It's been an interesting week here. I did not start the week thinking we'd be spending a good chunk of it in the hospital, that's for sure!
It all began with Jerod being cranky on Tuesday. He's a really happy, easy-going baby almost all the time, so I was surprised by him being fussy all day long. But, I figured that every not-quite-two-months-old baby is allowed to cry a little bit every now and then, so didn't think too much of it. But when he developed a fever that evening and didn't sleep well that night, I called his pediatrician's office the next morning and made him an appointment.
At the doctor's office on Wednesday morning, he saw the practice's physician's assistant (PA). The PA didn't find anything wrong with him other than his fever and decreased gut noises, so sent us home advising gas drops, gently massaging his tummy to help if he had gas making him fussy, maybe turning on some music or the TV to see if white noise would soothe him, and to use Tylenol to help his fever. She said to be in touch if his fever went up or if he got other symptoms of some sort, since he seemed to be fighting off some sort of virus.
In retrospect, if she had done a flu test and diagnosed him at that time so that he could start his Tamiflu medication at that point, he probably would have never gone to the hospital and the rest of this blog post would not exist. However, she didn't, and I didn't think of suggesting it, either, since I thought one had to have a cough and congestion or maybe vomiting if one had the flu.
Jerod had another cranky day on Wednesday, and the first half of his night that night was rather fussy and sleepless, but then he fell asleep for seven hours straight. I was really excited and figured he was sleeping off his little illness. He didn't have much appetite on Thursday and slept his day away. It was that afternoon when I realized he was in bad shape - not eating much, not moving, and looking pale. I called the pediatrician (there are like five of them in practice together, so I won't bother referring to them by name, just "the pediatrician," although it was a different doctor every day), and she said to go to the ER, since it was after-hours.
The only time I was really worried during the whole bit was on the drive to the ER and when we first got there. Jerod hadn't even awakened when I was putting him into his car seat, something he normally protests a bit. He was silent the whole trip there, and in the waiting room he opened his eyes only once, and they weren't focusing on anything, just staring and glazed. When the ER nurses weighed him and took his vitals, they cooed over how quiet and well-behaved he was. I didn't find it one bit coo-able, however, that my tiny baby didn't seem to notice that he was stripped naked on an examining table with a thermometer up his bum.
The ER doctor, to whom I would not give any points for on bedside manner, ordered a flu test, which came back positive. He consulted with the pediatrician over the phone and they admitted us. I had not thought we'd be spending the night in the hospital, but was happy when we finally (five long and mostly boring hours of waiting after being checked into the ER... but as my sister in St Louis texted me, at least the Indiana, PA, ER is a pretty tame one compared to St Louis'!) got checked into the pediatric ward. The nurses there cooed over him, too, because this time when stripped down and weighed and having his vitals done, he gave one nurse a big smile. "Come here and look at this newborn - he has the flu and just smiled at me!" she called to the other nurses on the floor, three of whom came and oohed and aahed over all of his hair and his chubby cheeks.
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| Jerod sleeping in his hospital crib - it looked like a prison cell or cage, but he seemed to find it comfortable |
Jerod got some Tamiflu, Tylenol, and lots of care that night. Nurses came in every two hours to check him, which made for very little sleep for me. I didn't mind, though, since I knew they were monitoring his condition to make sure he didn't develop fluid in his lungs or any other complication. The next day, Friday, the pediatrician saw him and advised we stay another night, at least. Jerod slept all day.
In other news, my non-medical lowlight of Friday was realizing I'd left my phone at home when I'd run home to collect some essentials and see Zarya. My highlight, however, was a friend thoughtfully going to pick it up and bring it to me, along with some snacks!
I'd like to make an aside comment here that the day nurse was a wonderful woman who truly had the calling of taking care of sick children and their anxious parents. I thank God for assigning her to be our nurse for the day, because she was quite the blessing and encouragement. Thank you, Jean; you lived out your faith all day, and I knew you were a believer before we even started talking about it.
Friday night I was worried when Jerod's fever escalated the highest it had been yet by a full two degrees - 103.7. But then he was awake, making happy noises, kicking his legs, and looking like he felt a whole lot better all day. The pediatrician sat down with me for a full twenty minutes that morning to talk about how he was doing and what to expect over the coming days if his flu progressed normally, so that I'd know what abnormal might look like if he took a downward turn. She acted like he was her only patient and item on her to-do list for the whole day.
It was late Saturday afternoon when the doctor gave us permission to go home, much to our delight. It had been such a stress to not be knowing if we were going or staying until 4:30! It really made planning impossible, and for those of you who know me and Andrew, not being able to plan is a great challenge for us to overcome. I was trying to be at home and at the hospital, an arrangement that left Jerod crying for food when I wasn't there when he was hungry Saturday afternoon, and Zarya wondering where on earth Mama was all the time (although Baba took great care of her). After we were given all of our instructions and prescription, and made it out the door, it was nearly 6:00. I arrived at the pharmacy two minutes before it closed and was greatly relieved to not have to run around town searching for one open on a Saturday evening. A friend brought over a hot meal minutes after we got home, and sitting down together at the table to eat a meal was really, really nice.
Jerod seems happy to be home, and we all slept at least somewhat decently and were very happy to wake up and have a Sunday together at home! His fever has been fairly low all day. Thanks to two other friends, we have groceries in our fridge and another meal ready to eat, as well as several people making it very clear to me that I am welcome to send Zarya their way if I need a break at some point. We are really blessed with good friends here! And if that weren't enough, we have also been "blessed" with a lot of snow - four inches or so on Friday night, and another big pile expected tonight...
