Nasty Virus and Disgusting Bagel

Alyssa finished antibiotics for strep throat just over a week ago.

Last Thursday night, I woke up to find Olivia sweating away with a fever. A little children’s Tylenol, drink of water, two pieces of jelly toast and a story later (three hours from start to finish) and she was back to sleep, the fever reduced and her mother exhausted.

She didn’t go to school that Friday. My mom reported that Olivia didn’t appear to be sick AT ALL that day.

Saturday, she had a runny nose that she liked to dig at to the point of giving herself nose bleeds. Ick! Ick, ick, ick.

Sunday, she was full of energy and just seemed to have the sniffles. Tom looked up her nose and saw that it appeared to be swollen and gunky. Again, ick!

Yesterday, Monday, she was fine at my mom’s house, running and playing, occasionally asking for a tissue to wipe her nose. These days we hand her a tissue with the directions, “Wipe, do not dig.”

I called our doctor yesterday to see about an appointment for both A and O. I want Alyssa to be seen for a possible referral to an ear, nose and throat specialist because she often snores and I worry about sleep apnea and possibly enlarged adenoids.

And those nose bleeds of Olivia’s are freaking me out.

Our doctor is out of the office all week. Figures. I made an appoinement for Alyssa for April 13 but waited to make one for Olivia.

This morning, Olivia woke up hoarse and sniffly, saying her throat hurt.

I met Tom and Olivia at Urgent Care at 9am this morning.

The diagnosis? A virus that will take two to three weeks to run its course. Plenty of fluids were prescribed as well as the recommendation of children’s Benedryl and running a humidifier in her room at night to help with the dryness that is probably causing the bleeding in her nose.

Okay.

I know how lucky we are that Olivia is so healthy. I do. But I can’t help but worry that this cold, this virus, this problem is going to be the one that pushes her over the edge into ‘sickly kid’ territory. It makes me really paranoid to just wait and see. I do think the blood she’s drawing in her nose is superficial. I do. And yet…I want her doctor, her regular doctor, to tell me that.

The doctors at Urgent Care are great. They’re excellent at diagnosing colds and strep throat and viruses but I always have to explain to them about her 5p-, how it affects her and why we’re worried.

I want her doctor to be in the freaking office so I can get his opinion on what’s going on. Yes, there is always next week but damn it, she’s sick THIS week.

Obviously, for now, we’ll run the humidifier, give her the Benedryl and keep her hydrated. And as always, hope and pray for the best.

In other news, I was eating a bagel earlier today and it took me four bites of it to realize that it was disgusting. Oh, I knew after the first bite that I wasn’t enjoying the taste of the bagel at all but I took three more bites before stopping, deciding that I didn’t want to ingest something that wasn’t at least tolerable, let alone enjoyable. What the hell is wrong with me that I wanted to eat that damned thing just because it was there, not because I was enjoying the experience of eating it but because I wanted to enjoy it?