For the past couple of days, Mari has been cranky, somewhat feverish, and had a runny nose. We figured she was just cutting another tooth. No big deal right.
This morning when she awoke, Don thought she had fever. I had her wait a bit and just before we left, there was no fever. Again with the runny nose, so I thought, yep she's cutting a tooth. What really prompted that thought wasn't the massive chewing she's been doing on the furniture or on her toys, but when she leaned right on over and bit my toes. Yes, she thought my toes were chew toys for her whim! Anyway, off she went to school.
When I got home from work, she was back to cranky Mari. She refused to sleep or nap, insisting on being held, then pushing away, then swatting, followed by crying. We were told that she had some diarrhea or loose bowels. Naturally, I was concerned, but chalked it up to teething. Again, a symptom for it, right? Well, when she didn't want to eat much of dinner I was concerned. She'd been coughing some, so I gave her some diluted OJ and a yummy earth lollipop to help soothe her throat. Well, moments after finishing her OJ and two licks into her lollipop, she projectile vomited copious amounts of mucus. Gross, I know, but part of parenthood. Don calls Mari borrachita and I call her our frat sister. College memories of vomit infused with pizza and wobbly walking makes me think I'm reliving those hazy days. ha ha!
In all seriousness, though, I had an emotional breakdown. I scared Mari, freaked out Don, and in my blubbering mess, I managed to pull myself together long enough to grab my purse, her diaper bag, and a blanket to head out to Acute Care for Kids. (Love them!) It was pouring down rain about as hard as the tears were flowing down my face. I sent out a text asking for prayers because, really, I had no idea what was wrong. I said a prayer asking for God to watch over Mari and for her to not have N1H1 aka Swine Flu. God doesn't give you more than you can handle, but I wasn't sure if I was strong enough to handle this. I laced my nervous fingers inside of Don's, as the wipers thwacked away at the wet windshield. I nervously chatted about the day, doing my best to ward off another crying spell.
We arrived to the clinic and they got us in immediately. No fever! She checked her ears and no ear infection. Her stomach sounded fine. Then she checked her throat and saw redness. They swabbed her for strep and the results came back negative. She did have swollen lymph nodes near her throat, and coupled with the redness in her throat led to a simple sore throat diagnosis. We just have to keep her hydrated. Whatever it is, it is probably viral and we have to let her strong, little immune system fight it off. I took great comfort in it and I breathed a great sigh of relief. I wanted to hug the doctor and the nurse. I got a little choked up, but again, fought of the urge.
Thanks for all of the prayers for those of you readers who are on my phone tree. A little overreaction, but it is better to be safe than sorry, right? All that hype surrounding N1H1 got the better of me.
A special thanks to Superstar Don who remained calm and not only cradled us both, but caught most of the mess and cleaned it up, as well. He's so awesome. High five, babe!
2 comments:
Girl, I'm right there with you! Both my girls have a cough and are sneezing. I've taken their temperature like 3-5 times a day because I'm worried it will become something more than just a 'cold' and worried that I'm under reacting by not rushing them to the pediatrician to get checked. Glad you took Mari in - you can never be too cautious with your baby.
I keep going back and forth with this swine flu thing. Should I worry? Is the media brainwashing us? Is big pharma in the mix somewhere?
The part of me that is a hypochondriac is really freaked out. Then there is the part of me that is sane and health-conscious and educated. That part says "Its the flu. Do what you would do with the regular flu."
However, last night, watching the news...I had a mild panic attack and thought about how I would convince my father in law I could work from home. Then my sister's voice creeps in saying "You know, mother nature sometimes has a way of controlling overpopulation."
So, I would be just as paranoid if Braelyn was showing symptoms!!
I am just hoping and praying this is not as scary as they are making it sound! I am trying to hold on to what Dr. Mercola and the others say.
Feel better soon sweet Mari!!
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