This is Robin taking over for just a short post. It’s a bit of a whine, so feel free to skip!
I’ve been loving this experience. As many of you know I had a heart ablation two weeks before this trip, so I was a little nervous, but things have been working out great! At least as far as my heart goes.
The day before we left Porto I woke up with eyes nearly swollen shut and a red, incredibly itchy rash on my eyelids and neck. I dealt with it thinking it may be my usual reaction to ragweed, which they also have here, but maybe this is “Old World” ragweed, the original, more potent variety.
A visit to a farmacia ended with some antihistame ointment and a recommendation to increase my regular oral antihistamines. It persisted for a few days getting a little better, but I decided that if it wasn’t much improved on Monday I’d find a clinic. Monday saw a visible change and I went on with the journey.
A few days later it was back with a vengeance. Now it had spread to my entire face. I thought I had eliminated anything out of the ordinary–I was using the same facial cleanser and moisturizer as I had at home, and I’m not wearing any makeup beside the occasional mascara. Another trip to the pharmacist suggested maybe it was my shampoo which in fact was different; I had bought a shampoo bar for easy packing (it is now in the trash).
Even though I’m sure I’ve identified the culprit and there has been a noticeable improvement, I still look pretty awful, so on our way into Pontevedra today I made a last ditch effort with another pharmacist to find hyperallergenic shampoo. Here is where the headline comes in. And sorry if it offends anyone with the quote, but Tom and I both left laughing out loud at the current bane of my existence.
She takes one look at me as says, “Oh, Jesus! Jesus Christ!” It didn’t make me feel any better but the fact that a health profession thinks it is as bad as I do is reassuring.
This also explains why you won’t be seeing many photos of my face on the Camino!
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