flu bug hits home!

[Camperroo]

I think...DD came home from school yesterday with a bad headache and fever of 101!  Wish her teacher would have called me when she let her fall asleep in her study hall because she felt so crummy!!!!   Being 14 she was stubbornly holding on because she had a "call back" for an audition that afternoon at school.   She's never fallen asleep in school. I can't blame the teacher, DD told her she wasn't feeling well and since it was a study hall, the teacher told her she could put her head down on the desk and then she zonked out for almost a half hour!!  I just wish the teacher had given me a quick call to let me know!!  I'd have pulled her out, stubborn or not.  Had a rapid strep test 2 days ago but was told it was negative and she was feeling better, but when they sent it out to the lab, it came back showing some strep bacteria, so doc started her on antibiotics.  Last night she woke us up at 1:00 am feeling dizzy and nauseous, fever up to 102.7!!  It's still been hovering around that today, but I'm alternating Tylenol with Motrin to keep it down plus her antibiotic.  Poor kid, she's lying next to me on the sofa sound asleep with a cold cloth on her forehead and a back icewrap wrapped in a towel along her back to help her feel cool and bring down that temp.  It's so awful to see your kids go from full energy to really lethargic to where it's hard to even get her to eat some jello and drink some gatorade especially for a 14 yr. old!

Pediatrician not sure if it's really strep since only a small amount of bacteria showed up on the culture or viral, but we'll keep her on the antibiotics anyway, just in case as it's so coincidental!  Bless her little camping heart, she knows the big RV show is in Boston this weekend and she's upset she can't go!!!!  We told her it will be running through till next weekend!!

[wiininkwe]

Glad you caught it when you did, watch her closely as the flu can rapidly deteriorate to worse things, especially when the 'patient' gets exhausted.  I just went thru a bad bout with pneumonia, started before Christmas and was down all thru the Holidays, and when I should have been bouncing back I was instead starting all over again.  Had 2 rounds of antibiotics, and lots of staying indoors and inactive to get rid of it.  Still get tired more easily than normal.  That high fever and headache seems to be the tip off to this crap.   Don't be surprised if she doesn't eat for a few days, her body is too busy trying to heal to notice hunger, just keep her well hydrated.
T

[Camperroo]

wow things got pretty scary after I actually had shortly finished posting.  DD woke up from sleeping and was really feeling bad, temp was 102.7, she wanted to go into the bathroom so I walked with her, thank god I did because all of a sudden she said, mommy I feel so funny everything looks black and just like that she collapsed in my arms.  Freaked me out to no end. We both went down to the floor and she was totally out of it and I was yelling her name trying to wake her up.  My heart was beating so fast it was skipping beats.  After about 10 seconds or so she looked up at me and asked why she was on the floor.  I grabbed the phone and called 911 and bless them they were here in what seemed to be only two minutes.  Her blood pressure was very low and she was feeling very faint again.  Got her to the hospital and her fever was raging and she was shaking uncontrollably but they nurses and doctors were so fantastic in caring for her.  Even though we tried to keep up with hydration, she hadn't enough and was severely dehydrated all within 24 hrs.  Absolutely scary.  I'm happy to share she was released at 1am, we got home and tucked her in.  She's feeling much better today and actually had a normal temp and I'm making sure she's eating and at least drinking something every hour.    

So please anyone who has this nasty bug, drink and keep hydrated as much as you can even if you really don't feel like it.   I"m so thankful it was nothing more serious, but it scared the very life out of me.

[B-flat]

My son called yesterday to tell me he has had the flu for the past several days.  He said a friend who is a nurse at the hospital has been checking on him.  He's drinking plenty of fluids and eating well plus beginnig to feel some better.  He's anxious to get back to work and I cautioned him to take it easy in that respect because that bug can lead to something more serious.

[Camperroo]

My son called yesterday to tell me he has had the flu for the past several days.  He said a friend who is a nurse at the hospital has been checking on him.  He's drinking plenty of fluids and eating well plus beginnig to feel some better.  He's anxious to get back to work and I cautioned him to take it easy in that respect because that bug can lead to something more serious.

I hope he bounces back quickly.  It's so important to get those fluids in, but when you're feeling so crummy you can't even think of food or even wanting to drink something.   It's been a really nasty flu-type season this year and you don't know how fast your body really can dehydrate and then you're in trouble fast.

[NightOwl]

I am so relieved that your daughter  has been to the hospital and been checked out and will soon be OK.  Many of her symptom were strongly  remeniscent of  one of the forms of bacterial meningitis and it is not unusual to find that  in teenagers at this time of year. (I'm sure everyone on the board is aware several youngsters have died from it this season.)  

Not to be an alarmist, but meningitis can rapidly become    life-threatening, and it is always good to check carefully and QUICKLY  when someone appears with  a combination of   the following symptoms:

"High fever, headache, and stiff neck are common symptoms of meningitis in anyover the age of 2 years. These symptoms can develop over several hours, or they may take 1 to 2 days. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, discomfort looking into bright lights, confusion, and sleepiness. In newborns and small infants, the classic symptoms of fever, headache, and neck stiffness may be absent or difficult to detect, and the infant may only appear slow or inactive, or be irritable, have vomiting, or be feeding poorly. As the disease progresses, patients of any age may have seizures."

As to the dehydration, that's really bad stuff, too.  When we lived in Charlottesville, a friend's 18 month old son developed a high fever, nausea, and  diahrrea.  He became so sick so quickly that she decided to get a friend to drive them to the   UVA hospital ER.  In her diaper bag she just happened to have  2 full baby bottles of water.  In the five or six minutes it took to drive to the hospital, the baby frantically drained both bottles.  In the ER they rushed him into a treatment room and a doctor remarked that in his opinion, the baby was so badly dehydrated that the water may well have saved his life and at the very least prevented him from going into severe seizures.

[Camperroo]

NightOwl thanks for your kinds words!  DD is feeling better today but I as the momma am sitting on her for the next two days and not letting her go to school and when the school said they'd send homework home, I told them to forget it, she was home to completely rest and recover, they could make arrangements for makeup work later.  I swear the constant push on these kids to keep up with all the homework (she usually has homework in every subject every night!) on top of trying to live a life outside of school with activities such as sports or drama or music, really burns them out and then when they get sick...they really are wiped out.

Her pediatrician has told me to take her to a pediatric neurologist because after she passed out her upper body was "twitching" is as best as I can describe it, like a spasm, doctor was concerned it was a seizure which if it was, was probably fever induced, but she wants to be on the safe side for DD's sake.  Scary stuff...

[MommaMia]

Her pediatrician has told me to take her to a pediatric neurologist because after she passed out her upper body was "twitching" is as best as I can describe it, like a spasm, doctor was concerned it was a seizure which if it was, was probably fever induced, but she wants to be on the safe side for DD's sake.  Scary stuff...

Sounds like a Febrile seizure to me... Completely innocuous.   My DD had once when her temp reached 104 when she was little.  But it's good that you follow the Dr's advice and rule out anything serious!

Glad sh'e feeling a bit better... and good for you on the no to homework!  DD is supposed to get tonsils and adenoids out this week and school suggested I take home work for her.  I said we'll take it earlier than surgery date or the following week when she's recouped, but NOT while she's supposed to be recovering!

[birol]

I am so glad your DD is doing better now. Don't let her exert herself for anything, and school just can forget that she exists while she is busy getting better. When our DD was home after her hospital stay, we kept her at home, till she said she wanted to go home. her teacher was nice though, she didn't make her catch up on the homework.

[NightOwl]

Camperoo and Cindy, I'm so impressed with  you both for  watching over your kids so carefully. and protecting them from this overload when they arent well.    I am dismayed at how hard children of all ages  are pushed today and how little time schools and other organizations allow them anymore for just being kids.  Unless they are allowed a little slack and the chance to experience "solitude" now and then, it must be very difficult for them to re-charge their batteries and to "live in the moment" or develop their imaginations and  creativity.  


Studies of our most creative thinkers--especially scientists and artists--show that as children they were often alone, giving them the chance to daydream and wonder about things.  In fact, a few years ago, someone actually wrote a book on the benefits of "Solitude."

And you, too,  Birol! :W