Ever look at a bite or bump on your skin and think, ” Can I treat that myself?

Now y’all know I’m a nurse and I don’t advocate anyone treating themselves when maybe a Dr should take a look first, but then there’s me and those like me.

And……I’ve been a nurse a long, long time.

In the old days, you dealt with cuts and scrapes yourself. Sliced a finger? Not deep enough to see the bone? Clean it and get some butterfly tape and mash it together to close it up. Don’t have that? duct tape it.

Got a sore throat? Salt water will do. A cough, breathe over boiling water to clear your sinuses and congestion. Possible blood poisoning? Soak it in hot water. Stung by a jellyfish? Get someone to pee on the sting. Not that I would know anything about that, but I digress. Who can spontaneously pee on another person in public anyway?

Nowadays, when something happens that doesn’t require a 911 call, we think what my will my copay be if I go to the emergency room? I know mine is $300. What’s yours? That’s a bit much and doesn’t include stitches, tape, or gauze. It’s a shame, but healthcare is very expensive here, and well, if I can fix it myself, why not? As a nurse, I can’t help but doctor things myself.  Sometimes. Before you disagree or think I’m a risk taker, I know better if something needs stitches, I can’t do that myself. Or a tetanus shot, or major surgery. I draw the line on those things. Im not that crazy.

But there are things that can be dealt with that result in minimal chance of something going wrong, especially if you are careful and follow strict germ control. Besides its not like the movies, Im not gonna pour whiskey on a cut and sew myself up, Im gonna drink the whiskey first. Just kidding.

One time, I had a swollen tonsil, it hurt, and it looked inflamed and red. I went to my pcp and she said, go to the emergency room, and they will drain it”. If it gets bigger, it could stop your breathing”.

Well, I went home from there, boiled water, dipped a washcloth in the steaming water, and stuck it on the tonsil myself. Did it burn? Yes. Did it get redder? Yes. I figured hot scalding water would bring the pus or whatever to the surface and it will pop and drain itself.  So I did the hot towel several times and waited. I was still breathing fine. Then I went a step further as I didn’t want to risk it actually getting larger. I got a needle, sterilized it with a match, and stuck it in the thing. Boom, it started to drain immediately.  I kept the hot towel on it, and it drained and got smaller immediately.  Mission accomplished and $300 saved.

Btw, she already gave me antibiotics, so I just watched the tonsil, and the next day it was 80% down.  There ya go. Then the doctor called me and asked if I went to the ER. I said yes, the kitchen ER. When I told her what I did, she gave me the silent treatment.  She was not happy. That ended that call, and I think she fired me as a patient after that.

In the old days, hot water often brought things to the surface: infections, splinters, various things too tiny to see and grab.  It does have its uses. Just don’t stick a body part into a pan when it’s boiling. Use your head. Let it cool enough to be hot but doesn’t burn.

Then, recently, I got some kind of bump or bite on my index finger that caused the finger to swell at the joint. It began to hurt, and the swelling affected the finger up to the 2nd joint. I soaked it in hot water several times and waited. It got nice and red, but no drainage. I squeezed it, and nothing. Soaked some more, nothing. So Got my firestarter, sterilized a needle and stuck it slowly into the bump, squeezed it, and waa laa, it drained as well. I disinfected it and put some antibiotic ointment on it, and it was all gone in 2 days. Mission accomplished

Now I have a new issue. A bite of some sort on just below my ribcage. It’s been itching for weeks and won’t let up. I think something got me when I was walking through high grass into a hoarder’s house last week. So I tried the hot water treatment as well, to see if maybe a stinger was in it or something. Nothing. But I could see and feel the bump of whatever bit me. Darn, why didn’t I have my bug spray with me and knee-high socks? Because I didn’t know it was a hoarder till I pulled up outside.

And yes, I took the needle to it. Did it help? Yes. The redness has gone way down, and the itching has stopped.  Has it gone completely? No. I’m treating it with alcohol and monitoring it.  Before I did it I asked Ai to look at it, it wasn’t shingles, it wasn’t a rash; it appeared to be something surrounding the bump that I assume was a bite from something that caused the constant itching. Maybe a rogue mosquito? A spider? A chigger? I go into some unsanitary homes on my job, Im pretty sure something chomped on me.

That reminds me, I need to buy some OFF bug repellent to spray me and the floorboards of my car before going into a few homes next week.

So there you have it.

Minor cuts, scratches, and bites.  Not everything needs an emergency visit. I told a friend, a doctor, what I did, and he raised his eyebrows. But he’s younger than me. He didn’t grow up with nothing but duct tape and peroxide in his house.

I told another doctor who is older than me and he just gave me a sideways smile. He knows……. the older the person, the more likely they grew up with DIY medical care at home.  

Well, I have the advantage of being in the medical field, so I can usually figure out the severity of something and if a $300 co-pay is worth it. In the meantime, with my trusty safety pin, matches, alcohol, and hot packs, I can do wonders to avoid the hospital bill.  

Children don’t try this at home.

Somewhere in Texas

Sharpening my safety pin

Avoiding emergency rooms