~Emergency Room~

I just got back from the ER with Ratchet. And since I've had a migraine most of the day I'm still hopped up on caffeine and the adrenaline from the stress of having an ill child, so I thought I'd blog until my body comes down.

When Ratchet was six months old and Mona Lisa was three years old, they were both diagnosed with asthma. Mona Lisa had had it for all three years of her life and it had been misdiagnosed. Because of this she's on constant maintenance medicine for it and can have some pretty horrific attacks several times each year. Ratchet, on the other hand, seemed to have been diagnosed early enough to not have many problems. Maybe once or twice a year he'll have a cold that will bother it enough to give him a few treatments, but definitely nothing full-time.

Quick disclaimer: I am not for or against vaccines. I believe in following the spirit in regards to immunizations and support whatever a parent feels is best for their child. I refuse the MMR and flu shots for Ratchet because the spirit has been very strong in that regard. Mona Lisa, on the other hand, has had all her immunizations and gets a flu shot each year.

Yesterday I took him in for a well-child check and he received the chicken pox booster. So, at about 11:30 pm I hear him crying, coughing, and gasping. I go to check on him and he was trying so hard to breathe he looked and sounded as if he were trying to throw up. This is actually common for my childrens' asthma attacks. Bear and I treat it as asthma and quickly gave him albuterol which did help. But then I was prompted to look at the informational sheet about the vaccine. Under moderate to severe reactions it listed trouble breathing and that I needed to get him to a doctor. I said a quick prayer and decided to call the nurses hotline. The nurse told us to give him benadryl and take him to the emergency room. Apparently reactions to the vaccine can come as late as four weeks after the shot. And if there's been one reaction they can have a more severe reaction within the next eight hours so it's best to have him seen.

I get to the hospital and each nurse listens to his cough/breathing and tells me it's just croup and treats me as if I am overreacting. I do not think I'm an overreactive parent in regards to medical care. There usually has to be a lot of blood or a misshapen limb before I'll go to the emergency room. Otherwise they can wait until the office opens the next day. I've never taken Mona Lisa to the ER for her asthma so although I was getting a bit annoyed I didn't ever feel I was wrong for being there. (Fortunately, Mona Lisa does have an asthma plan and is under an asthma doctors care and we have the supplies to have her treated at home over the phone.)

Finally I see the doctor who gives him a nebulizer treatment and before he releases Ratchet tells me it was a high possibility that it was a reaction to the vaccine since it is a live vaccine and has different binding agents than other vaccines.

I am glad I took him to the ER, but I also don't feel I made a mistake to have him vaccinated for chicken pox. I actually had chicken pox twice as a child.

Mostly I'm feeling very blessed that the spirit has always been there to advise me in times such as this and that Heavenly Father knows my childrens' bodies and special needs. I'm also feeling very blessed for the insurance plan we have. As I checked out in accounting they had the amount owed written in red on each of the forms and I saw copays for $100, $200, and even $500. And it is always such a blessing to hear them say that I'm free to go because my insurance will take care of it.

So, it looks as if I'll have a buddy tomorrow. I told him he could help me do laundry and he said and maybe some shopping. I asked if he really wanted to go shopping and he said, "If there's a toy store there." Gotta love his sense of humor even when he's not feeling so well.

2:56am and finally starting to crash. My ramblings are about to come to a close.

So, until next time . . .