Wednesday, October 26, 2011

To Tetanus, or not to Tetanus, THAT is the question...

I cut my finger (a teeny, tiny little cut) last night on our rusty half-drum fire pit.  I cleaned the cut really good with antibacterial soap and lots of peroxide, but I had to dig out a piece of rust with my tweezers and, for the first time in my life, I reacted to this minor surgical procedure by getting light-headed and nearly puking.  I had to put a cool wet cloth on my head and go lie down for a few minutes.  This is highly abnormal for me, I need you to understand.

So today, I'm all, "Hey guys, I cut my finger on a rusty drum, should I get a tetanus shot?" to which everyone replied, "When was the last time you had one?" and I was all, "Um, never" and they're all, "Yeah, you need to get one."  So I called my doctor's office, and as it turns out, getting a tetanus shot requires an office visit.  The lady on the phone warned me of this like it would cause me to back away, and offered the name of a local urgent care center.  "Oh, I've got insurance, an office visit is no big deal, if that's what I need to do."  I forget the times in which I'm living - insurance is a rare valuable commodity, one traded for health, and if you don't have it, well, maybe you'd rather take your chances at lockjaw?  (Honestly, I would take my chances if I didn't have insurance.  I assume no insurance would equate with little disposable income, and that means a $160 office visit would probably be out of reach on the spur of the moment.  I remember - I've been there.)

Tomorrow morning, 8:15 a.m., which means I'll likely see the doc at 8:45 or so, but whatevs.  I'll get my shot and I'll feel as if I've laid one fear to rest for a while, and I'll be much more careful (sober) when shoving kindling into the fire pit.

What do you think?  Am I wasting my $10 co-pay and 2 hours of work time and an extra hour of valuable sleep?  When was the last time YOU had a tetanus shot?  Is it just a bunch of hokey, or is this serious bidness that I shouldn't be making lame-ass jokes about?

4 comments:

  1. I had a tetanus booster 3 years ago after a serious dog bite that caused damage to an artery in my hand. The boosters are good for like 7-10 years.

    If I were you, I would get one!

    -Mo

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's a good idea. Even if you didn't technically need it this time, you might the next time. Now, it's convenient. When you're out camping or on vacation or something, not so much.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Um. I'd pay $10 just to get out of work for two hours. Do it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yes, worth it. Love yourself, take care of yourself, no brainer.

    ReplyDelete

Please don't make me cry.

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