Whooping Cough

I've been saying for weeks I don't have whooping cough. Just because I'm coughing and two months ago it spread through my little town like wildfire and when I'm finished coughing I have to inhale frantically to get breath. No.

I have a packed weekend - I have my BIL's 30th with people from NZ who cannot get sick 'cause they need to be healthy on their holiday, I am having lunch with 2 ladies who are immuno-compromised by the aliens in their stomachs, and my nephew will be 3 weeks old and I haven't met him yet (I live 4 hours away and I've been too scared 'cause he was on oxygen for the first 1/2 hour - I think, that's what his dad garbled to me in the 'we have a son' call.)

But tonight, I called 13 HEALTH and that nice lady said two things: I'm not describing whooping cough coughs - I'm not vomiting at the end of coughing fits, I had no flu-like symptoms at the beginning of the coughing time and I'm not whooping. Inhaling heavily and noisily, yes, but not whooping. How she could tell the difference I don't know.

Anyway, I told her about the 3 weeks old, the pregnant women and frail octogenarians at the birthday party and she said, "Go ahead."

I've got in touch with everyone and told them that this was what was said and to let me know if they wanted me to stay away. My sister said, Just don't pick the toddler up at the party, my friend (who's the mumma to my gorgeous nephew) said, if it's not Whooping Cough, it's fine, he's getting my immunity. And the immuno-compromised ladies haven't got back to me. But one of them has a one year old so logically has had the jab anyways.

But, once I'm better I'm gonna pay for all the immunisations I haven't had since I was 11 when I said at school no more. Better that than having to remove myself everytime there's an infectious disease around.