Shingles?!

No, I am not referring to those little wooden squares we nail to the top of our dwellings, though I wish I could chat it up about wood versus asphalt versus tile. If only my life were that simple. No, instead what I must vent that my precious little nine year old has come down with one of the most horrific cases of shingles one has ever encountered.

Fitting as it may seem, this latest Welch catastrophe dawned just before Jeremy left for 5 weeks in Arizona. So here I sit, playing Nurse Nancy for my sweet baby.

The story goes as follows:

Friday morn Bekah begins complaining of back pain. After a quick check for redness, bumps, and bruising she was sent packing and hops the bus at 7:22 sharp.

The day continues with frequent flyer miles to the school nurse. The complaints are all generated toward that pesky back. Even Sherlock Nurse cannot see any sign of trauma.

Mom to the rescue at 2:15. The public library is having an American Girl event and Bekah is on her way to the fun with a friend. She shows me a small red rash on her shoulder blade, but it is nothing to get worked up about. Friday night it looks a little like poison ivy, so we treat it with a Benadryl and a couple of Tylenol.

Saturday hosts a waffle catastrophe, bacon, and our neighborly doctor visit just to be on the safe side. It's beginning to look a lot like shingles...la la la.

Sunday after church and a work picnic it's time for a call to Dr Pediatrician-on-call. Codeine for pain is the response to my complaints. PS our local Walgreens is NOT 24 hours, so we tough out the night on more Tylenol.

Monday at 4 am we are all in the dark place. Daddy in the cab, Bek in the fetal position, Mom searching for a Prozac sandwich and a stiff drink. The afternoon is a series of repeated visits to our not-24-hour-Walgreens and a trip to the Urgent Care Center. Doctors are stunned and concerned. It seems we represent a bit of a medical mystery.

Tuesday night...more of the same but only worse. Why does this always happen to us?! Today we saw the nurse practitioner, the pediatrician, and the lab tech. The pricks were buy one get one free...poor kid. The greatest concern is that the medical team suspects something less obvious has triggered our obscene case of shingles. The word "Leukemia" was mentioned and that is all it took to have me in a bit of a panic. This was not an official diagnosis but just a thought. It seems this type of display has everyone on high alert. We will be back in two weeks for extensive blood work. Hopefully the shingles will be packed up and moved out. So pictures for you to get an idea of what I am talking about...

WARNING: These are not for those with weak stomachs!

Please pray for us as we sift through the madness and await future test results. It's been one heck of a week already!