My daughter and I had been looking forward to a trip to San Diego for years. It was really my daughter's dream to go to the San Diego Zoo to visit the pandas and swim with the dolphins at Sea World. That's all she talked about. So when a special deal came up on Expedia, we took it! We were going to stay at one of the absolutely best hotels on the water in Coronado Beach for a great price and we were thrilled! The hotel was beautiful, with every amenity that you could imagine. We easily navigated the bus system and did everything on that trip that you could wish for. It was the perfect vacation? until we got home.



Well, actually a few weeks had gone by, when my daughter started itching. Her arms were red and covered with tiny red bumps that formed lines. I put some Bactine on her arms and figured we'd wait until the next day. During the night, I woke up with the most intense itching I had ever felt. I thought it was sympathy itching and tried my best to go back to sleep. Nothing worked. It became worse as the night progressed and I woke up tired and cranky.

My son came into my room that morning with the same symptoms. I began to worry. What on earth was going on here? Were we being invaded by fleas? I took the day off from work and we all went to the doctor's office, where I heard the most horrifying news ever. It was scabies! What?? She calmly explained that scabies were mites that burrowed under your skin and laid eggs! They reproduced quickly and covered your whole body. A million questions went through my mind. How did we get them? I'm a cleanliness freak and if I do say so myself, I keep as germ-free an environment as I can. She asked if we had traveled in the past few weeks because they are often passed in beds. They are sometimes called bedbugs. ?Oh, no,? I thought, ?so much for the perfect vacation!?

Not to worry, she said, this prescription will get rid of them in no time. But, she warned, wash ALL the bedclothes and pillows every night, or they'll come back. I freaked out! Bugs under my skin! No way could I cope! I didn't know which was worse?the itching or the thought of bugs eating me alive!

But as parents, we do cope. I dutifully went to the drugstore and filled the prescriptions. We all covered our bodies that night from head to toe with this awful stuff, which burned and smelled terribly. When I read the possible side effects which ranged from nausea, vomiting, seizures to central nervous system damage, I had serious reservations, but felt that I had no choice. We tried to sleep but none of us could. The itching became unbearable and at night it intensified. My daughter had nightmares that bugs were crawling over her. And the sad truth was that she was right.

A few days went by, and still no relief. Besides the itching, there were other complications. We couldn't have visitors, because scabies is contagious. Each night when I got home from work, I dutifully stripped the beds and brought everything, including the towels we had used, to the laundry-mat. Imagine washing everything on your bed, including mattress covers, pillows and comforters EVERY NIGHT! And then, doing it again the next night, and the next night, and the next night. It was costly, a lot of work, and not exactly my idea of a good time. I was feeling very sorry for myself, and my poor kids. I certainly didn't want to try another dose of that medication.

I finally decided to do what I usually do and look for a natural cure. I'm into natural cures for everything, and they had always worked in the past so maybe that would be the answer this time too. Within minutes, I had researched the Internet for a natural scabies cure. I found a product which was a blend of potent botanicals used for decades to deal with scabies. It promised to give immediate relief and also to be perfectly safe, all of which sounded great to me. I called the company and spoke to a representative, who told me not to worry. She promised relief in a couple of days and promptly overnighted the product to us. She was absolutely right. The next day, we felt a little better and after a few days, the red marks covering our bodies diminished as the scabies bugs died off. Relief at last! Finally, after so much grief, the scabies were gone.

My daughter and I laugh now when we look at the pictures of our trip. It will no longer be remembered as our dream vacation to San Diego. Instead, it will be forever etched in our minds as the time we got attacked by the Scabies!