It never fails, once school starts up again and the weather turns colder you know that soon the Season of Sickness will begin. The worst part about this season is that there isn’t an exact end date, it usually falls around April or May, once school is over and the weather starts to warm up, but it’s not exactly a reliable time table. While no one is looking forward to, let alone celebrating the onslaught of this “sick season” we might as well be prepared to manage it.
I have a 3 year old who stayed relatively healthy until he started daycare. He has since had a couple of ear infections, a few colds, hand foot and mouth, and has been officially diagnosed with strep throat four times in the last year. My problem is he rarely presents with a fever and he rarely ever complains, so when he does, I know it’s gonna be bad.
When my baby was a year and a half old, he came down with a mild fever and a cough with a little wheezing. He had gone through a bout of pneumonia the September prior so I was keeping an eye on his breathing. I decided to take him to the walk-in on a Saturday morning just to make sure his lungs were staying clear. The wait time on the website said 0 minutes so I took him in while my husband, his buddy, and my in-laws went to a local brewfest.
My son wasn’t acting sick in the waiting area, running around and laughing at some silly faces I was making. When we got back to the room I answered all the questions and they started taking vitals; slight fever, B.P. ok, and then they put the little monitor on his finger. The nurse took the reading, looked at it, and redid it. She excused herself and left the room only to come back in with the doctor a minute later. The doctor took the reading again and listened to his heart and lungs and said, “You need to go to the emergency room right now. I will call over and let them know you are on the way.” That’s it. I left the walk-in clinic and called my husband. According to the paper the doctor had given me, my son’s oxygen levels were low and he needed to be assessed at the E.R.
By the time we arrived at the emergency room, my happy boy had crashed. He was lethargic and weak and when they took his fever, it was up to 104. They immediately started him on oxygen and gave him Tylenol to control the fever. We got chest x-rays and some blood work done also. An hour later, his fever was still going up and his oxygen levels were still low. They gave him some other meds for the fever and decide to put in an IV This was about the time my husband showed up; I don’t think I could have held our son down for the IV without him there with me.
We finally got him comfortable and resting. We were in the ER for a total of 6 hours before his oxygen levels were up and stable enough for us to leave. The doctor and the nurses kept telling us how awesome we were at staying calm and being a steady presence for our scared, sick baby. What they didn’t know is how scared we really were for our son, but we knew we had to be strong for him so he would stay calm. It turns out that he had a lung infection which cleared up pretty quickly once we had the right meds on board.
After this craziness happened (plus a couple bouts of strep throat!) I officially have a sickness emergency kit ready at all times. This is great for all ages and all types of sicknesses.
- Tylenol and Ibuprofen
- Boogie Wipes
- Pedialyte single serve powder pouches
- Sore throat suckers
- A new, fun water bottle
- Thermometer (multiple types)
- Kids Vicks vapor rub
- Johnson and Johnson Vapor bath
- Humidifier
- Multiple types of medicine syringes and cups
- Puke bucket
- NoseFrida/booger sucker
- Wine and beer for mom and dad
My husband and I are very lucky to work for places that understand that kids get sick and are very understanding and flexible when it comes to caring for a sick child. We try to take turns staying home when he is sick, and this definitely helps with the stress that comes with caring for a sick kid.
The Season of Sickness is upon us and it can be a scary and stressful time. Having the supplies ready to go and on hand will help alleviate some of that stress. Having to drag a sick child to Target to stock up is never fun. May the sicknesses be few and your immune system strong this season, and please share any other must-haves to combat the cold and flu!
