The Flu or Something Like It

We have been battling a nasty flu bug in our household over the past week and a half. It has been a tricky illness, especially in Adrianna’s case, as it seems to come and go with no rhyme or reason. She will be sick and throwing up one day, fine for a couple of days, and then she will wake up in the middle of the night puking again. Each time, she has this cry that is almost a scream. Nothing gets me out of bed at 4 a.m. as quick as hearing my sweet little girl cry out in pain and fear.

We took her to the doctor this past Tuesday. Not only was Adrianna feeling pretty sick that day and the whole night before, but Greg and I were worried that this had gone on for over a week, even if the puking wasn’t a consistent every-day thing. Adrianna was so exhausted and sickly that she actually fell asleep on my lap while we waited for the doctor. This is very out of character for our chatty, active girl who only takes an occasional nap. The doctor was worried that Adrianna might be getting a little dehydrated, so we were careful to give her lots of small sips of water all evening. We were also instructed to keep her to a strict BRAT diet, even if she seemed to be feeling better.

We had a rough time on Tuesday evening and were up with her much of the night. Greg stayed home from work to watch her on Wednesday and I went in to work late so I could get some sleep. Wednesday night, she had a major recurrence of the sickness that wasn’t helping her to feel better even after throwing up. The doctor had given us some medicine for the nausea that all but knocked Adrianna out, but her little stomach was in so much pain that she was grunting, whimpering and unable to fall asleep even though she was so exhausted that her eyes were rolling back in her head a bit. Finally, we forced her to sit on the toilet and after a long time, she was able to get some relief. By the time this happened, her Mommy had made two frantic calls to the Children’s Hospital 24/7 nurse advice line for reassurance and advice.

Thursday, Adrianna was feeling better but still exhausted. After waking up at 8, she crawled into bed with us and she and I stayed there until noon. We took her back to the doctor again and her hydration is fine, thankfully. But we now have to gather a stool sample (that should be fun) and put it into four separate containers for analysis. The doctor wants to test for giardia and two different bacterial type infections.

Today (Friday), she is doing okay and we finally made it through the night without any wake-ups. She isn’t well enough to go to childcare yet though, so I headed home from work early so that Greg could get some work done.

Greg was also sick last week with the same symptoms. Luckily, it didn’t last as long and he is completely recovered and has been able to help me with all of the night-time wakings and clean-ups. I haven’t caught the nasty bug, which is unusual since I am usually the first person to catch it. Maybe taking a daily prenatal vitamin has helped with that, for which I am very thankful.

At last count, Teddy Bear has had two baths in the washing machine and one sponge bath. Our washing machine has gotten more use in the past week than it has probably in a full two months prior.