Around Halloween Drew started to get a little stuffy nose and cough. By Sunday night of Halloween he had fevers and was very lethargic. That night we took him to the Pediatric InstaCare and they said he had a viral infection, but were still concerned that he looked so lethargic. They gave him Tylenol and asked us to wait in the office while it took affect because they wanted to see if it would perk him up. Well after two hours he seemed more like himself and we went home. Over the next few days he seemed to get better, but his fever soon returned and his oral intake continued to be low. On Thursday morning at 2am Michelle decided to take Drew to Primary Children's Emergency Department because she thought his breathing was a little worse, his cough was more frequent, and she was worried he was getting dehydrated. In the ED they decided to give him fluids through and IV. While there his O2 Saturation was in the low 90's but soon fluctuated to the 80's and 70's so they decided to admit him for observation. I had gone to work at 5am, but by 9am when it was finally decided to keep him in the hospital I was able to leave work for the day. At 7am I had gotten a message from Michelle's parents wondering if things were going OK, they didn't know Drew had gone to the hospital, but had received a call from the Woolley's that they had heard both cars leave earlier than normal in the morning and thought somethings must be wrong. They have come to know our daily routines quite well. When I got to the hospital Michelle had been able to convince the hospital to admit Drew to the less than 24 hour wing because she knew if he went to the floor we would definitely have to stay over night and it's not our favorite thing to do. They continued to give him IV fluids and monitor his oxygen saturation. He was back up into the low 90's but when he would fall asleep it would drop into the 80's so he was put on a low dose of oxygen.
Drew slept most of his hospital visit which was well needed since he hadn't slept well at all the last few nights. It was confirmed that he had a viral infection, Para Influenza, which caused his croup, but they also found he was getting an ear infection and started him on antibiotics. With a viral infection there isn't much you can do, but make them feel as comfortable as possible and let time do the rest. We managed to get lots of nasal excretions suctioned from his nose and that helped him breath a lot better and sleep and eat more comfortably. By late afternoon he began to get a little more energy, increase his oral intake, and have more wet diapers. The video shows his good energy, but a little of how cranky he was to be sick.
By 7pm that night we were able to take Drew home. They still recommended that he be on a low dose of oxygen, mainly at night, and wanted us to slowly get him to drink and eat more during the day. Even after all the rest he had gotten during the day he still managed to fall asleep on our way home. Looking at him in his car seat with the oxygen on reminded us of when we first brought him home after being born, but he was now five times bigger.
About an hour after getting home we got an all too familiar package delivered to our door. The giant silver and green oxygen tank.
We wish we didn't have it in our front room, but we will keep it for the next month because they tell us we are charged the same amount whether we keep it for a day or 30 days. I guess since we have already met our out of pocket for the year it is free either way. We hope we don't have to use it again.
