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posted: November 24 @ 1:11pm

blood work came back. no pulmonary embolism. i have pleurisy. it's pretty painful and i have a really hard time breathing which equates to a really hard time sleeping. supposedly it will take roughly 2 weeks before i am completely well again. i have never in my life been this sick. i am so ready for it to be over.

on the plus side, the sun came out long enough for me to get a good flare.

Pleurisy is swelling (inflammation) of the thin layers of tissue (pleura) covering the lungs and the chest wall. The outer layer of the pleura lines the inside of the chest wall, and the inner layer covers the lungs. The tiny space between the two layers is called the pleural cavity. This cavity normally contains a small amount of lubricating fluid that allows the two layers to slide over each other when you breathe. When the pleura becomes inflamed, the layers rub together, causing chest pain. The inflammation makes it really painful to breath and leads to very shallow breathing which leads to fatigue.

jnonfiction says:: I am about to look up pleurisy.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:11pm - ∞

Daniel says:: Maybe you shouldn't be running around naked in the cold? But I appreciate your commitment to the beard.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:13pm - ∞

Furricane says:: bring on the MEDS!!

do they know the underlying condition? why you got pleurisy?
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:13pm - ∞

mattmarch says:: I have never even heard of pleurisy, and we all appreciate your commitment, really nice flare!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:16pm - ∞

mattyc says:: yeah dude I've never even heard of that before.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:17pm - ∞

mOtke says:: Stupid illness.

We thought of you last night as we made Butternut Squash Risotto. I wish it was magic BSR, because I would have emailed it to you to make you better.

Dear ben's funk - please go away.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:17pm - ∞

benfrank says:: @Furricane yeah, i got it due to H1N1. there are quite a few lung complications that swine flu can lead to. it really is terrible.

@jnonfiction i updated my caption, refresh.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:19pm - ∞

9schwander says:: gosh. I hope you feel better soon man. On the upside, beautiful flare today.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:20pm - ∞

GrapeS says:: aww man this sucks, hopefully its the last thing you are sick with for a while.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:21pm - ∞

benfrank says:: pleurisy was a very common illness 50+ years ago, usually associated with pneumonia. it's not that common anymore. unless you play a lot of oregon trail.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:22pm - ∞

mattyc says:: you left out the part about how pain occurs usually upon breathing.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:26pm - ∞

Gavin says:: hhahaha oregon trial.

hope the next 2 weeks go by quickly for your sake.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:28pm - ∞

Dewey says:: Glad they're getting it under control for you. Hang in there. Get well
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:29pm - ∞

benfrank says:: @mattyc yeah, i updated it again.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:30pm - ∞

James A. Polk says:: sorry about the sickness, but you'll pull through
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:35pm - ∞

Paragone says:: oh jeez. well .... at least your on your road to recovery.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 1:35pm - ∞

wondermade says:: That sounds awful. Be praying for your safe recovery.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 2:01pm - ∞

ThatGuy says:: Well, I glad you at least know what's up now. Hopefully these two weeks won't be too much worse. Good luck.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 2:04pm - ∞

chadmcclarnon says:: at least the lesser of two evils. You'll be back on your feet before ya know it man. Great flare!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 2:18pm - ∞

wiseacre says:: Generic compliment on your photo today!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 2:20pm - ∞

blackbeard says:: you light up my life. sorry about the illness.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 3:13pm - ∞

pcain says:: Aw man that sucks @benfrank feel better buddy (clame)
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 3:28pm - ∞

pcain says:: Im sure you will finish the Oregon trail (aka making it to feb 28th)
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 3:40pm - ∞

benfrank says:: @pcain that image is AMAZING!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 4:00pm - ∞

wiseacre says:: feel better ben ... stop being like all sick this entire whiskerino and stuff, that's sorta lame.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 4:03pm - ∞

Finn MacCool says:: Um, that totally sucks. I've had mine catch before and I couldn't imagine it feeling like that constantly. Really hoping you feel better sooner than later. I'll be praying for you.
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 5:14pm - ∞

Rolf Bastard says:: 3 cheers for No Pulmonary Embolism!

That's good news. feel better soon!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 6:46pm - ∞

Grown Unknown says:: Wow, take care. That sounds like a painful 2 weeks but I love your series and glad you are sticking with it!
Posted: Nov 24th, 2009 - 10:46pm - ∞