MOMMY Intuition! Trust your gut!

Ok you think you know it all and then something just bites ya in the ass!

Three kids, almost 6 years of parenting and many viruses under my belt and you think you have it all figured out.  Well don't ever let your guard down when it comes to the health safety of your kids.

Prior to Christmas, our family had it's fair share of the viruses that were plaguing our school and our home.  A couple ear infections, some bouts of fevers, runny noses and a few nights of barky coughs.  OK.. I have seen this in the past and know what to expect and the regimen of treatment.  So your guard is slightly down and you think you have it figured out...

My sweet 18 month old daughter started to develop similar symptoms and we made the trek to the doctor's office.  I laughed when the doctor said.. "Your kiddos are passing this yucky virus around and we think you daughter has a little walking pneumonia like her two older brothers." I was like .. "It was inevitable.  All three of them lick on each other, they wipe their germie fingers on one another and they get their sippy cups confused on a daily basis."  I felt terrible about this later.. but I kinda shrugged it off and thought it is going to be a rough few nights and then we will be back to normal in no time.

I stopped by the pharmacy .. picked up the meds and began the daily dosing.  Little did I know that the next few nights would be a wake up call.  My daughter began rapidly breathing.  Her color started changing from a nice fever rosy red to a dull clammy color.  I called the doctor the next morning and explained that we could not break her consistently high fever.  The nurse explained ... you need to give the medicine some time to kick in.  It needs to be at least 48 hours before you see any change of events.

Ok I thought.. I am going to keep a close eye on this.  I held her most of the day.   She was extremely tired and very lethargic.  Almost seemed like sleeping is all she wanted to do.  In the back of my mind, I thought well this virus must be a little more tough to get through than most and we need to give her what her body needs.. lots of sleep.

She began to not drink and was not eating a single bite of anything.  In my mind I am thinking ....Typical with the flu bugs but the lack of drinking NOTHING was causing a major concern.  The night time came and I prepared myself for another night of no sleep and coughing to the point of vomiting.

I woke up to find her struggling to breath so much that her entire rib cage (I could almost see her backbone) was exposed.  I kept one eye on her chest the entire night... I debated on packing a bag and heading to the hospital.  My husband kept saying .. we need to call the doctor in the morning.

As soon as the phone calls went through to the doctor's office.. i called to talk to the nurse.  I explained how long we had been on the medicine (3-4 doses so far) and what her symptoms were (No drinking nor eating, malaise, fever, extreme exhaustion, rapid shortness of breath, coughing to vomiting).  The nurse asked me to check to see if her shoulder area between the neck (Clavicle) was dipping inward.  I said ABSOLUTELY YES- she is struggling to get a deep breath.  Before she could put me on hold.  I told her... I am hanging up and I am rushing her to the hospital.

My daughter could barely keep her eyes open and wasn't responding to my voice as I was driving to the hospital.  My stomach was in knots and all I could think about is .. WHY WHY didn't I trust my gut and take her to the hospital the day before.  We would have had at least a days jump on this nasty bug.

Needless to say, we got her in and she was in the hospital until the day before Christmas.  She had an IV for hydration, very strong breathing treatments to help her oxygen levels (Dipping into the low 70's), and some IV meds to help kill whatever it was that had been taking over her tiny little body.  She weighed 23 lbs and had dropped down to 21 lbs.  I know this doesn't sound like much but for her tiny body ... it really makes a difference.  She had a few nights that almost put her into the ICU.  She was in isolation for the entire stay and I learned soooooo much from this experience.

ALWAYS ALWAYS... trust YOUR MOMMY Instinct!  Don't listen to others and do the best thing for your child even if you think you are over reacting... UNDER Reacting will not help your child or make him/her feel better any quicker.  

I also learned these viruses can turn on a dime.  They are so tricky and can morph into something else.  If you don't see improvement .. and AGAIN ...I don't care if your child hasn't been on the medicine for more than 24 hours.. CALL and ask for additional testing.  Your child may need a different course or different type of treatment.  I would instantly ask for a chest xray or a blood test to make sure it isn't something more.


In addition, I learned that the MOMMY Way of Checking your child's temperature (you know what I am talking about .. A cheek pressed against the child's forehead - to tell if they have a raised body temperature) is NOT enough and NOT at all accurate.


My daughter felt cool to the touch HOWEVER, she had an official temperature reading of 105.2.  VERY VERY VERY high!  Her body was trying to keep itself cool on the outside while she was an internal fireball.  DON'T make this mistake.

I found some amazing temperature gauges to use on your child to get an accurate reading.  In addition, I strongly recommending to bite the bullet and purchase a breathing treatment machine otherwise known as a NEBULIZER.  


I was given a great idea to use on your sick child to check for fever or elevated basal temperature.  This product will be useful for those sleeping infants or toddlers that you don't want to disturb them while they are sleeping.  

FEVER BUGZ are a great way to take temperature readings on your child without any use of a thermometer.

(All Images are courtesy of FEVER BUGZ)

They are fast safe, hypoallergenic, accurate and easy to use.

They are available through Amazon.com or Drugstore.com

TEMPORAL ARTERY TEMPERATURE GAUGE

Photo courtesy of European- Hospital.com

This is one of the most accurate ways of taking your child's temperature.  They are used in most hospitals and doctor's offices.  They are slightly more expensive than a basic thermometer reader.  They range in price from $35-$90.00.  However, it is worth the price when your child is spiking from 101-104.  

This great Temporal Artery Thermometer is available at 

The Medical Provisions Website 

Pediatric NEBULIZERS 

There are many different types and styles of nebulizers for breathing treatments for your sick kiddos.

(****DISCLAIMER****DISCUSS WITH A PEDIATRIC PHYSICIAN OR PHYSICIANS PRIOR TO PURCHASING OR USING A NEBULIZER.  DISCUSS COURSE OF TREATMENT OPTIONS AND ANY OTHER NEEDS FOR YOUR CHILD... ALL MEDICAL ADVICE IS NON PROFESSIONAL AND PURELY SUGGESTIVE FROM ONE PARENT TO ANOTHER)

If your doctor has given the consent to use a nebulizer for your child there are many great websites to purchase one.  

Here is a great website for PEDIATRIC NEBULIZERS - CLICK HERE

Search the web for Nebulizer options and discuss the type of treatment plan you need to take with your child with a trained professional medical personnel.

Have some great tools to tackle these nasty flu bugs and trust your gut!  Mommy instincts don't lie!  If you are not happy with what the doctor tells you ask for more testing or even an additional evaluation.  

DON'T Think that each child's symptoms are the same.  Treat each child separately and pay close attention to their symptoms.  The littler and compromised ones need extra attention and care.  DON'T Worry about calling the office too many times or asking too many questions.  I would rather be fully armed and the doctor be fully aware than lackadaisical and TOO LATE.

I pray for the family of the little ones in Southern Illinois that were not so fortunate during this flu season.  I was completely taken back to learn that children can die from viral illnesses that are left untreated or symptoms that spiral out of control.  Don't let that happen to you or your little ones.  

TRUST Your Mommy INTUITION at all times!

PLEASE PAY IT FORWARD AND PASS THIS INFORMATION ONTO MOMS and DADS and DO TAKE THESE CONTAGIOUS VIRAL ILLNESSES SERIOUSLY and WITH ONE STEP AHEAD AT ALL TIMES.