Remember earlier this month I was sick? And I was all relieved that the Little Dude seemed to escape it other than one brief sicky incident & a few dodgy nappies? Well. I jinxed that good & proper.
My little man now officially has the lurgy that's been doing the rounds, and it is horrible.
He's been struggling to keep anything other than water & toast down since Friday, and is feeling very sorry for himself.
I was getting a bit fraught by yesterday lunchtime (read: a lot fraught. A big blubbery overtired mess actually - all panicky he'd start losing weight & end up back in hospital like when he was only a week old, generally feeling totally useless & like the worst mummy ever.), so called NHS direct (after getting no answer from my health visitor or GP - clearly babies just aren't supposed to be poorly on Saturdays - sorry 'bout that.) and spoke to a lovely nurse who calmed me down & said that as long as he's getting plenty of fluids, a few days off his food won't do too much harm.
I don't think that nurse will ever know how grateful I was for that call. I was in such a state, feeling like a crappy mummy, and in just a few minutes, she chilled me out & made me feel a million times better. She probably put the phone down thinking 'ah bless, first time mummy dealing with her first tummy bug - she best toughen up quick!'
And although I did have a slight mini-meltdown when the Daddy got home from work, I think that was more from sheer relief at having some help & a chance to close my eyes for 10 minutes.
It's times like this that make me realise just how much I still have to learn.
And remind me that I am completely responsible for taking care of my little man - that he's completely dependant on me come rain or shine.
And to be completely honest, it sometimes scares the bejeesus out of me.
Things will be ticking along nicely, I'll get comfortable - maybe even let myself think actually, I'm pretty good at this, and bang - something new comes along to remind me I'm still a complete novice.
Today, the Little Dude's much the same - a bit more cheerful when he's awake, but still sleeping a lot. No sickness in the night, so I tried giving him a bottle for breakfast - that was a mistake, but there are wet nappies, and he's still drinking lots of water & munching down his toast, so that's encouraging. And I managed some sleep, so have a slightly less neurotic-first-time-muimmy head on, and am feeling a bit less useless and overwhelmed by it all.
Still, fingers crossed he'll be better tomorrow - I miss my happy smiley little monster.
Sunday, 21 February 2010
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I totally feel for you - it is SO scary when your child is sick and a lot of the time you do have to trust your instinct. I remember once our A&E tried to turn us away when No 1 Son was having breathing problems - the doctor's exact words were 'why have you brought him in? There's nothing wrong with him,' but I held my ground and of course 20 minutes later he was having a full blown asthma attack. It's all about knowing your child, and I always think it's better to be over cautious if necessary. I do think the nurses at NHS Direct are terrific actually. Hope Little Dude feels better soon - there are some goodies on the way! xxx
ReplyDeleteoh it is awful when they're sick, isn't it? Hope he feels better soon and you manage to get some rest too.
ReplyDeleteThank you both :)
ReplyDeleteGood to know I'm not *completely* over-reacting! (Or at least I'm not the only one :P)
And oooh Liz - you always know how to cheer me up - can't wait :D xx
Oh my goodness, this happened to us around my daughter's 1st birthday. She was off her food for a week :-(
ReplyDeleteBest advice we were given: plenty of fluids, but if they can't keep food/milk down stick to water or flat lemonade (replaces lost minerals or something). Once he can take food again, stay off wheat for 24 hours as that can irritate the stomach again (we'd been giving toast, doh!)
Hope the little dude is better soon x
Oh poo, I've been giving him toast too- one of the few things he's keeping down :/
ReplyDeleteShall keep the flat lemonade in mind though.
And thanks - he *seems* to be perking up a little, but I haven't been brave enough to try a bottle again yet. Maybe in the morning! x
Overreacting? No way, it's perfectly normal. And I'm with you, I tend to get comfortable that I'm doing a good job as a mom then bam, she gets sick. It's very frustrating because the doctors tell you the same thing "give them plenty of fluids" to them they think this is simple. But do know you are not alone. Hope you little dude gets better. And yes get some rest too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Elisa - this is why I love blogging -best therapy ever :) xx
ReplyDeleteAdd extra water to his bottle, it is the fat that they are unable to digest during a stomach bug, so say he would have a 7oz bottle for brekkie, do it with 8/9 oz water (the equivalent of giving semi ish skimmed as opposed to full fat milk? There fore the nutrients still going in but less trampoline l;ike to digest? (Monty has had A LOT of stomach bugs in his life time!!! ) Hugs. xxxxx
ReplyDeleteThanks Bec, will try that in the morning methinks. Just hate seeing him so sad & meh :(
ReplyDelete(Have every faith he'll be better by Thursday though ;) xxxxx)
Tis not a first time mummy thing, Mini was unwell on Friday and I tool him to the doctors too. I think it is hard when our children are unwell. I have his virus now and feel like poo
ReplyDeleteAww, poor little sweetheart. And poor Little Dude too!! It's not nice is it, you just want to take it all away with a magic wand.
ReplyDeleteTake care, CJ xx
In my little family it's Daddy who freaks out at the first sign on any illness. He's forever feeling my 18-month-old's forehead, and announcing in a deep, serious voice that she's got a temperature (which, 9 times out of 10, she doesn't). God forbid she really is sick, because then he completely falls apart and becomes a hysterical mess. I'm forced to swing the opposite way and act quite lackadaisical, even if I am a bit concerned myself, just to calm him down. That said, I always second guess my decisions, and wonder if I'm not taking her sniffles seriously enough, but honestly believe that I'd just KNOW if it was something to really worry about. It's all part and parcel of building up that immune system, I suppose!!!!
ReplyDelete