We had a fantastic first Christmas with Mason and our family and friends but have since spent the latter part of the holiday fighting a really nasty stomach bug. (This isn't what was on any of our Christmas lists!) Scott and I got sick on the 27th and had to spend an extra day at his parents place because there was no way that we would have been able to look after Mason. I can't remember the last time that I had the stomach flu but I won't soon forget this past experience. It was brutal! Thank goodness for Scott's parents and for Uncle Karl who spent the day playing and entertaining Mason.
We thought that Mason had dodged the bug but he came down with it on Saturday morning. Let's just say that we now know the difference between vomitting and a little spit-up! Scott, the couch, and the floor received quite the coating. Projectile vomitting in an infant reminds me alot of the Exorcist - very scary!!! Poor little guy couldn't keep anything down all day and his temperature shot right up. We took Mason to the ER around 10 PM on Saturday night because he was starting to show signs of dehydration. The hospital ran a number of tests(bloodwork, urinalysis, and chest x-rays) to make sure that he didn't have a bacterial infection. Meanwhile he was given tylenol, gravol and pedialyte to try and replenish his lost fluids. Scary, scary times for mom and dad! We felt soooo badly (and helpless) for Mason and were feeling guilty for exposing him to this bug. We finally went home around 3 AM after the test results were clear and his fever had broken.
We thought that that was the end of the bug but we are still dealing with it and it seems to rear its ugly head at least once per day. Today has been the best day since last week so we are crossing our fingers that we are through the worst of it.
I know that Mason will get sick many more times in his life and that this is just something that is part of childhood but as a parent all you want is to be the one that is sick and not have your child in pain. Does it get any easier?
Any tips from other parents out there?
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Oh April, I'm so sorry you guys were sick. I wish I could tell you differently but no, it doesn't get easier (at least not in my experience so far). There's no worse feeling in the world than when your baby is sick and all you can do is sit and hold them. (I lied - when Mason falls down the stairs for the first time and you see him in flight, before he hits - that's a very close tie.) I remember a night when Bradyn threw up on me 4 times in about 20 minutes. Don't bother changing your clothes until he has visibly 'settled' or you're wasting your time. Keep lots of Tylenol, Advil, saline drops and apsirators on hand for colds. For teething, keep the teething toys in the fridge and get a food bag to put ice chips in. And when all else fails, just hold him tight, give him lots of kisses, and tell him over and over that you love him. Even now, I'd often kill for a hug from my mom when I'm really sick. I hope you're all healthy again real soon.
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