16 shots in 1 month

***Disclaimer this is medical. Not for the faint of heart or queazy. It's a little TMI too, but hey, I warned you.

First off I am deathly afraid of shots. They make me feel faint, queazy and really upset. I am also extremely afraid of any western medical procedures. I can handle acupuncture, but when I'm faced with any western medical procedures I freak out. Weird I know, but I have always been this way.

So at the beginning of the month I went to my dermatologist. I knew what the appointment was about and had been stressing about it daily for the 6 weeks previous. The doctor wanted to remove several of my freckles (moles is too gross of a word to use). I was completely freaked out from my last visit because he was like you have a lot to get rid of. I knew one day this would happen again. In High School I had one removed and it was a terrible experience which freaked me out even more knowing that I had "several" that needed to be removed. This is what I get for having blonde hair (once upon a time), blue eyes and fair skin and bad genetics. I have also been a devoted sunscreen user. Which I feel a little bit jipped about because it was supposed to prevent this. My dad always had to get things removed and would show them to me in hopes of scaring me into always using sunscreen. The crappy thing is, I was scared and I used sunscreen.

Somehow I drove myself to his office. I have no idea how I didn't talk myself out of it(I tried all day). I had no one to hold my hand either which made me sad and nervous. Josh couldn't get out of work. I got there, went into the room and went into a silent panic. To make matters worse the Doctor was running late. He finally came in and I asked him if he was going to numb me? He laughed and assured me he would. Phew! I felt about 7% better.

When he came back he counted them up and said we could do them all at once or spread them out into other apts. I asked him how many had to go and he said 12. My heart sank. I was like Oh NO, 12 shots . . . I'm going to get 12 shots??? I agreed to see how the first shot went and then I would decide how to go from there. The first shot wasn't bad so I said, "ok lets just do all of them, I don't want to come back again for this." It was HORRIBLE. 12 shots. Some were ok and others were terrible. I was in complete panic nervous mode. I don't think have every felt so weird. I was sweating like crazy and my head was spinning. I felt so gross. Thank goodness I couldn't feel the scalpel cutting and digging into my skin. I did have to smell my burning skin as he cauterized the 12 incisions. I felt some of that part too and it was awful. It was so sick.

Finally it was over and I was so glad. The doctor wouldn't let me sit up for a long time. He kept grabbing my hand and asking if I was alright. I kept telling him, "yes, medical things freak me out. I'm fine. I'm just still nerved out." He kept telling me I was too clammy (another gross word). After about 15 mins of no change he let me sit up and get ready to go. I was a hot mess, but I just wanted to get out of there and have a good cry. Finally I was able to leave after I looked less freaked out to the doctor.

I felt proud of myself for being an "adult." I never cried while I was in there and I didn't have anyone there for support. I actually lived. I cried when I called my parents and Josh. They felt bad for me. My dad said I could punch him 12 times since it was "his fault" I inherited his skin. I laughed and felt a little better. Some of the cuts are nickel size and have taken a while to heal. They all seam to be located next to clothing seams, which is not good. My clothes rub on them and it's painful. I hope next month they will all be healed. Good news is none came back as skin cancer. I don't think most 24 year old girls have to worry about skin cancer.

The next 4 shots were for my cavities. Dr. Ormond, my father-in-law is a fantastic dentist. His office provides you with laughing gas and TV. The shots hurt, but the nitrous oxide and Gilmore Girls made them sooooooooo much better then the ones at the dermatologist! It was like a walk in the park. I never mind getting my mouth worked on after 5 years of braces. Mouth pain doesn't bother me. My entire mouth was numb which was totally weird. I was distracted my Gilmore Girls and the Office for the 2.5 hours I was there. I laughed a lot according to Josh. How can you not with my 2 most fav comedic shows and nitrous oxide??? I had 5 cavities. Previous to that I had only had them once before. This is what I get for not going to the dentist for 2 years. BTW Josh is fired from making our dental appointments.

There you have it. The saga of the 16 shots. Moral of the story is don't have fair skin and don't go 2 years without going to the dentist.