just some venting about sick kid

:rant:

my son is still off school with a really bad cold, virus. He was off for 2 days last week for a family funeral and then he got this cold. I thought it was just your run of the mill virus/ cold, but then he coughed for an hour and I had to turn on the hot shower and give him lots of sweet tea. It worked, but then I took him to the Ped. and he decided it was croup (kid is 9) and gave me some Prednisone for three days, since it seemed like kid had a barking cough.(jury still out on that one.) He didn't think it was asthma ( no previous history) but I am certainly ready to take him back to school. The doc said maybe another day or two. But then I tried to take him to school today (no cough all night) and he starts coughing constantly almost when we are at school. Hmmmm. So back home and tea and hot steam treatment. I want him to feel better and it just takes a while. I also think I am sick of having him at home! He seems fine now, and I am tempted to call school and say just send more homework. Gawd, I hate winter colds.

Oh, what fun we parents have! Thanks for listening to my little rant.

So, what you're telling me is that it doesn't end, right? Here's my story:

We were called to take our 11-month old son out of day care on the 12th because he had a fever and he'd lost his voice. Doctor diagnosed upper resp and ear infections, and prescribed Augmentin, which the pharmacy filled with a generic amoxicillin. He had no fever problems and no ear complaints on the next day or through the weekend. Then on Monday (MLK Day) he began burning up with fever. We took him back in to the doctor on Tuesday morning, and she diagnosed a virus, but to continue with the antibiotic for his abating ear infection.

So we take him home, continue his antibiotic, and the fever continues Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Thursday night we discover a few "bites" on his body and think that a spider got into his jammies. Middle of the night he wakes us up crying, and he's inconsolable, burning up, and covered head to toe with a horrible rash. Friday morning the rash was worse and we make another trip to the doctor. This doctor diagnoses our son with a penicillin allergy (!) and says to give him Benadryl and to wait on filling the Rx for prednisone. We waited for the Benadryl to work all afternoon, but it wasn't enough, so by Friday night we'd pumped a little Prednisone in him. His hives just kept getting worse, and we made another trip to the doctor on Sunday morning, who prescribed Zyrtec.

The Zyrtec worked wonders. By Monday morning, his hives were almost completely gone. By Tuesday, he was back in daycare.

That was yesterday. Today is Wednesday, and daycare just called me to say that our son has a 100 deg fever and didn't eat his lunch, and wasn't playing very energetically this morning.

This is Day 14 since the first call from daycare. I'm afraid I'm going to lose it. I'm falling behind in my work. I've exhausted all my sick leave. I'm sleep-deprived and emotionally ragged. I'm counting all my blessings that I have a husband who works half-time who can carry much of this load but that doesn't make me feel any better about any of this.

:rant:

:grouphug:

we are only on day 3 off from school ( well for the illness, day 5 if you count the funeral days). I went to school yesterday and got some homework and he's not too far behind. (yet)

I really feel for you, since it's so hard with a baby and you never know how kids are going to react to medications. I think kids get exposed to a lot of stuff in daycare and that probably improves their resistance! My son never had ear infections and all that happy stuff when he was an infant or when he started daycare at about age 18 mos. My husband worked at home and that helped a lot. My son didn't get ear infections until he started kindergarten and he was home a good bit that first year, slurping from the pink bottle of amoxicillin in the fridge. I used to joke that amoxicillin was a "staple" in our house. He always gets the illnesses way later than other kids... I have no idea why.

But, as my mom would say, it does get better. My son did great the year he had a flu shot, and then had a couple flus the last 2 years when the shots weren't available. And I think kids just simply get sick... there is no way around it. It's odd because he doesn't have asthma or anything, and I am tired of sitting in the bathroom with the shower on, but it does seem to work, plus the hot sweet tea.

Hang in there, I hope and know that your little guy will get well soon. And it does get better. We never even had to use a vaporizer for a cold before this latest cold and my son is 9, soon to be 10.


te

I think tonight is bath-night for this mommy.

We're blessed that our little guy is really happy and a joy to be around, despite how crappy he may feel.

thanks for commiserating. Next time we run into each other, all this will seem like a long time ago.

Enjoy some relaxation! :hi:

I've lost count of days off from work and school. For the entire month of January one or both of us was sick every single day. We haven't truly enjoyed ourselves together, other than the simple pleasures of a goodnight story, since Christmas.

I honestly doubt if I'll ever be able to breathe without coughing again.

And I too am about to lose my mind. I am fortunate enough to be able work at home sometimes and have my mother to help me, otherwise I would have lost my job by the end of last year from all the sick days. He's in daycare Monday through Thursday, and by Saturday afternoon, like clockwork, he's sick. He's sick at least every other week, which takes into account a week off from daycare to get well, then a week at daycare, followed by a week sick. It's unbelievable. My pediatrician says that it's just the age, and the fact that boys at this stage drool copiously from teething and put everything in their mouths. And to add insult to injury, my daycare charges a flat fee ("tuition") by the month, whether you're there or not. (No, there are no other cheaper or more flexible options in my area which are acceptable).

The other problem is that if I send him to daycare with even a 99 fever and a runny nose, I'm just ASKING for an ear infection, which then is 10 days of antibiotics and more time I can't work. And with our experience, I just won't chance infecting someone else's kid and having them go what we go through.

Whew. It's been an exhausting year so far. I do think the wierd weather has had a lot to do with it.

He's just been winning the germ lotto of late!

Since October, we have dealt with: yuck, head lice from my son's first grade class, pneumonia, bronchitis, stomach flu, another virus of some sort, and sinus infections. My son has been on 4 different sets of antibiotics this winter. Ack! As a family, we all got everything and had I been working, I would have surely been fired for all the days I needed to be home either taking care of the kids or being sick myself! I don't know why this year we got hit so hard, but I'm ready for a break of at least a month before another illness. :hi:

although I think this is our first illness this school year.... or is it that i just can't remember?

and the weather is so weird.

I managed to miss out on the head lice thing the year that it hit my kid's school. :scared:

:hi: At least I know it's not just me.

My 14 yr old started with a cough and a fever on Sunday. He's missed 3 days of school so far and in high school that is a big deal. We've done the showers and expectorants. He can't afford to miss more school, but he isn't well enough to concentrate and perform well in school.

I'm afraid he has forgotten what school looks like!

But yes, you don't want them sitting there coughing the whole time and miserable. Everyone seems to think that colds are over quickly and that just isn't the case.