Thrush: Revisited

Thrush, how I laugh in your face! Ha!

I tried Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE). It helped. I could see those little white patches scampering back on Bug's tongue as I swabbed. And swabbed. And swabbed. And swabbed. And....swaaaaaaabbed. (sing that like you would that Pioneer children song). I tried different ratios for the GSE solution. The stronger solution, obviously, worked better. But then I noticed Bug's throat sounding raspy. And my affected tender parts were taking a lot of abuse, too. Drat! The GSE seemed to be too irritating. So I stopped swabbing. And the thrush crept back up on Bug's tongue. But, I continued using a solution of GSE to spray on all the toys that went into his mouth.

I tried acidophilus powder. For both of us. It probably facilitated the GSE. And I think it's a good idea for good health in general. But it wasn't cutting it.

I decided I would try Gentian Violet. I was resisting. You know, what if we get cancer? What if we stay purple for the rest of our lives? What if I get the dye on our apartment carpet? But, I would rather try Gentian Violet then make a trip to the doctor. (Have I told you that Bug hasn't been to the doctor since he was 1 1/2 months old? Well, he hasn't. And I'd like to keep it that way.)

First I tried Wal-Mart. They are supposed to have everything, right? I asked at the pharmacy window for Gentian Violet. "Hmm..what? Vitamins?" Oh dear, this isn't looking good. After asking the real pharmacist, the lady at the counter told me that I would have to try a smaller pharmacy. I let that settle into my brain a little bit. A big pharmacy doesn't have it, so a little pharmacy would? The logic made me roll my eyes. So, then I drove around looking for a CVS or Walgreen's. Where the heck are these places?? I couldn't find a single one. So I stopped at my trusty neighborhood Kroger store. I approached the pharmacy and asked for the elusive dye. "Sorry, we don't have any, but we could order it for you." Ugh. People. You don't know how this thrush is killing me, starting with any woman's pride and joy. Not to mention, I have the whiny-est kid on the planet right now! I asked where the closest "small pharmacies" were.

Finally, I made it to a CVS. And guess what? They didn't have it either. I ordered a bottle. Then I drove over to where the Walgreen's was supposed to be. And the building had a faint shadow of a where the Walgreen's sign used to be. Bummer. I guess I will just have to wait until I get that bottle from CVS to start the treatment.

At last. I paid for my small bottle of purest purple and skipped out the door.

I was warned that the Gentian Violet would get -everywhere-. Yeah, yeah. Everyone else is just not as skilled as I am at the non-mess-making Violet-applying technique.........Well, let's just say, it wasn't as bad as everyone makes it out to be, but there was definitely a lot of mess making.

To make the adventure a little more exciting, Bug decided to dive headfirst off my bed before we did the treatment, and get a nice scratch on his chin. It was really superficial. But, there's nothing like purple dye to make a small scratch look like a near beheading. Oh yeah, and there's that little warning on the Gentian Violet bottle that says not to use on ulcerative skin, or tattooing could occur. I must admit, I was a little worried that my son would have a permanent purple tattoo of a caterpillar creeping across his little chin.

Three purple days later, the thrush has all surrendered. Thus, I laugh it its face.

Oh, and the purple is gone, too.