Sunburned Sally

Not a good look on me.

First, let me start by saying I have pale skin. White, pale, pasty, whatever you want to call it. Pale. I was out of town at my mom’s house. It was a beautiful day outside, and I spent a little too much time in the sun. It was probably in the mid-’60s, so I took my book outside to read and sat in the sun. I was outside for about four hours, and I didn’t realize I was getting so much sun.

I was so wrong. I sensed something was amiss when I felt my skin tighten when I was putting up my chair. I could tell immediately that I was sunburned. For starters, I could feel the heat radiating from my skin, and then there was the fact that it hurt when I took off my clothes to take a shower.

I went out to eat with my parents, and I hurt all over. The skin on my arms bubbled up. It was gross. I still had a three-hour drive to get home, and I thought I might faint when I put on my seatbelt and kept it on the entire way home. I had my small group bible study meeting that evening, and I didn’t want to miss it. In retrospect, I should have stayed home because I thought I was going to die.

Everyone kept saying, “Wow, you’re sunburned or you’re bubbling up all over. At least you didn’t get burned on your face.” Yes, I was glad I didn’t get sun on my face, but it was hard to see the bright side when my skin was literally on fire. My mom told me that Aloe Vera is good for a sunburn, so I stopped to get some on the way home. Again, wearing the seatbelt and getting in and out of the car was brutal. My arms continued to bubble up. I took Ibuprofen and slathered myself in Aloe Vera as soon as I got home. I was still certain I was going to die when I changed my clothes. I saw stars.

I tried to stay out of the sun because of a cancerous mole situation several years back. I didn’t go in the sun per se; I went to the tanning bed. I had a mole removed that came back abnormal and it had cancerous cells. I knew it was serious when his assistant, Gina, tracked me down before I was about to leave for vacation. Gina explained there were cancerous cells from the mole and that he wanted me to come in so he could remove some skin around the mole. Cancerous cells. I asked, “What does that even mean? Remove skin?” Removing skin doesn’t sound good. Gina said, “He wants to cut out some skin around the mole and send it in for testing. Gina, I’m about to leave for vacation. Can I just come in when I get back?” She was adamant, “Christi, he wants you to come in as soon as possible.”

I went in the following day. He griped at me as he was “removing skin” around the mole in question, which by the way was more than just a small part because I had to get stitches. I agreed cancerous cells were a good reason to stop going to the tanning bed. In the end, the biopsy came back normal. He just reminded me not to go to the tanning bed or sun or whatever.

That is why I stay out of the sun. So, when the latest incident with the sun, my mom reminded me of the cancerous mole and said she thought I should go to the dermatologist. I kept thinking it was going to get better, but it never did. I took care of an older woman in the morning and three kids under five years old in the afternoon. The kids wanted to know why I didn’t use sunscreen and honestly; it was a valid question. Their mom sent me home because she could tell I was in significant pain.

I finally gave in and made an appointment with my dermatologist, Dr. G. My mom continued griping at me about not wearing sunscreen, which was moot as far as I was concerned. Yes, I should have worn sunscreen. The spots on my arms were bad. The bubbles subsided; the next thing was the skin peeling off. I kept picking at it. I couldn’t help myself. I finally went to see him the following Monday. It had been a week.

Dr. G frowned when he saw me. I told him I was reading outside, and I didn’t realize I was sunburned until it was too late. I said, “I’ve been taking ibuprofen and putting on Aloe Vera. I am still in significant pain, so I’m not sure it has helped.” He looked me over and checked my moles. He wrote out a prescription and said, “I can’t believe you didn’t come in sooner. I’m prescribing some spray that should help.” He looked over my chart and reminded me about the cancerous cells from the mole on my back. I said, “The good news is that I didn’t turn over, so I’m just sunburned on the front.” He wasn’t amused.

He looked at me, “You will probably have some scars on your arms and your knee.” I bit my lip when I was putting on my clothes. He handed me the prescription. “Next time, wear sunscreen. At least SPF 50.” I thanked him and said, “I know, but I never go in the sun.” Puzzled, he said, “Uhmm. Apparently, you do.”

I called my mom when I got in the car. She asked, “What did he say?” I responded, “He said I’m going to live.”