sick... or sickly?

I've been thinking about your medical stories all week. I had no idea you'd dealt with so much!

My dear mother in law said this, or something similar, when I talked to her after my gallbladder surgery. She came to spend the day with me after the ovarian cyst surgery (I hate that I have to differentiate between recent surgeries, but I digress) and said something about my medical knowledge. "Well, I've been doing this since I was 6..."

When I tell the story, I guess I really have spent a bit of time with the medical community. Upper GI series at 6...black fly/mosquito allergy shots... two separate times in isolation on med/surg, at 8 and again at 10, for an unknown cause of gastroenteritis... blind spot in my left eye  at 11, caused by a burst blood vessel leaving scar tissue... strep and bronchitis and sinusitis annually, if I was lucky--bi or tri if not... mono...endometriosis and related fertility issues... bunion surgery... and now this. It's a wonder I didn't end up a nurse, if you really think about it.

But I don't think of myself as sickly. I mean, I was, I guess, but that's not how I see myself. Sure, I'd catch everything that came by, but I just kept on going. I just thought that was how life was... mostly healthy, with a few bad sicknesses thrown in for perspective. Who knew that was not everyone's experience?

Fast forward to today. I'm sitting here on another sick day, wishing I could just go to work already. I feel another cold coming on, which could be a big deal since I really can't cough effectively; I do NOT want to add pneumonia to my list of experiences. And I'm thinking about my MIL's comment... WB has never had strep! I had it so often I could tell the doc before the test came back whether it would be positive or not based on how I felt after the giant Q-tip. He's had a couple of surgeries, sure, but all in all he is one of the healthiest people I know. It's no wonder she is overwhelmed by my litany of sicknesses.

And frankly, I'm kind of overwhelmed right now, too. Thank heavens the kids lean closer to his constitution than mine.