I'm In Denial

Three million little strep bugs are jumping around happily in my throat right now. As usual, I am completely unaware of it because as my husband says, I regularly swim in the river of Denial.

It was 11:00 a.m. when he told me to go to the doctor. "Honey," I said, "I don't feel that bad. Just a little earache." Did I mention that it felt like Mount Saint Helens was trying to erupt in there?

Let me explain something. My husband is the son of two medical doctors. With his health intuition (or is it the fact that I woke up screaming and holding my ear that clued him in?) I figure he should receive an honorary doctorate in medicine.

"Babe," he said, "there is something wrong."

How did he know? OK, there was the whole lying on the couch and moaning thing. The whole liquid draining from my left ear thing. And the whole forehead support of global warming thing.

But go to the doctor? No. I'm not really into that.

I get it honest. The Denial thing.

My dad once put off open heart surgery for months, claiming he had a little acid reflux. My sister once put off getting her rotting tonsils removed for 25 years, claiming -- oh wait -- she still hasn't gotten them out, has she (nag nag nag)? And my mom once put off -- well --nothing, because she's the one who keeps the rest of us out of the river of Denial. (And my claiming that my mother puts nothing off will keep me out of the river of no-inheritance and no free babysitting.)

My husband? He's never been in the river of Denial. It was no shock, though, when he finally talked me into going to the doctor yesterday that I had strep throat. And it was no shock that when my dad went to the doctor today he had strep throat. And it was no shock that when my
sister went to the doctor today she had strep throat. And it will be no shock tomorrow when my mom goes to the doctor and she will have strep throat.

It was a shock, however, when my husband went to the doctor today and he had strep throat.

I couldn't help it. I had to know. "Baby," I asked him, "Didn't you feel sick? Didn't your throat or your ears hurt?"

"Maybe a little..." he said.

It's a family thing. This denial. And the only thing that can result is a Strepidemic.

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This column first ran in January of 2008. Stay tuned for this week's *new* column, coming soon to a screen near you.