This is a short history about my personal battle with a very nasty strain of Staph Infection called "MRSA" or "methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus" and how I won the battle (with very little help from the medical community).
I take that back ... I did get a few good tips from some medical professionals but I pretty much fought the battle and won it on my own.
Back in 2007 - late 2009 my wife and I both suffered from the ill-effects of the painful and persistent MRSA Staph bacteria. It ended up presenting itself in various ways but it started out with one of us getting a very painful, pimple-like boil. It was the beginning of a nightmare that required several trips to the doctor (even the emergency room once) and a ton of online study on my part as well as some trial and error.
My wife's and my biggest mistake throughout this ordeal was that we would pop the boils when they occurred. What we didn't know was that by doing so we simply spread the bacteria to healthy skin which would perpetuate the problem.
In some cases the boils would be as large as two inches across but the redness and general swelling surrounding the boil covered an even larger area. In other cases we (me especially) would have several boils within the same region of my body (back, arms, legs, etc.). My wife and I both had them on our faces at least once each and I would get an occasional sty which was directly tied to the MRSA bacteria.
These aren't pictures of me but illustrate what the MRSA infection looks like:
It also affected my joints and caused a numbing sensation from time to time.
Anyway, following are the "tools" that I ended up using to overcome the problem:
1) Dial antibacteria soap.
2) Hydrogen Peroxide.
3) Hibiclens (hand and body scrub used by doctors prior to surgery).
4) Any brand of Alcohol/Gel Hand Sanitizer.
5) And a doctor's prescription of Mupirocin Ointment (for the nasal passage).
After a few trips to the doctor and an absolutely horrifying experience with an antibiotic called "Bactrim" (a sulfa drug prescribed by a doctor that turned out to be worse than MRSA) I decided that I was doomed if I didn't figure out how to handle the problem myself.
Here's some basic information that found to be very valuable:
1) MRSA hangs out inside the nose (nostrils) as well as the joints. Both of these areas have a low concentration of blood so natural antibodies aren't present to fight off the bacteria.
2) Popping MRSA boils is the quickest way to spread the infection.
3) MRSA can easily be spread from person to person or from surfaces (counter-tops, door handles, etc.) to people.
Following are the steps I took to overcome the problem:
1) I almost completely stopped lancing the boils and simply let them take their course no matter how much it hurt. The two times that I did lance them I took some special precautions.
2) I bought several containers of Gel/Alcohol Hand Sanitizer and kept a bottle in my room, in my bathroom, in my car, and at work. I used it anytime I blew my nose or had my hands anywhere close to my nose area. I cleaned my hands several times a day.
3) I kept the bottle of Hibiclens in my shower area and would wash my hands and arms every morning. I would follow by using dial soap all over my body and allowed the suds to stay on me for a minimum of 2 minutes.
4) I used Hydrogen Peroxide to disinfect my bathroom counters and all the door handles in my home. It actually works better than Clorox for disinfecting surfaces.
5) I used a Q-tip to coat the inside of my nose with Mupirocin Ointment which helped kill the bacteria and held it in place by coating it with a Vaseline-like substance.
I also upped my intake of natural garlic and used a food grade Peroxide in water or juice which I would drink (be very careful with Food Grade Peroxide and follow the directions to a "T"). I'm not necessarily recommended and anyone else uses this method but I simply wanted the MRSA dead inside and out.
Anyway ... I haven't suffered from MRSA since late 2009 and have had ZERO boils ever since. I still use Antibacterial Dial every morning and I still let it sit on my body for at least 2 minutes. I still carry Alcohol Gel everywhere I go and I use it often. And I keep my hands away from my nose at all costs. If my must blow my nose I find a bathroom and wash my hands thoroughly and follow up by using the hand gel.
I suggest buying some of the supplies mentioned and adding them to your First Aid Kits. MRSA is often picked up from a doctor's office or a hospital and we never know when we might find ourselves there.
I hope my story can help someone else. Thanks for reading.
I take that back ... I did get a few good tips from some medical professionals but I pretty much fought the battle and won it on my own.
Back in 2007 - late 2009 my wife and I both suffered from the ill-effects of the painful and persistent MRSA Staph bacteria. It ended up presenting itself in various ways but it started out with one of us getting a very painful, pimple-like boil. It was the beginning of a nightmare that required several trips to the doctor (even the emergency room once) and a ton of online study on my part as well as some trial and error.
My wife's and my biggest mistake throughout this ordeal was that we would pop the boils when they occurred. What we didn't know was that by doing so we simply spread the bacteria to healthy skin which would perpetuate the problem.
In some cases the boils would be as large as two inches across but the redness and general swelling surrounding the boil covered an even larger area. In other cases we (me especially) would have several boils within the same region of my body (back, arms, legs, etc.). My wife and I both had them on our faces at least once each and I would get an occasional sty which was directly tied to the MRSA bacteria.
These aren't pictures of me but illustrate what the MRSA infection looks like:
It also affected my joints and caused a numbing sensation from time to time.
Anyway, following are the "tools" that I ended up using to overcome the problem:
1) Dial antibacteria soap.
2) Hydrogen Peroxide.
3) Hibiclens (hand and body scrub used by doctors prior to surgery).
4) Any brand of Alcohol/Gel Hand Sanitizer.
5) And a doctor's prescription of Mupirocin Ointment (for the nasal passage).
After a few trips to the doctor and an absolutely horrifying experience with an antibiotic called "Bactrim" (a sulfa drug prescribed by a doctor that turned out to be worse than MRSA) I decided that I was doomed if I didn't figure out how to handle the problem myself.
Here's some basic information that found to be very valuable:
1) MRSA hangs out inside the nose (nostrils) as well as the joints. Both of these areas have a low concentration of blood so natural antibodies aren't present to fight off the bacteria.
2) Popping MRSA boils is the quickest way to spread the infection.
3) MRSA can easily be spread from person to person or from surfaces (counter-tops, door handles, etc.) to people.
Following are the steps I took to overcome the problem:
1) I almost completely stopped lancing the boils and simply let them take their course no matter how much it hurt. The two times that I did lance them I took some special precautions.
2) I bought several containers of Gel/Alcohol Hand Sanitizer and kept a bottle in my room, in my bathroom, in my car, and at work. I used it anytime I blew my nose or had my hands anywhere close to my nose area. I cleaned my hands several times a day.
3) I kept the bottle of Hibiclens in my shower area and would wash my hands and arms every morning. I would follow by using dial soap all over my body and allowed the suds to stay on me for a minimum of 2 minutes.
4) I used Hydrogen Peroxide to disinfect my bathroom counters and all the door handles in my home. It actually works better than Clorox for disinfecting surfaces.
5) I used a Q-tip to coat the inside of my nose with Mupirocin Ointment which helped kill the bacteria and held it in place by coating it with a Vaseline-like substance.
I also upped my intake of natural garlic and used a food grade Peroxide in water or juice which I would drink (be very careful with Food Grade Peroxide and follow the directions to a "T"). I'm not necessarily recommended and anyone else uses this method but I simply wanted the MRSA dead inside and out.
Anyway ... I haven't suffered from MRSA since late 2009 and have had ZERO boils ever since. I still use Antibacterial Dial every morning and I still let it sit on my body for at least 2 minutes. I still carry Alcohol Gel everywhere I go and I use it often. And I keep my hands away from my nose at all costs. If my must blow my nose I find a bathroom and wash my hands thoroughly and follow up by using the hand gel.
I suggest buying some of the supplies mentioned and adding them to your First Aid Kits. MRSA is often picked up from a doctor's office or a hospital and we never know when we might find ourselves there.
I hope my story can help someone else. Thanks for reading.