Well, we spent the morning in an unexpected way...I took Eliana in to the pediatrician because she has had a stubborn cough and runny/stuffy nose that won't go away. It's been on and off ever since the beginning of the school year, which I figured would happen because she was going to be exposed to a lot of new germs in her co-op. She had never been in anything like that before.
I was not anticipating months of stuffy noses, and hacking coughs, and sleepless nights.
Wait, the sleepless nights were already plaguing us...that's a whole separate story, I suppose.
This week she has had a fever that was as high as 103, and then as low as, well, as her regular temperature, which isn't a fever, so whatever. It was up and down. This morning it was back up, to 101.7, and she seemed even more stuffed up than ever. I had talked with my sister-in-law over the last couple of days about Eliana, and she encouraged me to take her in; there was no point in her suffering on and on when they might be able to see or hear exactly what was wrong and do something to help her feel better, and get better.
So, I called this morning, and they had an opening at 10 a.m.; in we went. Our nurse came in and got some info, and did a swab on her nose and in the back of her mouth (poor baby, I thought she was going to throw up right there...they really put that giant Q-tip way back there!), but those tests came back negative. No strep and no flu. That was good news.
Then the pediatrician came in; it was not our regular doctor. She examined Eliana quite thoroughly, however, and asked a lot of questions about her, and her snottiness, and coughing, and breathing over the last few months. Unfortunately, I haven't been paying super careful attention to how she breathes, because I just figured she had a little cold. She remains perky, and her appetite is normal (whatever that means!), and she plays just like always. Over Thanksgiving, I was a little worried about her cough, but as far as I can remember, it sorted itself out, and now here we are.
I wish I had a better memory when it comes to things like this...she asked me about how long Eliana had been coughing, and her runny nose, and I just can't remember. It seems like it's been going on forever, but not continually. I know, that doesn't make any sense. I did take her in at some point (before or after Thanksgiving?) and Dr. Abel (our normal ped.) said that she just had the crud, a cold or something that had her stopped up, and the drainage was causing the cough. Her ears and her lungs sounded perfect.
That's totally what I expected to hear when I went in today. It's what they always say,"What you hear sounds really bad, but it's just all that drainage rattling around in the back of the throat." Instead, the other doctor, Dr. Peterman, listened, and moved to a different spot and listened, and moved to the back and listened, and then to the chest again, and then the side, and then the back...you get the point. I kept waiting for her to say,"All clear!" But she just kept listening! Oh, and she kept running her finger down Eliana's tummy.
Finally she sat back and told me that there were some things she wanted to keep a close eye on. She noticed that Eliana was using her tummy in order to breathe; of course I couldn't tell her if that was normal...I don't usually watch Eliana breathe! She said it might indicate that her lungs were not in full working order (i.e. they had fluid in them) and so she had to rely on other muscle groups in order to breathe. I asked if it were possible that it was just her congestion, that her nose was so stuffed up that she had to breathe out of her mouth, which might cause the tummy invovlement. She said that was possible. She pointed out that Eliana had some tiny red bumps on her tummy, even down into the top of her diaper area...this was just so that we knew they were there already and not a reaction to medicine, if that were prescribed.
She went on to recommend a chest x-ray, as well as a breathing test and an oxygen test. Her breathing rate was high, but that could be because she had a fever. I took her over to the imaging center and fortunately didn't have to wait for very long. The technician was very nice which helped, since Eliana had fallen asleep on the way there, and as I wheeled her stroller into the room she woke up. I was beginning to take her cozy jammies off and she immediately began protesting. I would too! She cried through the whole thing, but she was still and they got the images that they needed. She did get to sit on my lap, so it's not like she was all by herself, just woken up, on the big, cold table with a giant machine over or beside her.
When we left I asked if she wanted Chick-Fil-A and she perked right up,"Yeah! Chict-a-way!" And she ate a couple of nuggets, drank her milk, had a few fries, and now seems just fine.
I called the pediatrician's office to tell them about a breathing count I did here at home (doctor's orders) and the nurse told me that the x-ray results showed a case of bronchitis, so no pneumonia. I'm so relieved that it wasn't! She told me to watch her carefully and call if things got bad, if she seemed like she was having real trouble breathing. I'm also going in in the morning for a follow-up with our regular doctor.
It's interesting to me to think about, since I was going to take her in yesterday, but didn't. I took her in today, when her doctor wasn't there, so she was seen by the much more precautious pediatrician. Maybe Someone timed the visit so that Eliana would see the doctor she was supposed to see. I don't doubt that if our doctor had heard anything suspicious he would have taken action as well, but he is much more laid back than this other doc. I'm grateful for the other doctor's thoroughness, and extra care and concern she exhibited. It may be that her precaution will keep Eliana from getting to a worse condition.
She looks pretty rough, doesn't she?
So today and tonight I will keep a close eye on her, and pray that things are okay. I have been praying that the Lord will help her little body to fight whatever is in there. I pray that He helps her to heal. It's hard to see your children sick; Christian has some nose/throat crud right now, too, but no fever. I pray that they will be able to fight it, and kick it, and be healthier for it in the end. I don't usually ask people for prayer...I have issues. But, it seems wise to let others in on our lives, when these things come up. Lifting one another up before the Great Healer is an honor, and a help that we can give to one another. I'll pray for health for all those that I know, and would you please pray that Eliana would be all right? And that the rest of us would be healthy as well. I have a pretty nasty head thing going on, and so does Mike (he lost his voice earlier this week). Christian is fighting something. Michaela has been blowing her nose since yesterday, but so far she's the healthiest one of us all. She might be cooking dinner the next couple of days!
Thanks for listening...it's a big and small world, no?
Monday, January 11, 2010 at 11:17PM 
