He's A Quiet Trooper

My little patient has had quite a rough time of it today. I really expected drastic improvements now that we have medication and good knowledge of what he has. (That's a blessing! It's so difficult for me to hear "we don't really know what's causing it.) Dalton has some sort of super stomach bug that has his gastrointestinal system all out of whack.

Last night, after initiating his regimen, he seemed to do really well. I mean he didn't want to stay up and play Parcheesi or anything; he slept all night, but he didn't throw up anymore either. Then this morning, his fever shot up again and he was beginning to feel nauseous. I decided to give him his nausea medication first, then follow it about a 1/2 later with his fever reducer (which is currently the most dangerous of his symptoms), but he threw up the nausea pill.

I waited to let him decide when he felt he could keep his medicine down, but he fell asleep and his fever was climbing too high. I woke him up and made him try to take the nausea pill again and this time it did stay down, but caused him extremely labored breathing. One of the side effects of this pill is apparently shallow breathing "occasionally resulting in death." That's when I really decided to pray more sincerely rather than just stay busy with all of the medication.

I did finally get his round of meds in him, but this evening he has been sweaty and moaning as his stomach cramps have returned from yesterday. (This is caused from an inflamed colon trying to retain what little moisture is in there.) For that they prescribed an OTC laxative, which after two hours has yet to work.

The good news is that Dalton has fallen asleep (though is breathing is just slightly labored) and his fever is down for now. He seems to do better with this at night, though I'm not sure why. He sleeps equally both all day and all night and has not had much activity around him at all today. I only give him his nausea medication as his symptoms begin to show, because of the dangerous side effects.

I will be sleeping on our leather love seat tonight to be available to him should he need water or hopefully, a trip to the bathroom. That part I'm not really looking forward to since I was three weeks overdue on desperately needing a chiropractic adjustment even before all of this started. But it's worth it to know he is breathing O.K. and being aware if his fever shoots back up.

I'm thinking that if he doesn't improve by tomorrow, it may actually make more sense to just go ahead and hydrate him through an IV so at least we can stop the cycle of each problem leading to the next. Of course, I'll consult the physician first, but that's sort of what he already hinted at yesterday if we didn't see improvement. Hopefully, tonight we will.

Thank you to everyone who has offered to pray. I honestly sincerely believe that medication is merely a tool that God can choose to use or not to use and that ultimately it is He alone that heals and makes well. I know to some people that may sound cliche but I couldn't be more sincere in meaning it. So your offers to pray are to me honestly more effective than any routine or regimen and I really humbly appreciate it.

Have a blessed night.