T.B. Scare

Tuberculosis Hits Close To Home

About a month ago, I was going through the process of becoming a substitute teacher for the Orange Unified School District. As you know, one of the requirements for being accepted is to show clearance for Tuberculosis. While sitting in the lobby of a small medical clinic, I kept pondering about an incident during one of my years as a college student (try to imagine one of those cartoon clouds, representing my thoughts, hovering over me as I tried to remember what happened several years back--lol). Before the next school semester started, I needed a T.B. clearance to register for classes. Unfortunately, I'm one of those unique individuals who barely make deadlines for assignments and it was nearing the deadline for my T.B. clearance. So, I rushed to get tested and returned two days later to the same nurse who administered the shot. I expected to hear a quick "Ok, you're good to go! Here's your slip." But it didn't happen like that. The nurse kept checking and rechecking my forearm. She even brought out a ruler to measure the red bump. Finally, she said my results showed a 50/50 chance that I was positive. But, when she decided to go ahead and give me the O.K. I was relieved (not because I tested negative, but because I got the slip which meant I could register for my major classes). Now back to my story....

During the 20 minutes I waited in the lobby for my T.B. test, I was asked by the receptionist if I ever tested positive for T.B. I said a firm "no" but in my head I was extremely doubtful. Besides knowing that I'm really great at procrastinating, I think you should also know that I get majorly freaked out from needles to the point of fainting or barfing. Not wanting to make a big deal about my needle fobia, I still wanted to give the male nurse a heads up just in case. He reassured me that everything would be fine--and it was.

The two days came and went and I was back at the clinic, ready to get my results. I was praying that the same nurse that gave me the shot wouldn't be giving my results. He asked me right before he gave me the shot if I ever tested positive for T.B. and I told him no. I did NOT want him to be the one to tell me I was positive and that I also lied. Thankfully, he wasn't there. However, I was still VERY worried. It didn't help that the doctor, who checked my bump, told me that I tested POSITIVE. And it made it worse when he told me that I am probably a carrier of T.B. and I need to get a chest x-ray to determine if I had active T.B. (which is really, really bad). I immediately got an x-ray right after I received the bad news. The results for my chest x-ray wouldn't be ready for another four days. Those four days seemed like forever and during one I was at my breaking point.

I am actually sharing this experience with you now because I can honestly say that I don't have Tuberculosis. Otherwise, I would have struggled with the thought that if I did infact have the disease, I would be at the mercy of every single person I've come in contact over the last seven years. Tuberculosis is a very sneaky and extremely contagious disease. Without knowing, you could contract it just by walking past someone who has active T.B. and coughs in your direction and you breathe it in. Tuberculosis usually affects your lungs, but it can also infect different parts of your body too. There are people who have active T.B. and aren't aware of it simply because it can disguise itself in the form of a cold, pnemonia, or other illnesses. If you can recall months ago, there was an incident with an American man who had a drug-resistant strain of T.B. aboard a flight to the U.S. in Europe. When the authorities found out, they seized and quarantined him. During a video conference, he expressed how sorry he was for putting everyone on the flight in danger. What a grievous thing to bear....

My title for this post actually has two meanings. For one, I personally felt the effects of how devastating it feels to know I could have infected possibly everyone, including my husband and son. The second is due to news I read online having to do with recent Tuberculosis scares in Oahu public schools including Kahuku, Roosevelt, and Ferrington High School (click here for story). I was shocked to find that there was 3 Tuberculosis scares all within about 8 months!

Forgive me for any panic attacks I may have caused. Rest assured, I do not have T.B. and if I did, I would have sent a notification through email or called you asking you to get tested. This story is actually intended to keep you aware of the possible threat of tuberculosis and that you should always protect yourself by getting vaccinated or checked just to make sure!