Let me start by saying that if you think you have the flu or
any sort of congestion, please see a doctor right away. This year’s flu is nothing to laugh at; not
to mention all the other non-flu things going around. Please get checked out, especially your
little ones. You know them better than
anyone.
There is nothing scarier than a sick child, especially one
that can’t tell you what is wrong. I
know many other parents with children that don’t speak or can’t speak having
this same problem. It is even more
difficult when trying to explain to a physician who isn’t familiar with your
child that they can’t tell you what hurts or where. After this 3-week long illness struggle,
Hayden has seen 3 different physicians and multiple nurses. My physician was the only one who understood
that he couldn’t tell him what was wrong and to listen to what I noticed and to
fully check him over. The important areas
like ears, nose, throat and chest – not blood pressure and oxygen levels.
This speaks to the differences throughout healthcare from
facility to doctor to state. For both
Hayden and I, this started in New Mexico, so we both had to go to Urgent
Care. My visit was great and straight
forward, but I had Strep and tested positive for it, so it was a no
brainer. Hayden’s visit was much
trickier. Both the nurse and the doctor
asked him what hurt, even after I had told them he was autistic and didn’t talk
yet. He was resistant to being examined,
like most children with autism, and his symptoms had just started. Did I mention he started on the day we were
flying back home? They got him on an antibiotic, but this turned up to be a
more serious infection (for both of us) and we were in to see my physician the
day after we got back.
In the meantime, we were to have several meetings for Hayden’s
annual re-certification in both school and in-home services. Those had to be cancelled and rescheduled and
there would be no school for Hayden. He
did still go to outpatient therapy, but I should have kept him home the first
day. Both speech and OT stated he was
very quiet and lethargic – two words not used when describing Hayden. In Hayden’s case, he had a cough and a runny
nose and had been on an antibiotic for 2 days.
We figured he was ok to go.
As I wrote about last time, Hayden did in fact relapse and
so did I. I ended up back at the Dr.
before he did. We both went on something
new and are (knock on wood) in the clear.
It was difficult to tell what was going on with Hayden, but I could just
tell he was off. When he spiked two
fevers after the antibiotic was done, we got him right in. Now, thankfully, we are all better and with
that comes the return of our normal, healthy Hayden, energetic and full of
life.
It seems he is making up for lost time in all areas. I feel as if we are feeding a teenager right
now. The child eats non-stop, where it
goes I don’t know. Plus, he’s into
everything and wants to help. Anyone who
has or has had a toddler knows how that goes.
He’s having trouble understanding that while things were lax while he
was sick, it is not the case anymore. We’re
adjusting back into following the rules.
A much bigger challenge to say the least.
My point to all this is don’t hesitate to take your child to
the doctor, urgent care or even the ER – or yourself for that matter! It’s
better to be safe than sorry. I’ve heard
of people having what Hayden and I had, individuals with the flu and others
with something respiratory – all very difficult to fight. Take care of yourselves – rest and
fluids. For many of us, it’s difficult
to not take on too much and get run down, but do try. If you start to feel sick, watch yourself
closely and drink plenty of fluids. I
love Vitamin Water (I should note that I am not affiliated with them.)!
Take care of yourselves my friends! Continue to BE THE CHANGE!
Always,
Sheri
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