There is something wrong with my eye, so I might have to go to the walk-in tomorrow morning.

[LuckyCharms]

And I'm scared that some asshole in the waiting room is going to cough on me.

I know that sometimes they have masks there that you can put on, but with my luck, by the time I get to the mask dispenser, it will be too late.

[cherryinpa]

1. What's going on

With the eye?

[LuckyCharms]

3. It's either a stye or

I may have got a bunch of plaster dust in there somehow, even though I was wearing safety goggles when doing a project the other day. Thank you for asking. I'll get it checked out if it is not better by morning.

[abqtommy]

6. Since my childhood many years ago I've used an eye treatment named Stye for those

uncomfortable eye infections. (Which can be caused/exacerbated by things like plaster dust.) You can
pick Stye up at any drugstore. And get your face masks there too while you're at it.

[LuckyCharms]

9. Thank you...

I wore goggles and a respirator when I did the remodeling job, but the respirator was old and the filters were in terrible shape. So, I before I started, I went to the websites of all of the local big box and other hardware stores, and there was not a mask to be found of any type. They were all out of stock. I ended up wearing this old crappy respirator, which probably didn't do a bit of good.

I did something really stupid with this plaster removal job, and I should have known better. There was so much dust that 3 of my smoke detectors went off.

[Laffy Kat]

18. Yikes, LuckyCharms.

I'm glad you're getting it looked at.

[dixiegrrrrl]

21. Amazon has a lot of N95 respirators

I was poking around the site just to be sure I could find one, because SO rural here.

[MLAA]

2. Tie a bandana around your face, but do not try and rob the place 😬

[LuckyCharms]

5. I always tie a bandanna around my eyes when I go out in public,

but I always cut an opening in it around my mouth. I can't see a damn thing, but at least I can breathe.

[Laffy Kat]

4. Don't be so sure there will be masks. We keep running out in our clinic.

Patients have been taking them by the handful and we keep running out. You may want to see if you can buy some at a drug store before you even get to the clinic. Honestly, though, it's probably more important to simply wash your hands as soon as possible. The hand-sanitizer they'll have for use is only good for bacteria. Good ole hot water and soap will wash viruses down the drain and viruses are what clinics are covered with anyway. Hope your eye is ok.

[LuckyCharms]

7. Thank you...

I lately have a probably unreasonable fear of going into public places where people are most likely to be sick.

[abqtommy]

15. Try looking for masks at hardware stores, the kind used for sawdust/paint fumes. They should work.

[magicarpet]

8. Grab a few extra masks and keep them in the medicine cabinet...

Then when you need one you can have it as soon as you leave your home.

Hope the best for the eye issue.

[LuckyCharms]

11. Thank you for your kind words.

[magicarpet]

13. Oh Golly,... wait until the comment made at the hair dryer thread is seen....

... then I will be relegated to the DU dog house.

[brewens]

10. My last job had me in hospitals and schools all the time. I registered blood donors for a blood

center. I was always first in line for my flue shot, or close to it. As soon as school started, schools, dorms, frats and sororities, and the hospitals, usually the lobby, were all year. If I was still doing that, I wouldn't be real worried yet.

[LuckyCharms]

12. I always get my flu shot every year without fail.

A few years ago, I got the flu anyway and ended up in the hospital. I was so sick that I cried. Ever since then, I've been hopelessly paranoid.

[brewens]

14. I might have had pneumonia a couple years ago. They said I had fluid in my lungs that might be

pneumonia and gave me antibiotics and a breathing treatment. It was from a bad cold and a rib injury that prevented me from coughing properly. I wasn't actually that sick from it really, just in a lot of pain. It cleared up fast and they never did say for sure it was pneumonia.

That was a little scary though. I went to get checked out at our urgent care and was sent to the hospital. I went home first, packed and overnight bag and left thinking I'd end up there overnight with a chest tube. Three hours later I was home watching TV. It ended up not mattering much how much it cost at least. I had a hip replaced later in the year, so I met my deductible and out of pocket and was of course way over.

[Lars39]

16. Have you thought of going to an

Opthalmologist or Optomotrist? I went to an optometrist when I had some really fine glass particles in my eye. Small waiting room, just me and the receptionist.

[Olafjoy]

17. Call Telemedicine?

You can do a video consult so they can see your eye 👁

[safeinOhio]

19. Use the google and put in everything that is going on.

A few years ago I was seeing fruit flies every where. Then discovered if I close my right eye they went away. No big deal, no pain. I googled it and it said to get to the doctor right away. Glad I did, had emergency surgery right away and could have lost that eye. Some kind of rip in the back of the eye. I almost blew it off.

good luck

[smirkymonkey]

20. Best of luck, Lucky Charms.

You should really get it checked out. You don't want to take a chance with your eyes. I hope everything turns out ok.

Just keep a wide berth in the waiting room if you can and bring a handkerchief for your face and eyes. If you have sunglasses, you should probably wear those inside as well. Let us know how everything goes.

[LuckyCharms]

22. UPDATE Went to the walk-in today because my eyelid is swollen like half a golf ball.

I was able to see a physician.

Severe inflammation inside upper eyelid. No debris seen in eye.

Most likely caused by plaster debris that entered the eye and placed a scratch somewhere on the eyeball, then washed itself out of my eye. He said the eye would need to be stained in order to find the scratch, but that is best left to an ophthalmologist, and out of an abundance of caution, he told me to see one no later than by the end of the week. I have an appointment to see one in a few days on Wednesday.

Doc said that whether there is a scratch or not, his treatment today would be the same...antibiotic eye drops and warm compresses 4X daily.

I was silly to worry about getting the flu in the waiting room. I hope. No one coughed on or near me, and I washed my hands many times today, and avoided touching my face.

However, my new fear is that while in the waiting room, I somehow caught THE CLAP.