Ah the morning after the night before, your head feels like the massed pipes and drums of the Royal Scots are playing between your ears, the room is spinning faster than a spin dryer and the very thought of getting out of bed just fills you with dread and fear! But I bet you had fun!
So todays Blog, courtesy of my fave trainee Nurse and qualified first aid guy, Brian and the ever fragrant Rae, is to help you deal with the after effects of that good night out.
First … Brian on blisters
Blisters can be caused for various reasons, but for the same reason, to protect.
At this time of year, party dresses go on, high heels are worn, despite everyone knowing they are bad for you, but hey, they make you look good!
The type of blisters caused by poorly fitting shoes are generally friction type blisters, caused by fluid filling the layers of the epidermis and dermis.
So what should you do when you get a blister….as much as we ALL know you shouldn’t ‘burst’ them, how many of you actually do?
The medical professionals will ALWAYS recommend you don’t burst them simply because the fluid filled sack (blister) is there to protect the area from further damage.
What happens if the blister does burst ‘by accident’? Keep it clean! The one thing you don’t want to happen is the area to become infected, if that happens, you won’t be wearing the sexy wee shoes for a while.
Wash your hands and dry with a clean towel, preferably kitchen towel, pat dry, don’t rub dry.
Allow the fluid to drain out the sac fully
DO NOT peel the skin
If it is a small blister, you can cover with an adhesive dressing (plaster)
Change the dressing as required, but remember less is more, the more the wound is exposed to the air, the higher the risk of infection.
If the blister is quite extensive, you may need to use a more substantial dressing (sterile gauze) to keep the area covered, this can be purchased from any local pharmacy, and follow the same guidance as for an adhesive dressing
Keeping an eye on the area is just as important, incase any infection does occur and you can look for the possible signs/symptoms which will be similar to the following:
Localised redness
Localised pain
Swelling
Discharge
Odour
Localised heat
If you develop any of these around the area, you should contact your GP as antibiotics may be required.
However, it’s much easier to avoid all of the above by simply wearing proper fitting shoes, or try minimise the friction caused by the sexy wee numbers. Petroleum Jelly (fancy name for vaseline) can be used around the heels or on the balls of your feet to try to reduce the friction, cushioning is quite a good preventative measure or just buy sensible shoes 🙂 (Yeh right GC)
Next Rae on an alternative to the Irn Bru hangover cure
There are some great remedies that work for the over indulgent among us, I, GC, can totally recommend the milk thistle if you have had one too many.
Milk thistle – a great liver cleanser, take as an herbal tincture or tablets.
Some other homeopathic remedies …
Food not digested properly – Bryonia
Nausea after over-eating – Nux Vom
Excessive Appetite – Calc Carb
Over Drinking – Nux Vom
Liverishness – Nux Vom
Nausea after drinking alcohol – Kali Bich
Christmas is that time of year where the office is full of tins of tempting goodies, bottles of many spirits and bubbles and our poor old system is expected to cope.
Look after yourself, enjoy and be careful
Gx
