From bad to much, much worse

Last week at this time, I had anxiety over Cameron starting kindergarten; would he find his way on the bus, feel scared?  Typical worries of any parent sending a five year old off into the deep blue sea of life.

Monday morning, right before Cam said his face felt weird.

I mentioned in my last post that we ended up in the doctor's office Monday evening with the diagnosis of a blocked salivary gland after we noticed Cam's cheek was slightly swollen.  We headed home, got the kids to bed & I woke up bright & early for work Tuesday morning, leaving before anyone was awake.

Tuesday morning

Mike called me a few hours later saying that Cam's face was even more swollen & he was crying in pain when trying to eat breakfast.  So Mike took the day off & headed back to the doctor to get an antibiotic prescription.

Tuesday evening

When I came home from work Tuesday evening, I was absolutely appalled with what I saw; Cameron didn't even look like my boy.  When it was time to eat dinner & Cam was acting even more sickly, I looked at Mike & we both said it was likely we'd be in the ER that evening.  After seeing he had a 102 temp, I called the after hours doctor's line & he confirmed that the ER was the way to go.



Luckily we were seen quickly & the second the ER doctor looked at Cam, he told me we would be admitted for IV antibiotics which is exactly what I anticipated.  On the drive to the hospital, I explained the IV to Cameron to try & mentally prepare him.



I could not believe just how well he did with the IV placement.  He told the nurse, "That's it??!  That didn't even hurt!"  When we finally got up to his actual room, he asked the night nurse if he could have another IV.  Her response?  "I've never had a patient ask me that before!"  I was so grateful that our friend Kelly offered to spend the night with Reese so Mike could be with us in the hospital since he was a nervous wreck, sitting at home.



The first night was horrible, I probably slept three broken hours between all the vital checks & IV changes.  Cam & Mike, on the other hand, slept like logs.  When we met the doctor in the morning he was very concerned that Cam was developing an abscess.  If he didn't respond to the antibiotics, they would need to consult a plastic surgeon to drain it.  Yikes, we were worried to say the least & would need to stay at least one more night.

Wednesday morning

 

Through it all, Cam was completely himself with endless energy.  We were just there to be hooked to the antibiotics for thirty minutes every six hours.  There was a lot of downtime spent playing many, many board games, watching many, many shows & movies.

I was much better prepared for sleep the second night since Mike ran out & picked up some ear plugs for me & Advil p.m.  I sleep with earplugs every single night at home since I'm an incredibly light sleeper.  I basically just drugged myself to sleep with a couple of the Advil p.m. & thankfully slept most of the night.  Cameron was completely oblivious to the vital checks & IV hookups during the night which I was very thankful for.

Since we were at the children's hospital they had a lot for the kids to do & even let Cam borrow an iPad loaded with games.

When we woke up Thursday morning, the swelling was still there but much improved & no longer red & hot to the touch.  I hoped & prayed the doctor would think he'd be okay for discharge on oral antibiotics, but no dice.  He wanted him to stay another night just to be safe.  On to night three in the hospital!  Mike ran out for some Indian food for us & we hunkered down to watch some movies with Cam.  There was a lot of quality time & cuddling going on which was an awesome bonus.

Wednesday night

Friday morning Mike went to work & we waited & waited & waited for the doctor to come around & hopefully discharge us.  This was the first morning he looked completely himself so I was confident they would send us on our way.  We killed time playing Sorry, LIFE & Old Maid.

Friday afternoon

Around noon the doctor rounded & I literally started clapping as she came into the room.  She said we could go & he'd be on a potent oral antibiotic that taste like hell for the next eight days.  I was so incredibly thankful!  I hadn't seen Reese in three days and I was in desperate need for a hot shower!  Mike had ran out to Walmart to get me another outfit for our stay, so lets just say I looked a little interesting walking around the hospital.  But hey, he tried!  So sadly, Cameron only made it to one day of his first week of kindergarten but he's back to it tomorrow.  I am so happy that he responded to the medication & didn't need more aggressive intervention.  I kept it together in the hospital, but have crashed since leaving.  I've been exhausted all weekend & feel like I want to sleep all day long which is so not like me.  I'm looking forward to getting back into the land of the living tomorrow!