As usual, I am behind in my blogging. My friend started her own blog today, and that reminded me that I haven't updated mine.
A couple of weeks after my last blog update, a member of our playgroup, Kymberli Johnson, passed away from complications of a sudden illness. She was a wonderful mother to her 2-year-old daughter, Skylar, and was a vivacious person, full of laughter. Her unexpected passing was so sad and tragic. As a fellow mother, my heart broke for her sweet little girl and all those who were close to her. I really don't know what to say about it, as even now, it seems surreal.
On a day in late January, something seemed a little off with Morgan. She didn't have a fever, but she was coughing a bit and just didn't seem to be herself. I made an appointment and when I took her in, she was all smiles. I felt silly taking in a healthy-looking baby, but I already had the appointment made. Well, it turned out that she had tonsillitis. The doctor said we were lucky that I brought her in early, as it could have turned into an ear infection, too. He put her on antibiotics. We were also lucky that we got the antibiotics started and she never spiked a fever. The doctor said a fever of 103 is standard with tonsillitis, but she never registered one.
In mid-February, Morgan had her 15-month appointment. These were her stats:
--Weight: 24 lbs., 6 oz. (75th percentile)
--Height: 31 1/4 inches (75th percentile)
--Head circumference: didn't get the exact measurement (90th percentile)
At that appointment, I asked about the little cough she had and the doctor said she had a minor upper-respiratory infection, and all we could do was provide "symptomatic care", which would mean using a humidifier (which we already do, nightly) and run a steamy hot shower, when needed. About a week after that appointment, she seemed to have some trouble breathing before bedtime. I was getting nervous, because her chest was sinking in, instead of expanding, when she inhaled. She was taking rather shallow breaths and it seemed to be difficult for her to get air. I held her upright in the glider for a while, and we did the hot shower treatment. She seemed OK, after a while, and we put her to bed. During the night, she'd wake up, cry, stand up, then lay back down and go to sleep. She did this several times and I finally went to pick her up at 5:30 and she was sweating profusely and sounded like she was having trouble breathing, again. I felt like the worst mother in the world for not going to her, sooner, but I was exhausted. I held her most of the morning, and my husband held her for a while, too, because we didn't want to lay her back down. I kept debating whether or not to take her to the ER. She wasn't turning blue or anything, but I just didn't like the sound of her breathing. We got her an appointment at the pediatrician's office. The doctor said he could hear a little wheezing and gave her a breathing treatment. It was this oxygen-mask-looking contraption and Morgan hated it. I am not surprised, as it made this horrible noise and spewed vapors in her face. They gave us an at-home version to use, with an inhaler. They also gave us a prescription for a 5-day course of oral steroids, to help with her cough/breathing.
The oral steroids worked beautifully! Her breathing went back to normal and her cough subsided. We didn't end up needing to do the breathing treatment. As an added bonus, her eczema went into complete remission. Her dermatologist had wanted to put her on a short round of oral steroids once before, but we were hesitant. This time, it was for her breathing, and worth the potential risk. Well, I say "risk", but it was just a perceived risk. The oral steroids, for short periods, are very safe. Her skin looked great and I almost wanted to cry with happiness. She wasn't scratching and she seemed even happier than her normal happy self. However, the day after going off the meds, her rash came back full-force and the reprieve was short-lived. I do see, though, that we can turn to the oral steroids when her eczema is out of control.
On the second day of March, I went with my mom to see her Primary Care Physician (PCP). She just got on Medicare and hasn't had a regular check-up in 20 years! To make a long story short(er), we were at the doctor's office for about 2 1/2 hours and after I took her home, I had to take myself to the walk-in clinic, because I had lost my voice the night before. After another 2 hours of doctor's office time, I found out that I had laryngitis. Yippy Skippy. They gave me a steroid shot in the tush (dexamethasone) and a prescription for Lodrane D. The Lodrane D had pseudoephedrine, which I've always hated. I hadn't taken it in years, and I took it against my better judgment. Well, that was a big mistake, as it triggered a muscle weakness attack, due to my HKPP, and I was pretty much paralyzed. I couldn't get out of bed without help and I could barely walk for most of the next day. My husband had to take the day off from work to help me, as I could not hold Morgan. Both my parents came over the following day, so my husband could go back to work, and to help me with Morgan. I missed holding her in my arms, but knew I was lucky that I'd be able to hold her soon enough. I felt bad for needing so much help, but so grateful that I have a support base of loving family. After a couple days, I was pretty much recovered. I was happy because, sometimes, the weakness episodes can drag on and on. On Friday, I returned to the walk-in clinic to see about getting an alternative to the Lodrane D. My dear friend offered to watch Morgan for a while, so Morgan could play with her twins. I thought I was going to cry, because my sweet baby hadn't had a playdate in so long. It was wonderful to see her playing with her friends, again. While she was having her playdate, I went to the clinic, but found out that there was a 2-hour wait. The receptionist gave me a card and told me I could call back later to see if they were less busy later. I walked out, but then turned around and decided that I could just ask for the same prescription I had the last time I was there with a sinus infection. As luck would have it, my original doctor was getting something from the front office! She saw me and asked how I was doing and I explained. She gave me a username and password to a website where I could see my prescriptions. She told me I had refills of the nasal spray that would help keep an infection at bay. Hooray! I didn't have to wait to be seen or anything. Thank heaven for small miracles. :) I refilled the prescription and so far, do not have a sinus infection.
This was all a couple of days ago, and Morgan's pretty much doing fine. She's still itchy and coughs here and there, but she's in good spirits and learning and growing before my eyes. Oh, that reminds me, at the last doctor visit, the ped. asked how many words she was saying. I told him that I had counted about 15-20 words and he said she was way ahead of the curve. He said at her age they expect about 6 words, aside from "mama" and "dada". She was slow to start walking, but I'm not surprised that she'd be ahead of the game where talking was concerned. Her mom's quite the chatterbox! OK, I need to post this and resume writing later, sorry...
