Fighting a staph infection

Just when we got to Atlanta, one of Abraham’s itched mosquito bites got infected. Or – we thought – maybe it was a spider bite. It got so infected and pus filled, in fact, that I decided it would be best if I picked the scab off and drained it. As soon as I did, along with applying Neosporin 24/7, it started healing. Still, it was fairly large, swollen and red for several days. 

Then, August got one too, or actually, two of them, much bigger, about ½ inch in diameter, yellow large abscesses, that even after we drained them and treated them like we had treated Abraham’s, didn’t get any better. When August started developing a fever, we gave him antibiotics, and he soon got better. 

In the meantime, William also got one, and this is when we started thinking that perhaps it wasn’t a spider biting them (we cleaned their rooms every night before bed and had them sleep in the middle of the room) because really – what were the odds that they - all three - got bites around their knees (where they all had scabs that they kept picking) and that they all got infected in the exact same way? A little research brought to our attention the fact that perhaps it was an infection being passed around, and more precisely, a staph infection. William’s case was more serious than the other two boys’, with more difficulty to drain, higher fever and actual flu like symptoms, so we gave him antibiotics as well, and it started clearing up. 

Then I got it, and I got it worse than anyone, on the back of my thigh. With only less than half a dose of antibiotics left and a really nasty looking abscess, I would have gone to the doctor in a heartbeat if we had still been in Lebanon. Here I am however, in a place where I don’t know any doctors, but more importantly with an insurance that carries a $2,700 deductible, and without any money at all. And it’s not like we have some money left but don’t want to spend it on a doctor’s visit: we are completely broke (for a couple of weeks). So I limp around, drain the pus when I can (it’s not easy and very, very painful) from the quarter sized crater that looks worse than most things I’ve seen. I took the rest of the antibiotics, which cleared up the fever, chills and flu like symptoms, however now I have to rely on ibuprofen to get through the day, and hope the infection doesn’t get worse again – or spread (let’s just say we’re using A LOT of alcohol based hand sanitizer). The red area covers the entire back of my thigh. When our money comes in I will go to the doctor, I tell my husband, unless I die first, of course. Ha ha.