Thursday, April 30, 2009

Sick, Sick, and Sick Again

Caleb is sick. Again. I didn't even post about the last couple of times he was sick (he had some sort of stomach bug 3 weeks ago, then bronchitis 2 weeks ago) because it seems like all I do is write about how he's sick! I hope that this increase in illness is due to his first year in preschool, and that he'll get it all over with now and be healthier in the future.

One can hope.

He woke up in the middle of the night last night (of course--I have never known a child who got really sick during the day--it's always at night). Scott went in and checked on him, then came back to report a few minutes later that Caleb was "burning up." That's Mommy's signal to step in. I am the designated drug administer. I gave him some children's Tylenol and tried to get him to go back to bed, but he was coughing and couldn't sleep. So I ended up taking him to the living room and rocking him to sleep (something I haven't done in a long time!), then laying him on the couch and sleeping beside him on the floor.

Now, a couple of weeks ago we went into the doctor as a follow-up from his bronchitis, and the doctor was very concerned that his ear infection from March never really cleared up completely. She'd been keeping an eye on it and checking it every couple of weeks, and it still didn't look really good. So she referred us to an ENT (ear/nose/throat doctor). That appointment is scheduled for Friday.

So I really didn't want to take Caleb to his pediatrician today and then to the ENT tomorrow. I called his pedi and told her what was up, and she agreed that he should be okay until tomorrow. We'll see what happens. Caleb hasn't complained too much of ear pain with this illness--it's been more fever (102.2 was the highest I recorded), cough, runny nose, and headache. He laid on the floor today in the living room, mostly watching TV, from 8:00 until 5:30. Seriously. I finally got him to eat some pretzels and Annie's bunnies arond 4:00, and he didn't use the bathroom at all until 5:30. He went to sleep tonight at 7:00--about an hour early for him.

Let me just recap here, for my own sake and for the record, Caleb's illnesses over the last six months or so:

  • 10/25/08--right ear infection
  • 11/24/08--right ear infection
  • 2/18/09--right ear infection
  • 2/19/09--rotavirus
  • 3/4/09--follow-up appointment from ear infection, right ear still doesn't look great
  • 3/14/09--left ear drum burst (and outer ear infection), right ear still looks iffy
  • 3/27/09--follow-up appointment from ear infection, right ear still looks "pulled back"
  • 4/2/09--stomach bug
  • 4/11/09--bronchitis
  • 4/14/09--follow-up from bronchitis, right ear still looks pulled back, referred to ENT
  • 4/30/09--Caleb complains of some left ear pain, headache, fever, chills, cough, runny nose
Phew.

On top of all of this, we had to take Caleb to a special kids' dentist because his normal dentist thought he might have cavities. He's been complaining that his upper molars hurt on both sides. Now I'm thinking that it's just pain from his sinuses, because the dentist gave him the all-clear yesterday. She did, however, say that he has an extreme overbite and will need some orthodontia in a few years. (As she told me this, I just visualized money flying out of my pockets. Better start another SmartyPig account for that!)

Pray with me that the ENT will be able to help my little boy tomorrow. I won't be surprised if Caleb has to have tubes in his ears or his adenoids removed. I hope the doc recommends some sort of allergy testing, too.

5 comments:

lucylucia said...

Hi Tiffany! This is Lucy Canessa - I saw the link to your blog from facebook and since I love blogs, I checked yours out! It's lovely and your two littles ones are adorable. I'm sorry to hear that you've been dealing with such sickness in your older son. For what it's worth, I worked for some time as a casemanager for young children, and those children who suffered from repeated ear infections felt dramatically better once they had tubes put in. It's not fun to get done, but I'll be praying for Caleb that he heals soon!

p.s. You posted a few while ago that you've been struggling with Caleb's eating. Have you ever explored sensory integration therapy? I couldn't tell from your post if his aversions to food were due to texture, but if so, then that may be a great way to desensitize his mouth. It sounds strange, but it involves gradual exposure to different textures in and around the mouth. Okay - this post is getting quite long and I hope your day goes better!

Robin said...

So sorry to hear all of this. I feel like I can relate to your situation. I am taking Katelynn to the Pulmonologist on Monday to find out why she is still coughing and if the SIX RSV cases in the past 5 months have caused lung damage. Oh and if her fluid in her left ear does not go away, we will be referred for tubes as well. There is no such thing as "peace of mind" when you have little one's. Thank goodness for God's peace!! Hope everything goes okay. Who is the ENT? I worked for a ENT in Plano for almost 4 years.

Anonymous said...

Hi, Tiffany,

Sorry, to hear about Caleb being sick again.

Have you tried garlic and olive oil. I use this on my dc.

Hope he is feeling better.

Linda<><
www.homeschooling6.com

Morale said...

WOW. This sucks! My N & N are all sick quite often too. How did we all make it thru? or better yet those of the early ages? Do we just have more crap now, or what?

Unknown said...

Awe! I feel so bad for him! I hate being sick. I would never wish a sickness like that on him. I hope he will get better soon!
Ruth James | http://www.apollodentalcenter.com/pediatrics.html