Back to Kaiser for a 3rd visit :(

 Started the new meds and cream last night.  Woke up this morning to find the rash was continuing to spread and had expanded onto my chin - oh just ducky. 😒  I got a video visit, but the doc told me he couldn't properly evaluate me that way; I'd need to be seen in person.  He also warned me that, depending on what they saw, they might need to send me to the hospital.  Bleah!

So I packed a bag, just in case, and the Chief drove me back to Kaiser urgent care.  Fortunately, at 3pm the ENT docs were still there.   The UC folks sent me up there to get my throat scoped; uncomfortable process, but learned that my L vocal fold isn't really working.  Not terribly surprising, given all the digging and scraping my surgeon had to do, but weird to see one vocal fold doing its fluttery thing while the other just sits there.  The ENT said that could take 2+ months to recover, which kinda lines up with what I found online.  That explains why my voice cuts in and out and tires so easily, and why a nebulizer treatment isn't as effective as usual - my lungs aren't the problem.  The UC doc (or was it the ENT?) did say a saline rinse could help.  I'll have to update the family SLP with this info once I get the pathology report back.

UC gave me a nebulizer treatment and a dose of steroids, which helped the rash eventually.  The itch is now down to maybe a 3 from a 7; I might actually get a good night's sleep tonight!  It no longer looks such an angry red, either, even if it has spread.  The bad news, though, is that the UC doc told me contact dermatitis rashed typically need 10-14 days to run their course!  The good news is that they sent me home instead of to the hospital.

I was amused when the UC doc popped in with the doc I'd seen at Sunday's visit - I guess that's what happens when you're a regular!  They compared notes on the state of my rash - had spread a good bit since Dr. 1 saw me on Sunday, but didn't look as red and inflamed. 

If you see me in the next week or so, the rash may still look pretty bad but rest assured it's not contagious. I may not be very talkative given that I'm working on only one vocal fold, so you won't have to worry that I'll regale you with my tales of woe. 😊