My Doctor Visit

Mike insisted that I make an appointment with my doctor today, so I did and he was able to see me this afternoon. At this point, he doesn't suspect my sickness is related to the mold in our house. I tested negative for strep throat. He said he could hear wheezing and some rattling in my chest, but he says it's not bronchitis or pneumonia. He diagnosed me with an upper respiratory tract infection. He also said both my ears are filled with fluid and are infected, as well. He prescribed an antibiotic, lots of fluids for this congestion, and lots of rest.

Just an Update on the Water Damage

My plans are to share updates on this water damage situation as we make progress.

 

Here's what has happened today...

 

My Surprise for Today

I sat down in my chair today just after finishing lunch, planning to check email, facebook, etc for a few minutes while Will was taking a break, when this catches my eye...

(oops, I took the picture after I removed all the books)

 

What's On My Mind

I know, it's been kind of quiet here. Not in my house per se, but on the blog front. I've been sick this past week. Imagine that! Didn't I wonder recently if life could somehow possibly slow down a bit around here? God sure has a sense of humor.

I've spent most of my time between doctor visits, and the hospital for tests, and in the recliner nursing a fever and pain. For about two weeks now, I have had a fever off and on, and pain on my left side (front and back), as well as a general pain throughout my whole body. You know, kind of like stiff and aching body parts. I wondered if maybe I am developing arthritis. I wondered if the pain in my side might be appendicitis, but the pain never really was excruciating enough to convince me. I also wondered if it might be kidney stones, but again, the pain level never reached an unbearable zenith.

A New Way of Seeing Things

Yes, we're still sick. But we are on the mend. None of us have much of an appetite, but there has been no fever among any of us today. Yay! We have all spent most of the day cuddled up in blankets on the couches.

Of course I have been a little down-hearted about us being sick for so long. But I know that I have a choice in my reaction. So... I've asked the Lord to show me something positive in all of this. And of course He did. Not just one thing, but lots. And isn't that just like Him?

So here are some things that I am thankful for amidst all this sickness:

The Sickness Continues... Maybe There's an End in Sight?

For the few of you outside of my family that read my blog, these posts about our continuing saga of sickness are probably starting to get a bit boring to you. For that, I apologize. But I have found this blog to be beneficial in helping me keep family members informed and up to date on what's happening in our lives. Plus, it serves as a diary to help me keep track of what my poor memory can't.

Today has been spent taking care of two sick little peeps. Every four hours administering some medicinal concoction to help relieve the congestion, the coughing, the aches.

Last night the doctor called to deliver the results of the different tests that were performed on Kate. The strep test result was negative, but she did test positive for the flu, Influenza B to be exact. I was a little surprised because she had so few symptoms of what I thought would be related to the flu. And since I wasn't sure exactly what flu type b is, I did a little research.

There are three types of flu viruses: A, B, and C. Type A and B cause the annual influenza epidemics that have up to 20% of the population sniffling, aching, coughing, and running high fevers. Type C also causes flu; however, type C flu symptoms are much less severe.

Unlike type A flu viruses, type B flu is found only in humans. Type B flu may cause a less severe reaction than type A flu virus, but occasionally, type B flu can still be extremely harmful. Influenza type B viruses are not classified by subtype and do not cause pandemics.

So I learned that Type B Influenza symptoms can range from mild and annoying to severe and serious. And that different people react differently to this virus. The doctor feels that although she didn't test Will or me, we most likely have had the flu as well. Needless to say I was somewhat surprised. I had the flu a few years ago, and I remember spending a few days in bed, so sick I could hardly move. Apparently I had Type A.

The good news is this type doesn't usually last as long, however some of the symptoms (such as coughing and sneezing/sniffling) can last for about three weeks. And Kate's chest x-rays showed that her lungs were clear, no bronchitis or pneumonia. Yay!

Will has felt somewhat better today, compared to yesterday. His fever has stayed down and he even felt like reading some of his Science today. Kate, on the other hand, is experiencing the worst today. She has been lying around in the recliner for most of the day, sniffling, sneezing and coughing. But surprisingly, no fever since 4:00 am this morning. And me... I'm still sniffling and congested, and tired, but I did make a run to Wal-Mart today for more medicine and some more chicken noodle soup. So guess what we'll be having for supper tonight? :)

Sickness, Sickness, Please Go Away

I must say this past month has certainly been challenging, with the car wreck, and the unusually high volume of sickness running rampant in my home. My Explorer is still in the body shop, *sigh* and I'm still driving Granddaddy's Buick. And let me say how very grateful I am that he has loaned it to us (lest I appear unappreciative)!

Kate woke up this morning still feeling blah, but since she had no fever, she wanted to go to school. She didn't want to miss the basketball game tonight (even though her dad told her she would not be playing anyway because of her cough and chest pains). I suggested she stay home and stay in bed today, but she is my stubborn my hard-headed my strong-willed child :) So, off to school she went, only to call home after 3rd period asking me to pick her up because she couldn't get her coughing under control.

I checked her out of school and of course, made an appointment with the doctor. I did hesitate to make the appointment though, and only decided in favor of seeing the doctor this soon because she is complaining with her chest hurting. She tends to get bronchitis easily. The doctor tested Kate for strep throat and the flu, and ordered x-rays of her lungs.

And Will (poor Will) is sick again, too. He awoke this morning with a fever of 102.5. His complaints are headache, stuffiness and some nausea. He has slept for most of the day. Another school day lost. This child has already missed more than 3 weeks of school due to sickness. I will see how he fares through the night before making a decision about a doctor visit for him. I am concerned about his immune system since his recent brush with mono.

I thought I was all better, but today some of my symptoms have resurfaced. Is it only my imagination because I am surrounded by sickness? No, the cough is real enough, and so is the runny nose, and so is the congestion. To quote Charlie Brown, "Good grief!"

So today I started everyone on something called Immune Support, a combination of vitamin c, zinc and echinacea. Probably should have been taking this stuff all along...

Sick Again

I've managed to pick up a bug somewhere... again. Not quite as bad as the flu, but close. I could tell Friday night at the basketball games that I was starting to feel like maybe a head cold was coming on. By the time we got home around 10:00 pm, I was feeling pretty rotten. I was aching all over and felt so cold, so I checked my temperature. Sure enough, a fever. It was a little over 99 degrees, so I took some cold medicine, put an extra blanket on my side of the bed, and promptly went to sleep.

I didn't even wake up till after 11:00 am Saturday morning. Then I just crawled out of bed to take some more medicine and pile up on the couch with my pillows, blankets, tissues, and the tv remote control :). My Saturday went something like this: sleep, watch a little TLC, sleep, watch a little Discovery Channel, sleep, watch a movie, sleep... You get the idea. Oh yeah, and somewhere in the midst of all that sleeping and tv watching, my sweet husband made me a bowl of Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup.

I did feel a little better today. Although my fever is gone, I stayed home from church today. My head still hurts and I'm still very congested. I've just been resting. The couch and I have gotten to know each other pretty well over these last two days.

And now Kate is starting to feel bad, too. Her head hurts, she has a cough and is stuffy. I hope she's not getting whatever I've had.

We don't usually have this much sickness at our house. Not sure what's going on here. I'm beginning to wonder if it has anything to do with this unusually long cold spell we've had down here in the south. We are not used to it being this cold for this long! (ha/ha) As a matter of fact, I think we can dispel that myth about global warming :) !

Catching Up Again

We've had so much excitement around here, I can hardly stand it! Where to begin?

I guess I'll start with the wreck... Kate and I were involved in an auto accident last Wednesday afternoon. We are very fortunate; we sustained minor injuries. CT scans revealed slight concussions, cervical spine sprains, a sprained ankle. We are still very sore, and I continue to have headaches and neck and back pain. But, gratefully, no broken bones or more serious injuries. Unfortunately, my Explorer did not fare so well.



I don't yet have an update on the repair status of my vehicle. And unfortunately, the "at-fault" status is still up in the air as well. The lady who ran through a red light at the intersection and hit me claims to have been part of a funeral procession that was already about 350 feet down the road. The police report doesn't accurately portray my side of the story, and it doesn't include the statements made by eyewitnesses at the scene.

Today I had to go to the police station to write out my statement of what happened, and the eyewitnesses were asked to come in to write out their statements, as well. The chief of police came in to talk to me about it, but, thinking back on what he said, it all seems so absurd. He said this case might go to court, because the "code" is not clear on just how far away a car can be from the rest of the funeral procession, and still be part of the procession. If that is the case, it seems to me that the city should be required to post a police officer at the intersection to direct the traffic, and to make sure there are no stragglers racing through red lights trying to catch up with the procession.

On to the fun stuff... we traveled to Alabama over the weekend to have our Christmas celebrations with our families. Here are some pictures detailing our fun!

my parents

Nana & Papa with some of the grandkids (why can I not remember to take a picture while everyone is still there??)

Granddaddy and my kids

I had to take Will back to the doctor today *sigh*. He started feeling sick again on Saturday afternoon, and by Sunday night he had a temperature of 103.6 and was complaining of a sore throat. I wasn't sure if this was related to his previous illness, but the doctor said it's not. This time he has tonsillitis, so she called in a prescription for Augmentin.

And we are leaving tomorrow, going to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee for a short vacation. We will be coming home on Christmas Eve day. It is getting late and I am still not finished packing... Judging from the lack of noise at this moment, I assume that my husband has tucked everyone into bed already, as we plan to get an early start in the morning. We are all very excited! I suppose I should log off this computer and finish packing so that I can get into bed myself.

Goodnight!

Update Pt 3

Sorry I haven't posted in a while...

Will was pretty much over whatever he had within a week of the blood work and testing. I was waiting to see what the results would be, to find out what he actually had.

We finally heard back from the doctor after two and a half weeks of waiting. The results? Inconclusive. Seriously??? She said that's what the pathologist said in the report. There is evidence that he has been exposed to/and had mono at some point, but it is inconclusive as to exactly when. I really don't understand. And the doctor told us that she has seen this kind of result twice in her years of practice.

So, that's what we're going with... that it was a combination of strep throat and mono. There is really no way of determining otherwise.

As for the rest of the family, no one else has had mono or strep, but there has definitely been some sort of bug hanging out at our house. We have all been sick... and not all at the same time. It has kind of lingered. Head and chest congestion, cough, runny nose, etc. Not the flu, but close. I thought at one point that I might have had bronchitis, my chest hurt so whenever I coughed and even when breathing! So let me tell you, if you've never tried Mucinex DM, it really works wonders! That's what we've all been taking, along with vitamin C tablets and immune support/echinacea/zinc gummies. We are on the road to recovery, but it's been a long, slow process!

Here are some pictures of our Thanksgiving celebration with our family.

my niece and my youngest son

my daughter and another of my nieces

my niece and my oldest son

my nephew and son playing the wii

two of my nieces

my daddy and me

The day after Thanksgiving is THE big game in the state of Alabama, The Iron Bowl -- Auburn University vs University of Alabama. Football is big in the south, and in this rivalry the lines are clearly drawn. It is not unusual to have divided houses when it comes to picking your team!

grandfather and granddaughter

my husband and me

ready to watch the game

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our families. We are so abundantly blessed -- great food, wonderful family, good friends. I don't ever want to take this life for granted. God is so good! Even in the midst of all this sickness *smile*. I hope you had a blessed holiday as well!

"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever." 1 Chronicles 16:34

The Saga of Continuing Sickness...

The doctor did indeed call me last night. His bloodwork came back within normal range. She said his liver enzymes were a little high, but not so much as to cause concern. We're still waiting on the results of the CBC to determine if it is actually mono. He has felt sooo much better today. Still having bouts of fatigue, but thank the Lord, no fever! So far he seems to be on the road to "normal."

And just when we thought we were over that hump... Kate was sick when she came home from school yesterday :((( Sore throat, fever, stuffy nose, runny nose... agghhhh! We have a doctor in town who has night-time hours (????) kind of like an after-hours clinic, only he doesn't open until 8:00 pm. And since we plan to travel for Thanksgiving, I thought I should find out what she has. So I took her there last night.

We had to wait an hour before we were taken back to an examining room. The waiting room was hot and stuffy. Not an empty chair in the room. Sick people coughing and sneezing all over the place. I could just feel the germs multiplying and spreading. Ick!

The diagnosis: upper respiratory infection. The prescribed treatment: amoxicillin for the infected sinuses, zyrtec for the nasal symptoms, saline nasal spray for the stuffiness, tylenol for the fever and aches, lozenges for the sore throat, sleep propped up on extra pillows to promote drainage... and a shot of decadron to reduce inflammation of the sinuses.

Just a few minutes after the shot, I was in the receptionist area, paying for the visit when all of sudden, Kate said she had to throw up. I looked at her and right before my eyes, I watched the color literally drain from her face. She told me she couldn't see clearly, that everything was blurry. Then she said she couldn't hear anything. She was frightened. Then she said everything was getting dark. Now I was frightened. We got her into a chair and she didn't faint, but she did start to vomit.

I guess one of the nurses went for the doctor, because all of sudden, he was there, telling them to get her back in the examining room onto the table. He had her elevate her feet and lie with her head lower than the rest of her body. He said she had just experienced a sudden drop in blood pressure. That she was fine. He gave her a sprite and told her to sip it slowly. He stayed with her and talked to her in a calming, reassuring way for about 5 minutes. We just love this doctor! Then we were on our way home.

Geesh, what a night! I decided to forgo any medications since her stomach might be sensitive after that little episode. I just tucked her into bed and called it a night!

She has felt okay today, not normal, but okay. Taking her medicines, and Will's still taking his.

And I'm trying very hard not to ask "What next????" But in the midst of it all, I am grateful that the Lord has given me His strength to endure these last 8 days. And I am thankful that I am able to take care of my children, to nurse them back to good health. And I am thankful that it is not something more serious that we could be going through.

Update on Will - Pt. 2

Saturday's fever ranged from 99 to 101.2 degrees. I think he felt a little better. Still lying around more than being up. Sunday was definitely his best day. No fever all day. He even felt like celebrating his birthday! We put 12 candles on a strawberry cheesecake ice cream cake (his favorite) and sang happy birthday to him.

I stayed home with him Sunday morning while Mike, Ryan and Kate went to church. No fever. And even though by Sunday evening he had been fever-free for 24 hours, Mike stayed home with him while the rest of us went to church. Just to be on the safe side.

Will felt so much better, and he wanted to go out for pizza for his birthday, so we met them after evening service. Even though he felt better, he soon realized  he still didn't have much of an appetite and he couldn't even eat one full slice of pizza. *sigh* He's so tired of this.

At bedtime, I realized he had a rash on several places on his body. And his temperature was 99.6. After having no fever for 24 hours. Will this never end???

So, guess where we went today? Yep, back to the doctor. This led the doctor to believe that he does indeed have mono. Taking a penicillin-based antibiotic while having mono can produce a rash. So many questions. Was it strep throat? Is it mono? She thinks yes to both questions.

She took some blood to have it analyzed. She told me about 4 different things, other than the epstein barr virus that causes mono, that she wanted to check for. I can't remember it all. The mono test will take a week and a half to get the results back, but she should know something on the other tests today and she will call me tonight to discuss it.

He slept most of the morning. He has felt well enough today to play the wii with his brother. Although, he has eaten very little today. And he has had no fever today. Can we be so fortunate as to continue to be fever-free tonight?

Thank you to those who have been praying. It means alot to me! It has definitely been a long week. And if it is mono, this could continue for a few more weeks! I'm praying that it is not mono, but then if it isn't, I would like to know what it is. I guess that's why she is running these other tests.

I will post more when I know more.

Update on Will

So we saw the pediatrician again today. She had three opinions of what might be causing Will to have fever for this many days. 1) It could be strep that is not completely responding to the amoxicillin, and therefore we would need to try a different antibiotic. 2) It could be mono. The mono spot test came back negative, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the virus that causes mono is not present. 3) It could be the flu.

She did a nasal swab to test for flu. The result was negative. She said that rules out flu. However, it seems funny to me that both the strep and the mono tests produced a negative result too, and the doctor said that you could get a false negative on those tests. I don't understand, but then again I'm not the doctor.

Futher testing for mono would require blood work which would take two weeks to confirm the results. She decided to continue to treat Will for strep throat. Mostly because his throat looks better, his tonsils aren't swollen, and his lymph nodes aren't tender to touch anymore. In her opinion, that means it did respond to the antibiotic. But there could be a "pocket" of infection that isn't responding to it, hence the continued fever.

We will try the new antibiotic over the weekend, and if he continues to have fever we will go back to her office on Monday morning for blood work and further tests.

So Will and I didn't go to Kate's basketball games tonight. We still aren't sure if he's contagious. The doctor said if it's strep, then he is not contagious, in spite of the fever, because he has been on an antibiotic for several days. On the other hand, if it is mono, then as long as he has a fever he is contagious. So we will stay put for the weekend. Just in case.

Not that he would have felt like going to the games anyway. His temperature is back up to 101.4 now. And he is tired and achy from the fever. As long as his fever is down he feels ok, but when it goes back up, he feels pretty rotten. I'm praying that it is the antibiotic, and that this new one will work. We should know something by about 5:00 tomorrow afternoon, because if it is strep the fever should be gone within 24 hours after starting the antibiotic.

Please join me in praying for him. This has been one long week.

Still Sick

He's still sick. It's been 5 days now. And Lizzy has hardly left his side.

I'm up to check for fever in the next little bit. It is easier to stay up and wait, than to go to sleep then wake up.

I will call the doctor in the morning (hmmm... it is morning). Just not sure this is strep. Wondering if it might be something viral, maybe flu? He has had aches and pains off and on throughout the day since Tuesday. He has slept alot. He has had temperatures ranging from a low-grade 99 degrees all the way up to 104 degrees! The last couple of days, he has had no appetite.

Just when I think he's getting better, the fever goes back up. Or the headache returns.

This morning when I woke him, his fever was back up to 102 degrees. A couple of advil and two hours later, he felt fine. Then he slept through lunch. He felt good for the first part of the afternoon. We even played a few games of Uno! Then he felt tired again, and the fever went back up...

talking to his big brother... he called to check on Will, and to wish him a happy birthday... Sorry Will, it wasn't such a happy one!

And there are stomach issues too. I wonder if that is a reaction to the antibiotic.

He has had strep throat once already this year, and it wasn't like this at all. Within a couple days of being on the antibiotic, he was back to normal. So uncertain.

Sick Days

I have a sick little man at home today. Actually, he's been sick since Monday. The doctor suspected strep throat, but the test came back negative. So she tested for mono. That came back negative as well. She explained that you can get a false negative result, and based on his symptoms of sore throat (which looked like strep to her as well) and headache, she prescribed an antibiotic. He never had a temperature and he never felt really bad.

Until today. After two days of being on his medicine. When I woke him this morning, he felt as if he were burning up. I felt like such a bad momma, not checking on him during the night...

So he has spent most of today lying on the couch, alternating between watching tv and sleeping. Taking tylenol and advil, which has helped him to feel a little better, but has really done very little for keeping the fever down.

He threw up this afternoon, so I began to wonder if he has strep throat after all. A call to the pediatrician, and the nurse assured me that nausea and vomiting can go along with strep throat. But she took down these notes and told me the doctor would call me this evening.

So... waiting.

If you think of us, please say a little prayer. I feel so helpless when my children are sick.

Our Day

Today was just one of those days...nothing seemed to go according to plan. For one thing, I overslept this morning. That's always a good indicator that things aren't going to fall into place for the rest of the day! I'm just sooo tired. My dh is sick (with a cold) and he hasn't been sleeping well at night. Also, my little fellow has had strep throat and now he has developed a bad cough. So I've been lying down with him at night to help him get to sleep. And I always fall asleep in his bed. Then I wake up and go get in my bed. And I have a hard time getting back to sleep, because dh is either snoring (bless his heart) or he's tossing and turning.

Well, I've said all that just to justify my sleeping late this morning! So we got behind on our lessons and our chores today. We did finish everything; it just took us all day! Then I had to call the doctor again...and go to Wal-Mart for more medicine...again. I'm so ready for my family to be well again! I'm sure they are ready, too!

I hope your day has been better than mine!

Bits and Pieces

Some of the things we've been up to lately:

Just for fun... math with Aubie

Science investigations:

investigating how the continual rubbing of rocks...

contributes to the formation of soil

investigating the ability of freezing water to break rocks

obviously we shouldn't have used a pickle jar... as the water

expands, the jar is supposed to break...

Upward Basketball:

     Our two youngest children are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to competiveness in sports, as you will see in these next few pictures. Kate is a very competitive and aggressive player. Winning is very important to her; she gives 100 percent and holds nothing back. Will, on the other hand, is so nonchalant and very laid-back. If his team wins, that's great; if they don't, well...at least he had a good time.

Kate, on a fast break

going in for a lay-up

Will dribbling down court, no fast breaks for him

putting up a shot

Our little guy, sick with strep throat, on sister's birthday...

please mom, no more pictures...

I'm happy to report that today he is feeling much better, after being on his antibiotic. He was not happy that he had to miss Awana last Wednesday night. Lord willing, he should be able to go to church in the morning.