A long time ago (one week that is), in a galaxy far, far away (because mentally I'm way in outer space at times) Baby Noah got sick. =(
So, Noah is beginning the upwards climb to normalcy after suffering for a week and having a mom that was clueless and unarmed for the past week.
Tuesday seemed like a normal day for the most part, but Noah had started coughing a bit. I mostly attributed it to the excess drainage he had from teething. His cough seemed slightly worse than it had been when I had heard him forget to breathe and swallow at separate times, but I didn't think much of it.
Wednesday, while preparing for our Smart Mommy Group, the breastfeeding support group that I go to, Noah fell asleep in his bouncer. This was odd, because we had just gotten up, but his sleep schedule can be off at times and he has been falling asleep around the same time on other days that I'm at yoga. He was still coughing some but otherwise he was acting normal. He fell asleep again bouncing on my knee at the mommy group, which I have to admit was kinda cute. He slept on the way home and proceeded to take a nice nap which doesn't happen often, so I was excited. When he awakened, he ate and seemed pretty cranky and warmed up as the day went on. I took his temp in the evening and it was mildly elevated. He slept most of the afternoon and evening.
Thursday, we skipped yoga because I wanted to see how Noah felt and his temp in the morning was normal, but he wasn't acting like he usually does. He was cranky and clingy. He wanted to cuddle and sleep, which he did. All day. If I tried to put him down, he'd scream. He wanted to be held. Later that afternoon, his temperature went up again to about 99.9. My mother-in-law suggested that if he had a fever again on Friday that I should call the pediatrician's office and see what they recommend.
Friday, was a repeat of Thursday. Cuddle and sleep. Temp normal in the morning and elevated in the afternoon. I called the pediatrician's office around lunch time which is when his temp was up over 100 and was told that the nurse was at lunch and that I could leave a message or call back. I left a message and decided that if she didn't call me back, I'd call her again. The nurse called me after two and told me to get some saline nose drops and a cool mist humidifier and if he had a fever the next day to bring him in. My mom and Taran's mom both suggested giving him a bath. So that evening, I gave him some Tylenol and gave him a bath and by the end of his bath, he was feeling so well, he didn't want to go to bed. After all, he had slept all day long. I ended up going to bed early, nursing him to sleep so he would finally go down. I was hoping we were out of the woods.
Saturday morning his temp was normal. He let me put him down so I could feed the dog and cat and he played with his toys without too much argument. He didn't cruise all around the room like he normally does, but he seemed content. He was still cuddly and wanted to nap not long after that, but he had a normal temp, so I let him be and figured he was just recuperating. Come 11:20, he felt warm to me so I checked his temp again, over 100. I called the pediatrician's office and they had already closed. I was kinda worried at this point because I didn't really know what to do if I couldn't take him in. I gave him some more Tylenol to help drop his fever which worked like a charm and he again slept a bunch. He seemed like he was feeling better because during the time he was up, he'd play with toys. His temp remained normal for the rest of the day. He had a bath and went down just like normal that night. I figured this time, he was better, finally, but I'd have to watch him for the next day just to be sure. We'd be back to our normal routine for sure by Monday.
Sunday morning, was very much like Saturday. Normal temp, he played some even though he wasn't as active as normal, and he did want to cuddle and sleep. No fever though, so I was thinking we'd be in the clear. Around 2:30 in the afternoon, his temperature spiked again. The pediatrician's office was closed, of course. That would be my luck. I gave him another dose of Tylenol and after his fever went down, he acted almost normal. He was playing and scooting around, though not with his normal speed. He had no fever for the rest of the day. Come evening time, he seemed cranky again even though his temperature was still normal. And that is when I noticed it. He had drainage from his left ear. Oh, jeez. I guess we were going to the pediatrician's office on Monday. At least the bath and going down to bed went relatively normally.
Monday morning we get up and are dressed and ready to go and I called the pediatrician's office as soon as they opened to get him set up. The earliest time his doctor was available was their last appointment slot of the day before they closed at five. I had the option of seeing another doctor about an hour before that. I figured if I had to wait until the afternoon, I may as well wait for his doctor. The appointment was scheduled and we went about our business. Noah was in pretty good spirits. His cough still continued, as it had since last week and the fluid continued to drain from his ear, but his attitude was much better. His temperature remained normal throughout the day and I was happy that his fever seemed to not be returning. When the time came for his appointment, we went in and the doctor took a sample of the drainage for culture, prescribed antibiotics, and told me to continue with the saline nose drops and humidifier. In 4-5 days the culture results should be back. Apparently, his right ear was red and inflamed and the doctor couldn't tell about the left because of the goo, but both ears were affected. So, we went to the pharmacy and got his meds and started them as soon as we returned home.
Today, Noah has been much more active. I called the pediatrician's office and asked if I needed to be worried about Noah being around other kids with his cough and I was told that he should be fine as long as he didn't have a fever, so yay, we can return to our normally scheduled activities. I'm glad the baby is feeling better despite the cough and ear drainage. We'll see in a few days what the culture grows and we have to return for an appointment in 10-14 days to recheck his ears.
Since Noah is feeling better, I'd consider this illness mostly conquered and I'd say that Noah and I have managed to survive. Yay!
No comments:
Post a Comment