RSV Positive

What a week! Sunday I taught my little class alone while Robert stayed at home with Samantha. When I got home she seemed to be doing worse and seemed really lethargic, she slept all the time, and her breathing was very rapid. I counted between 68-72 breathes in a minute each time I checked her breathing, which is super high, and that is while she was sleeping. The doctor had said he didn't want her to go above 60.

I called the after hour clinic again... I got an appointment, we went in and they took her temperature, which was 103 point something... and she had 2 ear infections which dr. said was common with the virus. She (dr.) suggested that we admit her to the hospital, but since the dr. I saw was only a P.A. apparently she needed the approval of the main doctor. After another breathing treatment, the dr. and the PA came in to discuss the situation. Due to Samantha's oxygen levels being above 90, the dr. didn't feel like it was needed (even though she was wheezing and had rapid breathing, was sleeping all day and not eating) and she also stated that the hospital was near full anyway.

They asked if I would go over and do a chest x-ray to be sure it wasn't pneumonia and if it wasn't I was to just go home and check back with my normal dr. the next day.

X-rays where clear, which was good. We sat in the busy after hours office most all day and night, our appointment was at 1:40 and we got out of there at 6:30, and the whole time Samantha just slept. If she woke up, she went right back to sleep. We got a deep suction again and a rx for some antibiotic and went home. Lauren was with me the whole time, poor girl. She was SO bored.

The PA also got me a machine which would be used with the same kind of medicine for breathing treatments, but it blows the air out instead of having Samantha take breathes in. They use this machine at the doctors office. I thought it would be easier than trying to SMASH a mask on Sam's face while she breathed 6 times to take in the medicine.

Monday, the kids where out of school of course, I needed to take Samantha to get suctioned again since she was so stuffed up. I told Robert I didn't really know what to do since I didn't know what to do with the girls and all while I needed to take Sam to the doctor and the suction clinic. He said he would come home.

I got my appointment with my normal doctor, and he admitted Samantha to the hospital right away. It was hard but also kind of a relief to have everything watched more closely. They went ahead and did a test for RSV, and sure enough, she was positive.

Once we got to the hospital within about 2 hours, she was in need of oxygen. Poor baby. She was all hooked up to all these monitors it was hard for her to even be held with out getting all tangled up.

Shortly after we were there on Monday, Robert called and said Lindsey had bent her retainer all up, and now she couldn't eat. Not a big problem, she needed to just go back to the ortho, except for that I had the family car.

Luckily we got a hold of Margie H. (from our old neighborhood) and she came and sat with Samantha while I went to switch cars with Robert and get some clothes and what not for my unknown stay at the hospital. She was a total lifesaver!!

I kind of secretly was glad Robert had to take all the kids to the ortho appointment to fix Lindsey's bent up retainer and deal with that, although he didn't have Samantha, but at least he saw what my aapointments are like when I have to take the kids anywhere. I hope he appreciates me a little more now. I told him also that we were out of diapers. He got all bent out of shape about it, and I apologiezed for it, but at the same time I didn't think I was going to be gone. I am guessing he went to the store by himself, or at least went in by himself instead of taking all the kids in like I normally do. Again, I secretly hope he sees how FUN or not so fun to take the kids places when they are fighting and wanting everything and touching each other and everything else in the store.

Tuesday I thought they would just release us, but Dr. said as long as she was on oxygen, she would stay there. BUMMER! We stayed there Monday night, Tuesday night, Wednesday night, and finally on (today) Thursday they took her off oxygen and she did okay. They had tried it each day but then had to give it back to her. They released her right before dinner. It is nice to be home finally, and to be in the normal routine of things, sort of.

I was thinking how sad it was to be in the hospital and not be at home with the other kids. Although I was spending some great one on one time with Samantha. It reminded me of one of my friends, Adrian who had to be on bed rest and in the hospital while she was pregnant with placenta previa and how hard and sad that was for her to be away from her family. But then I thought, at least I was there with Samantha which made it seem better. My small 4 days seemed so small compared to her WEEKS in the hospital, and Robert stayed one evening while I went home with the kids for awhile. It sure makes you more grateful for the little things.

I am glad to be home, and although I would like to think of it as "chicken pox" where you get it once and then you don't normally get it again. The doctor said sometimes babies with RSV will end up back in the hospital again. I also took it that you can also get RSV again later, just like you can get the flu again too. I am keeping my fingers crossed, that everything will be okay and she will get healthy and that Amber won't get sick with it either.