Sick Ephraim

From November 4th, 2010

I feel like I need to preface this story. Sick has taken a whole new meaning with what is going on with Claire - so I kind of feel silly posting this. However, I am sticking to my rule of it happened and I have pictures, therefore I blog about it. I also apologize for the small size and picture quality - they are from my phone which has been dropped in the water at least twice.

After Halloween Ephraim started having diarrhea. Multiple times a day. On the 2nd of November I took him to the doctor's office. We were on day three of diarrhea, but I was most concerned that he had an ear infection on top of his stomach virus (he had goopy eyes - which in my kids is usually the tell-tale sign of an ear infection.) No ear infection and I was told to keep pushing fluids.

By nighttime on the third Ephraim started having bright green diarrhea. Craziest thing I have ever seen. After calling Colleen she said it was probably bile from his stomach being empty. Ephraim had pretty much stopped eating and I was trying my hardest to get him to drink Gatorade and eat Pedialyte popsicles.

I called the doctor's office early on the 4th - which also happened to be Forrest's 32nd birthday. Ephraim started the morning by having diarrhea that leaked all over our bed. I am by no means an alarmist when it comes to my kids and being sick - but enough was enough. My kid was pooping bile and even though we had just been in we went in that afternoon. Ephraim had 8 bouts of neon green diarrhea before we arrived. Our pediatrician decided that although Ephraim wasn't technically dehydrated enough to need an iv - he was dehydrated and Dr. Leclair thought that an iv would help Ephraim get over this faster. He sent us downstairs to the Urgent Care and talked to the doctor in charge about what he wanted.

The physician's assistant that we first saw didn't think Ephraim really needed an IV, but after he spoke with the doctor in charge Ephraim got one.
It wasn't until they were trying to get an iv in Ephraim that I really wished Forrest would have been there. It took three of us to do it. If you look at the above picture he has a bandage on his right hand. He was dehydrated enough that the iv wouldn't go into his right hand - she tried twice. Thankfully she was able to get it in his left hand. The gauze was so he wouldn't pull the IV out. I felt so bad for him as he was crying so hard while she was trying to prick him. Sweet Selah played with the trains I had brought on the floor and didn't really care that her brother was upset.
Ephraim calmed down after the IV was in and they gave him a popsicle. In the hour it took to get 240 ml in him he ate 7 popsicles.
Selah goofing around. She did really well considering we spent a total of five and half hours at both the doctors and Urgent care.
They sent us home even though Ephraim still hadn't had a wet diaper (he hadn't had one all day) with the expectation that he would soon with all the popsicle and fluid in him. He did while we ate dinner (Mommy went and got take out). I am so thankful that our doctor "prescribed" an IV even when Ephraim wasn't technically dehydrated enough. He didn't have another episode of diarrhea and was back to himself the next day. It was so nice to have my boy back. Although trying to get rid of his addiction to tv and juice from that week is whole other blog post.