Okay, so when my son was first born, I was understandably scared and nervous. I think every new mom is at some point or another. But that worry always tended to double or triple when he got sick. Coughs, fevers, runny noses and teary eyes filled my days. I was strong for him on the outside, but freaking out on the inside.
I always had that fear that he would either vomit in his sleep and choke or not be able to breathe due to a runny nose. This goes back to my other post though, where I write about my being
really overprotective of him. I just want to keep him safe, no matter what. But I know that getting overly upset when he is sick really won't do either of us any good at all.
I have to say that the worst thing to deal with are fevers. The other day my son spiked a 102 fever. I stayed up all night watching him and obsessively taking his temperature to make sure it didn't go any higher. Giving him medicine is sometimes a task, it kind of depends on his mood that day. But he wasn't eating or drinking very much either, so that had me only more worried.
Nevertheless, one of the things that I am learning along the road of motherhood is to take it easy and not worry as much. A decent amount of worry is normal, but obsessing over something is just going to make the situation even worse.
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Comments (3)
So, I'm not a parent, so I don't know this kind of fear yet. However, I do remember that basically the only time I lost my appetite as a kid was when I had a fever, and as I got old enough to understand, found out this was normal. I don't know if that's enough to assuage your worry at all, but the body naturally shuts down its metabolism during a fever to focus on running the fever/burning off the infection. So if/when it happens again, you should know it's not an additional symptom, just an effect of the existing fever. You could also try offering him different foods; I remember being sick for a week and NOTHING looked or smelled good, and then my mom made this chicken and rice salad and I devoured tons of it. It's probably more important to make sure he drinks, though.
Drinking with a fever is the most important, if you can bribe him with some pedialyte or gatorade. And with a fever a luke warm bath can be helpful every few hours. Just for your peace of mind, I'd give the doctor a call, maybe to check in with the nurse, so it's on record, and if the doctor at some point decides to see your little one, you've already checked in. Sometimes it is reassuring just to speak to the nurse and have her get back to you, telling you the doctor knows, and maybe he/she has some specific ideas if it's something they are seeing a ton of right then. But I'd still work on a bribe of some sort to get fluids down the little fella, even if you have to make something you wouldn't necessarily feed him, like jello, or pudding, etc.
Set aside your fear by increasing your knowledge.
Here's a book I recommend:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_28?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=how+to+raise+a+healthy+child+in+spite+of+your+doctor&sprefix=how+to+raise+a+healthy+child%2Caps%2C430
Marty Wenger, RN