My Last 24 Hours

My little Zachary has been very sick. Yesterday, as I mentioned, he was coughing and just plain miserable. I headed to the drug store to stock up....Mucinex for kids (the wonder drug for coughs), Vick's vapor rub, Motrin, cough drops, chicken noodle soup, orange juice, and I grabbed some "On Sale" chocolate on the way out!!

I came home to find Zach doing much worse. He seemed to be struggling to breath. Like it was a fight, almost, plus he had a fever. Sweetheart felt he just had a cold and his nose was stuffy. Give him the medicine and he will be fine. So I did....plus I grabbed the Symphony bar I bought. The stress was building. After the candy was gone, I made my decision. I called the doctor, who was booked, of course, but told me to go to immediate care with Zach. Off we went....my neighbor, Cindy, in tow. Thank goodness, cause what happened next was awful. Zach had a low (92) pulsox (oxygen level) and the doctor agreed he was struggling to breath. I knew I was not over-reacting (though I have been known to do that). He needed a breathing treatment. They got it going and when it was almost done, Zach began to feel "shaky". I assured him it was the medicine, but he went from calm and almost sedate, to frantic. He was pulling at the mask and yelling "GET THIS OFF OF ME". Cindy helped me hold him while I opened the door and called the nurse. I told her I thought he was having a bad reaction to the medication. As soon as she came in the room and I got those words out, my little Zachary passed out!! That was the scariest moment! Oh the fear I felt....was he reacting to the meds?....was his little heart in trouble?....would he come out of this???? All those questions and more went through my mind in those few seconds, that seemed like hours. Several doctors and nurses came rushing in and Zach came around pretty quickly. He evidently panicked and hyperventilated, causing him to faint. His pulsox came up to 97 by the time we left.... a nasal swab to check for flu, and 2 chest x-rays later. It was either the flu (Swine Fluid, as Zach calls it), or bronchitis with possible pneumonia. Antibiotics, and an inhaler were picked up and we went home. I immediately grabbed my Hershey with Almonds!!!
Zach needed to use the inhaler every 4 hours, as he continued to have trouble. I put his mattress in my room and "watched" him sleep most of the night. He slept good. His breathing seemed stable and his wheezing was gone. He did not cough more than once or twice and not enough to even wake him up. I fell asleep about 4 am. At 5:30 he woke up coughing a very wet cough. This is good....his cough had been very dry and non-productive. He was also having trouble breathing again. Cough meds and a puff of inhaler, and he was fine within seconds.....except for the HORRIBLE bruising around the corner of his mouth!!!! What the heck was that???? I looked at it and could not figure it out. He said it did not hurt and had no idea what he had done. I stripped him down and check the rest of his body....no bruises or petechiae, which can happen with a virus, and would need immediate attention. I had rubbed it a bit and it seemed to lighten up....was it circulation?....lack of oxygen, which turns the area around the mouth dark??? I was baffled, but knew it was not good. After a while it seemed to go away. Zach laid back down and fell back asleep. I called my mother (the head of the HEC medical group, as Sweetheart calls us....H. E. C. are the initials of my mother, sister and my own last names....get it?) and my mom felt I needed to call the doctor as soon as they came in. I agreed. She told me to go check him again....I did. He was laying on that side of his face so I rolled him over and it was BACK! Now I knew we were in trouble. He seemed to be breathing so well....I had him propped up on several pillows....and how could he be having such a lack of oxygen to turn dark purple around his mouth?? Maybe I needed to just take him to the ER, or call an ambulance even. As I was discussing it with my mom, I looked down at Zach laying on his pillow and it hit me!!!!!That is the pillow he was laying on. His favorite one! He had that side of his mouth on a dark triangle and had been drooling!!!! Yes, the fabric had bled onto his skin making it look like a dark bruised area around the corner of his mouth!!! I was WAY too relieved to feel stupid! Whew!! Thank You Jesus, and by the way, WHAT was I suppose to learn from all that?????

I went downstairs and grabbed my coffee and a Butterfinger bar!!!

Today is better. Immediate Care called and Zach does NOT have the flu. He is still coughing, but it is wet. He is using the inhaler more like every 6 hours now. He has, however, had a rough morning. He did not get his ADHD meds (they have side effects similar to the inhaler and I did not want to double up), and the inhaler makes him even MORE hyper. He has been a handful to say the least. I am still waiting for him to crash. Not looking like it, though I feel ready to myself. I made him his favorite lunch, grilled cheese, and I grabbed an Almond Joy!

What does the rest of the day hold??? I have no idea, but I DO have a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup in the cupboard, just in case!!

Be Blessed!!!

Bren