I have herpes. Herpes zoster, that is--the one in the top middle. I guess most of us have it. But mine is active again. My immune system got too stressed. (From what? I don't know! Moving into a new house with my parents and mothering two small boys? Nah, couldn't be!) The herpes reactivated. In my quest to heal I researched herpes viruses and found out that the root word for herpes, herpein, is Greek for creeping. Herpetology, therefore, must be the science of creeping creatures!
Anyway, to add insult to injury I have been infected with a stomach virus, possibly roto or noro. The nausea comes over me in violent waves, not unlike labor. It almost feels as if the virus is affecting my brain's nausea response versus the lining of my stomach (or maybe it is both). Nonetheless, there is an emotional effect from this stomach virus. The herpes virus mostly just affects my skin, but I can also feel stabbing pain shooting along that spinal nerve. Aaaaahhh!!!
