Influenza Attack!

The following blog post includes depictions of flu symptoms that some may find unsettling.  Reader discretion is advised.

I was recently contacted by one the several employment agencies that I'm registered with about a temp job as a filing clerk.  I accepted the position, but there were some requirements that I need to fulfill before I started the job.  Because the job is at the University of Maryland Medical Center, I had to get a flu shot and a tuberculosis test.  I did both last Wednesday, but due to heavy traffic, I wasn't able to get back to get the TB test verified.  I went to the office on Monday, figuring that it would be better to be there and sent away then to not show up at all.  I was sent home, but I stand by my decision.

Once I was home, I noticed that I started experiencing some body-ache.  I did my best to take it easy and stay hydrated and the body-ache didn't escalate.  However, I started having bad indigestion that woke me up yesterday at around 4 am.  I figured that maybe I had eaten a bad orange or something, but regardless of the cause, I was soon battling intense diarrhea.  I assumed that was going to be it, so I went and started making breakfast.  I ate a banana and half of a grapefruit (I figured that the vitamin C would be beneficial) and started feeling even more queasy.  I was about to start eating a bowl of oatmeal, when my body decided that it didn't want any food in me and I vomited violently into the kitchen sink.

From that point on, living was torturous.  Everything hurt and I quickly became weak because I was afraid to consume anything other than water.  I grabbed some blankets and cuddled up on the couch, feeling so cold that I was often shivering.  At one point I did find the energy to email the UMMC job and let them know that I would be delayed in returning.  After that, I slept fitfully on the couch, waking up every few hours due to my phone ringing - a few of the companies I have applied to were contacting me for brief phone interviews.  I was able to conduct myself professionally every time, but it took all of my strength.

However, while I don't feel 100%, I do think the worst of it has passed.  I've even successfully eaten the oatmeal that I made, though I had to eat it very slowly.  I knew there was a chance of a reaction to the flu shot that I received, I'm just happy that it seems to have worked its way through my system in about 36 hours.