Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Wellness Wednesday: Sunburn is no dang joke!

Saturday, it was very hot here. Over 100 degrees if I recall correctly. Most of the day, my friend and I were out at the wat. Ordinarily, I don't go out on really hot days but this was necessary for a very particular reason so I made an exception.

We finished up what we were doing and decided to go to her apartment to pick up a few things.

Her car was so hot inside, we could have baked a cake!

Her visor was broken.

Basically, that means we were exposed to direct, unfiltered sunlight during the entire drive - to the wat, back from the wat, to her apartment and then to my house ~ all of which are at opposite ends of the city. She is more olive skinned and it didn't bother her. I am a very fair, blue-eyed blonde. It bothered me a lot.

I had no idea at the time that I'd damaged my skin. The entire right side of my face is covered with blistering welts. I'm also still nauseous and drained. At first, I thought I had shingles. The welts began to appear on Monday and are only beginning to look and feel better on Wednesday evening. They're not as red and angry. Now they're pink and obviously healing.

Did I mention I'm still sick though? Still tired. Still have a "run down" feeling?

I hate to think of what I actually did to my body. Thankfully, I don't know all the implications. But I suspect I might has well have jumped in the microwave.

All this to say - use sun screen or some natural concoction to avoid this. Or stay inside.

It's not fun. : )

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32 comments:

meno said...

Oh man, that hurts.

I sunburn easily also, so i always carry sunscreen with me. I already have enough freckles.

S said...

Ouch! I'm so sorry.

Lotions with aloe vera are really soothing.

heartinsanfrancisco said...

I have become very devout about sunscreen - SPF 30, at least. I like the way I look with a tan, but I seriously do not want to get melanoma, and most of the skin changes we associate with aging are really sun damage.

It is necessary to protect your skin even on overcast days because of the thinning ozone layer.

I hope you feel better soon, and SL is right. Aloe is the best cure for sunburn, but if you don't have any, dilute apple cider vinegar may help, too.

Gill said...

Oh dear!!! Break out the aloe vera. Live and learn. When we are in the sun it feels so good. Why do we do this to ourselves???
Speedy healing to you Chani!!!
xo

crazymumma said...

I never burn. But I slather my girls in sunscreen. Poor you. Try some aloe vera.

Anonymous said...

Oh, my. Tylenol may help too.

Girlplustwo said...

oy. that sounds terrible. it was SO hot this weekend, i can't imagine. ouch. poor you! cold compresses?

Olivia said...

Chani, I do hope you feel better soon. Rest...rest...rest!! Love, O xxoo

we_be_toys said...

Oh Chani - yikes!

As a fellow fish-belly-white girl I'm wincing, just thinking of how badly you had to burn for it to welt up. Ow!

The best thing for that kind of burn is to drink copious amounts of water, maybe take a little ibuprofen for the pain, and slather on the straight aloe. I'm surprised you haven't ended up in the hospital - it sounds pretty severe.

Oh, and get a large hat!
Hope you feel better soon honey!

niobe said...

That kind of severe sunburn can be dangerous, so please, please, take care of yourself.

Anonymous said...

Not just painful now, but dangerous in the long run. I put sunblock on my face everyday, evben in the winter, and heavy-duty sunblock when I go to the beach or work out in the sun.

Sai Hijara - Ferraris said...

When I was younger (oh, as if how old I am now) anyway...I mean years back, I don't care about sunscreen, but now, I do! I'm Asian and I can't even stand it! It's just too painful at times...and granting I don't care for my skin...the feeling of being dehydrated is too much. I always end up feeling sick for days and has to take lots of juice to recover...so now...ahem...I use sunscreen...I'm always with my sunglasses...and IT Guy is too thoughtful to always bring umbrella every time he anticipates us being under the sun for an hour at least...

Guys...listen to Chani...use sunscreen! ;)

painted maypole said...

oh, ouch. i got sunburned so badly once on vacation when I was in high school, and learned that lesson! ow! hope it heals soon, and you feel better.

thailandchani said...

Meno, I was just thinking about you when you left this comment. How weird is that? :) I didn't burn like this in the past at all. Maybe mild burns.. but nothing like this! Yeesh!

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SM, Aloe vera.. yes... First I have to let them heal. They're open sores right now.. so it's neosporin.. but I have some aloe vera for later. :)

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Susan, the funny thing is that I never even thought about such things.. and now I want a *vat* of sunscreen! Seriously. This isn't something I want to experience again.

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Gillian, I never saw this coming. I think it's because I rode in that hot car with no sun visor. Now that I recall, we were in the shade at the wat.

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CM, thanks. I do have some lotion with aloe vera in it.

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Emily, the weird thing is that it doesn't hurt.

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Jen, cold compresses... I had to use one this morning because my eye was swollen shut. Jaysus! Getting old ain't for sissies. :)

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Olivia, thanks. I'm drinking lots of water, keeping it clean and using some mild products to treat it. It does seem to be getting a little better.

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We-be... I'm a bit surprised, too, that I didn't end up at the hospital. I was pretty sick for a few days. It's getting better on its own though.

Still a doctor visit isn't off the table if it doesn't get better in the next few days.

I have a big rim hat. If I go out this weekend, I'll definitely wear it.

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Niobe, I think the worst of it is over. For a few days, it was kind of rough.

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Citizen, I suspect I will be doing the same thing now. :)

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Mariposa, the woman who was driving last Saturday is Asian, too. It didn't bother her a bit. Meanwhile, I look like fried chicken! Nothing like being a pasty white girl. :)

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PM, thanks. I'll be fine. :)

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Thanks for the good wishes everyone.

hele said...

Isn't it scary how quickly one burns these days?

I'm sending cooling healing thoughts*

Chanda (aka Bea) said...

Ouch! That sounds a lot like sun poisoning, or a heat rash or something else equally unpleasant.
I hope you feel better soon.

I have learned my sun damage lesson. My poor irish skin will never be the same after years of worshiping at the alter of Coppertone.

Jen said...

Feel better and keep using aloe!

Unknown said...

You can still get a butn ointhe shade, especially if there is sunlight reflected onto you. I hope you are drinking a lot of water to get rehydrated. Also, your burned skin is not letting toxins out the way it normally does. These are two reasons you feel tired and sick. Be careful you take tylenol because your liver has a hard time with it and if your body is working overtime to get rid of toxins without being able to use all of your skin surface, it could make you feel worse.

Anonymous said...

Why are you "still tired"? What is "running you down"...besides the sunburn? I'm guessing that interesting mind of yours has already wrapped itself around that a few times, eh? (wink)

Hats. Methinks more hats. More hats, bigger brims. (smiling and winking)

Carla said...

Sorry to hear about the sunburn. I'm fairly fair skinned as well and easily get sunstroke, so I totally understand. Hope you feel better soon.

Angela said...

Ouch. Hope you're feeling a little better by now.

Anonymous said...

Well, by now everyone has suggested what works for me - aloe vera and tylenol. And of course, I never go out in the summer without a hat with a wide brim ever since having a basal cell carcinoma removed from the right side of my nose three years ago. Given my age, I'll be very lucky if it's the only one. I also carry sunscreen wipes in my purse. These are nice because I can just hand one to a stranger who needs it.

Hope you are well healed by now and all the residual effects have worn off (sunburn leaves me feeling fatigued, too).

LittlePea said...

Sunburns are the worst.

I like the new look over here Chani.

Janet said...

I like the changes you made to your site!

Your sunburn sounds dreadful. I have to be really careful about sunburn, too. I thank my British/Finnish heritage. Yet my middle daughter has a swarthy complexion that crisps to a deep brown by end of summer, despite the 40 SPF I slather on her. Go figure.

I hope you're healing well.

Woman in a Window said...

Naw...blonde and blue eyed? You people are messing with my mind. I thought slouching mom was in a blue dress and wore a witches hat and I thought you hopped around all day on that one foot. Whaz up with that? (Sorry, feeling funny...funny/odd, not funny/haha)

velvet said...

Ouch! I hope that you feel better soon, that sounds like one nasty burn! Yes, definitely aloe gel for that.

Angela said...

Double ouch! Hope you're feeling infinitely better. It sounds really painful. :( {{{{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}}}

Christine said...

how awful!!!! do take care of yourself and drink lots of water.

sorry i haven't been around lately--i think i am back on track with reading.

maybe. ;-)

Defiantmuse said...

ah, that sucks so much! I'm the same way, always burning. Especially because I tend to be lazy about the sunscreen. I hope you recover soon. Slathering on the aloe?? and drink lots and lots and lots of water. xo

Ian Lidster said...

Sunburn is not only 'not' fun, it's downright dangerous. Thanks for you caveat and be well soon.

Anonymous said...

Sun poisoning is the worst, Chani. I hope you are feeling better today. It can take a long time to bounce back from an episode like that.

Anonymous said...

Sun poisoning is the worst, Chani. I hope you are feeling better today. It can take a long time to bounce back from an episode like that.