Saturday, April 28, 2012

Y is for Yell in the Night


      Is there anything more terrifying than the unknown?  Let me rephrase that.  Is there anything more terrifying than having your child hurt and taking a rapid turn for the worse?  Tonight I think NOT.   One question before I get started, why am I always ALONE when $hit happens?  The answer is because my husband is a truck driver and is on the road.  Let us rewind and reverse and bring you up to speed.   
       
       
       My nightmare started Thursday afternoon with a phone call from the nurse at my son’s school.  It was unexpected.  Things like this usually are.  You can’t prepare yourself.  You simply have to live through it and pray for strength to persevere. My son had taken a nasty fall plummeting to the ground from the top of the tallest slide.  He WHAT??  The nurse relayed that he had been in her office for almost an hour.  She had been applying ice to his head, checked his ear for bleeding, but thought I needed to come immediately.  I gave a primal yell of fear, and with tears in my eyes I raced to the school to find my son lethargic unsure what happened.


        Fear drove me to pick up my daughter from her school and race to the local hospital’s emergency room.  My horror turned to anger as I was faced with a nurse practitioner instead of a physician who told me that I shouldn’t have brought him.  Give him Motrin, ice his head, and go home.  She was rude.  She ordered no tests.  Not knowing what else to do, I took my son home and continued to minister to him myself.  He was dizzy, nauseated, and not himself.  He took a nose dive and tripped over a bean bag chair sending him sprawling face first on the floor.  Once again I rushed for ice.  My poor baby needs to slow down!!




        By the next day, he woke up in pain.  His ear hurt.  His head hurt.  His legs hurt.  He felt sick to his tummy.  Needless to say I kept him home from school.  Progressively he has gotten worse.  I kept giving him Motrin to alleviate the pain.  He almost seemed back to himself.  He fell asleep beside me.  I had to keep my baby close. "Please dear Je$u$ hold and protect my baby!" I beg through my tears.


      In the night he yelled.  I awoke to discover him burning up with fever screaming, crying that his head hurt.  He felt like he was going to throw up. Oh no!! Get the bowl.  “It won’t come out!!” he wailed.  I soothed him with a wet wash rag and gave him more Motrin.  My fear had elevated to a fever pitch.  Panicked I called my doctor at home.  He listened to me pour out my woes.  Give him sips of water and no food.  No problem there, he hasn’t had an appetite since the accident.  I was advised to bring him to his office through the emergency entrance.  The doctor thinks an infection has formed at the site of his injury.  My brain struggled to grasp everything the doctor told me.  He needs antibiotics.  Oh my!!  I calm my baby the best I can and wait.  Finally he sleeps, but I can’t.  Worry drives me on.


         At this dark hour, a poem my Dad insisted on teaching me from little on up comes into my head and it is like him reaching out to me in my darkest hour.


              The night was dark
              The sky was blue
               Around the corner the $hit wagon flew
               There was a scream 
               A yell was heard
                A man got killed by a flying turd.

Somehow those words seem oddly appropriate right now.  Is it odd in the face of my fear I am waxing poetic in the light before the dawn?  The $hit has certainly been flying around here at horrific wind speeds.  Screams and yells were definitely heard and I definitely feel like I have been hit proving I am a few sandwiches short of a picnic and almost ready for the funny farm until next time when I give you another glimpse into the life of a trucker’s wife.





37 comments:

  1. Oh God, Honey. Sounds like with all those symptoms you should have headed back to the emergency room but I make it sound easy, right? Never is when you're alone with a sick kid. My aloneness has been with a severely asthmatic kid out at my elderly mother's in the middle of the night. I remember calling a nurse hot lone and they're telling me to take him to the emergency room. Fine. That would mean waking my then 3 yr old,ilong them into the car at 3 am to drive miles to a crappy hospital. Instead, I gave him a:double dose of his nebulizor and that was enough to break it. We made it through the night. Keep us up to date on how he is and my thoughts are with you all the way!

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    1. Sandra, actually I took him to our family doctor this morning and he confirmed he had a severe concussion with swelling on the lining of the brain. The swelling caused an infection around the place he was directly hit when he fell around his ear. The infection caused the rise in temperature and fever. It has been scary. I can about imagine how scary having your baby having an asthma attack would be. Fortunately you knew what to do. Thank you for your kind thoughts, stopping by to read, comment, and for sharing your experiences. ♥

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  2. Oh Kathy, how scary. And so difficult with the evolving symptoms. I hope the antibiotics help and he has some relief. Hits to the head alwasy scared me. After my mother's traumatic brain injury from a fall, I tend to be hyper vigilant about any type of blow to the head. He will be in my prayers as will you.

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  3. Oh no :( your poor little boy..Please keep us posted. My prayers are with him

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    1. Jenni, thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments and prayers. He has been resting, watching movies, and drawing pictures with his markers on and off today. When the Motrin runs out he still has a lot of pain. The doctor said as the swelling and infection went down his nausea would decrease too. ♥

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  4. How is he, Kathy? I hope better.....

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    1. Danneromero, today he has been resting. When his pain meds run out he is in a lot of pain. At this point the Motrin is alleviating the pain and any fever that is coming from the infection. He is taking it easy, as he was instructed. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments. ♥

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  5. Hope he'll be okay. I can't believe the hospital did nothing, they should have x-rayed him and checked for concussion.

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    1. Paula, honestly I am appalled that the hospital didn't run a CT scan but they didn't. They didn't do anything. His concussion and brain swelling plus the infection that had started in the night was confirmed by my family doctor this morning. He needs rest. Hopefully he will make a complete recovery eventually. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kindness.

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  6. That nurse practitioner needs a good swift kick in the ass.

    He's in my prayers, Kathy, as are you. ♥

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    1. Word Nerd, I agree. I would have liked to have gave her one too!♥ Thank you for stopping by to read, comment, and for your prayers. Right now he isn't out of the woods yet and his swift recovery depends on him taking it easy. The doctor joked with him that he should give him a parachute then the next time he felt the urge to fly or jump off high places he could pull the cord and float safely down to earth.

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  7. Oh my...I hope he is alright. I will be checking back. Sending positive thoughts you way. Few things are worse than a child in pain.

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    1. Teresa, right now he is still running a fever. UGH. He is resting, but his head hurts. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your comments. ♥

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  8. You are doing just fine and I'm with Beth, report that bitch to someone...anyone...who will take her down a peg or two. Hope he is feeling better and I'm so grateful you have a caring doctor to lean on. ♥

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    1. Jo, I am way ahead of you. I report her yesterday. Right now he is still holding a fever and having a lot of pain. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments!♥

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  9. Holy crap! What is wrong with the medical profession these days! When you go to the emergency room, it's usually an emergency. I agree with the others...report her and fast! So glad you were able to get your son into see your own doctor. Sending up all my prayers and wishing your son a speedy recovery...and you a chance to breathe and relax.:-)

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    1. Susan, she has already been reported whatever good that will do. Thank you for your kindness, prayers, and for stopping by to read and comment! ♥

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  10. OMG! I don't understand how these supposed medical professionals could treat you guys like this and not take it seriously!!!! I fell off the slide in 6th grade (1976), and an ambulance was called to the playground! I had a broken wrist and concussion and my parents had to wake me up every couple of hours all night, and watch for nausea/vomiting. I hope your son is on the mend now!! I hope you use a different ER if that's possible.

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    1. JoJo, I think your situation was handled a lot better than ours was. It was not a good situation. It was made worse by the fact that the hospital will charge us for basically us taking up space while they did absolutely nothing to help my son or check him to insure he was OK. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments.

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  11. Kathy, I am so sorry. It is so hard when our children are hurt. Prayers that both of you will make it through okay.

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    1. KAT, I was at my wits end not knowing while I wrote this post. Once he had actually seen our doctor and we had a plan of action and knew the seriousness of what we were dealing with I could cope better. Right now I am trying to keep ahead of his pain, and keep on top of the fever trying to keep his temp down. Thank you for stopping by to read and comments and for your prayers. ♥

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  12. It sounds like that idiot at the hospital shouldn't have sent him home so fast.

    We once had a horror story when my daughter lost the tip of her finger. While she screamed in pain, we overheard a nurse complain that "she wished that kid would shut up."

    Little did that stupid nurse know, we overheard her and were also friends with the hospital administrator. Although Judy didn't get her pain meds in a timely manner, we got our revenge!

    Catch My Words
    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com

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    1. Joyce, it helps to have friends in high places sometimes!! Revenge can sometimes be very sweet especially in circumstances like these. Thank you for stopping in to read, and for your kind comments. ♥

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  13. Send you all the good juju I can. Please keep us all posted on how your son is doing, I know it's so scary.

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    1. The Writing Goddess, I will try to keep everyone up to date. Thank you for stopping by to read, comments, and for all the good juju. ♥

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  14. Oh no Kathy. I hope he's better now. Thinking of you and sending a prayer for both of you. Take care. love and hugs.

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    1. Suzy, at this point I am still trying to keep him comfortable and his fever under control. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your comments. ♥

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  15. Well Kathy, I'm just gonna' say it.. Holy fuck! I would be in jail right now for assault and/or attempted murder! That N.P. should be more than reprimanded! And I so hope you're not paying that e.r. bill. I'd tell them to shove it up their ass and don't even think about charging your ins.
    Mama bear rage subsiding.. I'm happy to hear that your baby is doing better.. And poor you.. All alone. I remember those days and they were more than a little scary.
    You will all be in my prayers - says the woman who just cussed like a sailor..
    I am so sorry you had to go thru this. Please keep us updated. (Hugs)

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    1. Magical Mystical Mimi, I already paid the co pay for ER up front. They demanded that. I filed a complaint with the powers that be at the hospital. As far as my son, he is still running a fever of 102.4 this morning and I am worried. His head is still hurting. I am doing all I can do, and it still doesn't seem like enough. You know, you are so much like me that it is scary. I can cuss with the best with them but am deeply spiritual as well. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your comments.

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  16. That N.P. needs to be fired. I can not believe that she sent him home without at LEAST consulting the doc on duty. I would be right back down there wanting to talk to her supervisor and I know that would be damn hard right now with your youngest going through all he is going through. It is now Sunday...so how is he today? I'm glad you took him to your doctor, because that is who he needed to see in the beginning, a doctor!! That damn hospital. Since when do they put N.P.'s in an ER?? Scary.

    Hugs and Kisses to the little one and prayers for you all. Hopefully the weekend has gotten better.

    Cheers, Jenn

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    1. Jenn, I agree completely. It really leaves me in a bad place because I don't feel I can go back to the ER. I mean really, why bother? Who is to say that isn't how a person will be treated again? I can not afford to go and be charged a huge fee for nothing. This morning he is not good in my opinion. He is still running a fever of 102.4 and I am worried sick. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your comments.

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  17. I am so sorry! I hope that your baby is going to be OK.

    What I can't figure is why on earth it took the school nurse an hour to call you if she wanted you there right away. That doesn't make sense. :/

    I understand you being scared and worried. I understand how you feel about not feeling like you can go back to the emergency room. I was treated as you described when I lost one of my babies. Sometimes it seems that they just don't care and we'd be better off trying to take care of ourselves.

    I hope that your little one is going to be OK and that Our Father will bring him healing and you peace and comfort.

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    1. Suzanne, today was another rough day with several calls in to the doctor. He threw up today after threatening to for days. Still was battling the fever from the infection that set in from the swelling of his brain lining. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments. ♥

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  18. Just read this today and I'm so sorry that your little boy has been so sick! Hopefully he's on the way to recovery. Praying for all of you.

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    1. Betty, he seems to be doing better today. If all goes well he will be back to school tomorrow. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your comments. ♥

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  19. I second what Betty ^^^ said - just read this today - hoping the poor little guy is doing better and you both get some relief!
    {{hugs}}

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    1. Lisa, thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments. He is doing better. With any luck, he will be back to school tomorrow. Thank you for stopping by to read and for your kind comments.

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