A Croupy Week-End

Tony participated in the Zombie Dash a week ago.  I guess he didn’t “survive” after all.  He started coughing that evening…this only adds to my theory that running is bad for you ;).  A week later and he is much worse, running fever, and showing no improvement, so I assume whatever cold he had ended up going into infection mode.  Of course, he goes to a doc in the box, and the doctor doesn’t even look at him.  He told me the doctor walked in the room and asked what kind of antibiotic he likes.  Umm…hello, are the doctors that work in urgent care the kind that have decided they didn’t want to practice medicine after all, and they would just let the patient tell them what they wanted and they would sign off on it? 

 

Anyway…

I do believe Gabe got the cold from Tony.  Thursday evening, I could tell he wasn’t feeling well.  On our way to eat, Gabe kept saying he was tired, and while we were in the restaurant, he ate a few bites of food.  He then put his head down on the booth seat and played with his car.  Eventually, he had his head in Tony’s lap.  He went to bed without needing to pee 15 times, so that was another clue he did not feel well.

Friday morning, he woke up with a fever of 101.3 and a little bit of a cough and at lunch it was over 102.  I wasn’t going to give him fever reducer until he really needed it.  I wanted the fever to do its job.  That evening it got to 103, and he started getting really whiney, so I gave him ibuprofen.  He lost his voice, and when he cried, he had the strider (seal) sound when he was breathing in.  At 3:30 am, he woke up with a barky cough and fever back up to 103.  I tried to get him to take more meds, but I could only get him to take half of it.  I slept on his floor for the rest of the night. 
To add to our lovely Friday evening, our toilet did not stop running, and we didn't know it until the floor was completely flooded.  Luckily, it hadn't absorbed too much into the carpet by the time Tony found it.

Saturday, we went to Tuscaloosa Pediatricss, and the doctor checked him for flu and strep just to be safe.  He was pretty certain it was just viral croup.  The tests were negative.  Let me just tell you, I did not realize how very strong my child was until I had to hold him down while he swabbed his throat and nose.  He was given a steroid to take to keep his throat open where he could breathe. The doctor said that the drainage and mucous could cause an ear infection or unlikely pneumonia, so I went to Manna and bought some oil of oregano.  We will see if that can keep infection from setting in.  I am also putting it on Sam as preventative care.  I hope it works!

Sunday, Gabe seems to be feeling a good bit better.  He didn’t cough the entire night.  He ran out of his room and gave me a big lick on the cheek and barked a little.  I guess he turned into a zombie dog while Tony is staying in bed turning into a zombie.