Are you convinced yet?

--- On Tue, 3/31/09, Tracy <hemphottie1970@...> wrote:

From: Tracy <hemphottie1970@...>
Subject: [MRSA] Dealing with being a "Cootie Monster"
To: MRSA@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, March 31, 2009, 3:46 PM












I'm colonized and have been since 1991 when infected at Dunn
Memorial in Bedford IN after what was supposed to be "routine" knee surgery. I
have come close to death 3 times now, and narrowly escaped amputations twice. I
am permanently scarred badly on my right leg and I will have problems with my
knee for the rest of my life cuz of it. My last battle was a year ago and
removing one of my eyes was discussed as a possibility to keep it from going to
my brain and killing me. I plucked my eyebrows and within a week I was in the
hospital unrecognizable, I looked like a scene from Rocky due to the swelling.
My docs were scared I wasn't going to make it this time. Friends and family were
scared to come visit me and many chose to give support online rather than show
up at the hospital. When talking to the program director at my college about why
I had dropped out for a semester I had to explain to him what MRSA was cuz he
was clueless. He stepped
back from me with visible fear and asked if I should be in his office or on
campus. It freaks people out and I feel like a walking threat to people's lives.
I have never passed it on to my knowledge though. I have also begun to wonder if
it was what knocked me out of a job I had been offered. I don't care how much I
educate someone about it, I'm still viewed as being different now. It has
affected me psychologically greatly to go through all this. After this last
battle I don't feel the same inside anymore. I already have issues with C-PTSD
and it has made it worse. I feel like I am in an everyday battle against an
unseen army that is constantly trying to kill me. How many more times will I be
able to win the battle and stay in one piece and alive? How much more can I take
mentally?



I would like to hear from people who have been colonized and have dealt with
this repeatedly. How are you treated socially now? How are you coping mentally?































[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]