I did not quite realize when I decided to have children that I was signing up for a crash course in first aid and preliminary diagnosis. Yet from day one I had to monitor my child and decide whether or not the symptoms merited medical attention and how urgently that attention was needed. At first all of the ailments were new. I learned the signs of ear infections and childhood diseases. I became an expert in the interpretation of rashes. I tended kids through croup, chicken pox, asthma, a kidney infection, RSV, adenoid removal, nearly broken bones, scrapes, cuts, stitches, objects up noses, objects swallowed, and several dozen varieties of flu, stomach flu, and colds. Somewhere in the middle of all of that I changed from a mom who called others to have them look at baby’s rash into the person whom others called with rash questions. You’d think by now I’d have seen it all, yet I’m still scratching my head, consulting google, and trying to decide whether to see a doctor about all sorts of things. This past year we’ve had heartburn trouble, ingrown toenails, strained abdominal muscles, a scratched cornea, and –just tonight– a case of systemic hives triggered by we know not what. I never wanted to be a doctor and yet I’m regularly called on as a first responder and triage nurse.
And this is the point when I should be able to bring all of these thoughts around to say something useful or profound about it all. Mostly though I’m thinking about how unpleasant hives are and how much I don’t want to have to play “figure out what caused the systemic reaction.” Time for bed.
To be fair, Objects Up Noses is – speaking honestly – a feature and not a bug. The trick is a matter of getting them lodged far enough into the nostril to stay on their own, but not so far as to be unable to remove at a moments notice. Large Crayola crayons (preferably red ones, as the red ones go faster) are nearly ideal. Lego heads fit well, but are prone to sticking. Quarters and nails are excellent, if you want to make an impression.
That’s quite dreadful luck. It seems that most families are either virtually immune to ailments or chock full of them. I’m fortunate enough to be in the former category.
It seems you are in need of a Dr. House. Best of luck.
We spend large portions of our lives completely healthy. It comes in waves and all those ailments are spread across 17 years of parenting four children.
Yes, childhood ailments come in waves – especially when there’s more than one child in the group, such as your kids and my own early memories.
I have two elder brothers. What I don’t remember, I rely on my mother telling me, and sure enough: When there’s siblings, if one catches the ailment, the rest will catch the same thing as well. I can’t tell you how many colds I’ve been through in this lifetime; variant Flu strains every now & then, and last November was the second time I caught pneumonia. Now that there are vaccines for some of these ailments, why didn’t you & your family get the shots? Now that you don’t have anything major coming up, you can get with Howard to round up all the kids and get your whole family (and yourself) protected in one fell swoop.
Of course, I’m one to talk, with my own ailments… some genetic, some from others (like that bout of pneumonia) that I have to deal with daily. Like today: right knee is not taking my weight thanks to a cold front that’s going to come through later today or tomorrow. It twinges with pain at every step, and I have to hobble instead of walk… but that’s a defect for you.
So you’re not the only mother who has to be a doctor on the side…. ; )
I think all parents have to pick up medical diagnosis as a hobby or side-job. Often frustrating, but often true. I have mixed feelings about flu shots, but they certainly wouldn’t help with the hives, heartburn, scratched cornea, etc. If any of us were in high risk categories, we would definitely go get flu shots. On the other hand, having kids in public school may qualify as high risk all by itself. hmm…
I wanted to tell you about an experience I had which may or may not be relevant to your situation. I had systemic hives for about six months starting just before my failed first marriage, and extending into the first bad part of it. Despite lots of Dr. Appointments, we never did find a cause, and it eventually went away on its own.
At the time, I was resentful of doctors who told me that it was just stress, as if it implied that the agony I was experiencing from constant itching was all in my head. With some perspective, I can now see that they were trying to tell me that major life events, like a wedding and failing realtionship, can cause major stress, and one of the body’s reactions to this can be an autoimmune response that makes unexplained hives.
I tell you this so that if you can’t find a cuase, and stress is brought up as an option, you can have some comforting words to say to your child and let her know that her experience is not being discounted, it’s just that she is “allergic” to an experience rather than a substance. The cure is to find emotionally healthy ways to deal with the underlying stressor (which as you know is not always the same as the obvious trigger).
On the other hand, Peter had systemic hives once because I used the wrong laundry soap, so it might be an allergy after all.
Good luck.
Thank you. This is good to know. So far it hasn’t come back so we’re hoping that it was a one time thing.