with a mask on but I slept a lot better on medications. I had to keep getting up and changing my clothes because I was soaking my clothes with sweat. After I’d gone through all of my own comfortable clothing I started on Steve’s t-shirts (shhhh…don’t tell him!)

Day 4: Symptoms nothing worse than the common cold since I’m medicated. I’m pretty sick of being in this tiny window-less prison that tips from side to side. I don’t think I’ve ever not seen the light of day for so long! ‘They’re coming to take me away, ha-ha….’

Night 4: More sweat.

Day 5: So nice to exit my prison and see the light of day again. Too bad our car battery was dead when we went to start our car. This was particularly distressing since I called Steves mom and she told me she had taken Kiera into the ER since she was having difficulty breathing at 3AM. We got a jump, went to Steve's parents house, steve went and got a new battery in the car, and then we went directly to an urgent care where we were all diagnosed with swine flu (except steve who just gets to take the medicine just in case. They didn't bother testing him). Right after we got home from urgent care buff gave kiera some tylenol. 5 minutes later I found Kiear drinking the bottle of tylenol. Poison control said it wasn't enough to merit a trip to the ER though (good thing since that would have been ER visit #3 for Kiera for that day).


The positive out of all of this:

At least I didn’t have true sea-sickness. I don’t think ANYTHING is as bad as extreme nausea. I’ll take swine flu any day thanks.
Having influenza gave me something interesting to Blog about : ) PS—I wrote this blog all while stuck in a tiny window-less swaying room…..because I had nothing better to do with my time!