I’m trying to focus and get things done. I really am.
But the nausea has become unbearable and now the spinning sensation when I try to read my screen is just adding to the fun.
No, I am not pregnant. I am taking antibiotics whose side effects include headache and nausea.
You see, I went to the doctor seeking relief from the continual pounding headaches (which were in turn causing nausea) I had been experiencing for two weeks. Turns out I have sinusitis. So the headaches that felt like I was diving in 10 metres of water with a cold (trust me, i’ve done it, it’s not a pleasant feeling) were replaced by taking drugs that cause a sensation I can only liken to the worst seasickness I ever experienced (which was somewhere in the Red Sea). The only problem is there is nothing to throw up. It’s just constant nausea. Constant. Unrelenting. Nausea.
I won’t even get into how disappointed I am to be going through another round of antibiotics, the second in one year.
Yesterday, I was so fed up with the nausea and sitting at my desk willing myself to RISE ABOVE THE NAUSEA, I did a Google search for “nausea remedies.”
MotherNature.com told me what I had learned from my mother but had momentarily forgotten due to being in a nauseous haze: flat ginger ale.
The entry on nausea remedies says:
Make it flat. “My mom used to give me 7-Up,” Dr. Warren says. Other moms gave cola or ginger ale. Since our experts advise against cold beverages and carbonated ones, do as Stephen Bezruchka, M.D., an emergency physician at Providence Medical Center in Seattle, Washington, suggests. Let carbonated drinks stand until flat and lukewarm.
This is perfect. Ginger ale is my favourite kind of pop. And with any pop, I always prefer it flat. No really, I do. I’ve always insisted pop makers were missing a huge market of people who prefer their pop flat. In addition, I think if more people had the option of purchasing flat pop, they’d get into it. Think about it: Why do people like carbonation anyway? It tickles your throat, bloats your stomach and burps out your mouth and nose.
So…
There are currently two cans of Seagrams ginger ale open on my desk, and if I listen close I can hear the fizz bubbles popping. I know, I know, you are wondering why I don’t have Canada Dry. Sue me. I bought what was on sale. Just because it says “Canada” on it doesn’t mean I have to own it and put it on display.
I couldn’t wait all morning for the ginger ale to go flat so I already started sipping from one can. The bit of fizz still in there is making me burp, which actually feels good, like I am momentarily eliminating the feeling that I am going to hurl.
As for the effectiveness of the ginger ale itself, truth be told my nausea is only relieved during the few moments the ginger ale goes into my mouth, down my throat and reaches the acid pit that is my stomach. So I am taking a lot of sips. And soon, a pee break.
Three more days of antibiotics to go. I shall miss the excuse to drink so much of you, oh yummy- in-my-tummy ginger ale.
