Jeff & Elisa: Your Royal Princess: RSV

At the beginning of February I could tell you were getting very sick because you had all the symptoms of a cold and had completely lost your appetite and wouldn't even drink milk. I knew that when you wouldn't drink your milk something had to be wrong because you never ever refuse your mimi. We had tried to feed you ice cream as well which is one of your favorites and you also would push that away. Of course I started to worry because I knew soon that if you did not drink anything you would get dehydrated quick.

I went to a Super Saturday at the church and offered you all the different types of food they had there and you said no to all of them too, even the cake! Afterward I took you home to take your nap in the afternoon like you always did and after you had been sleeping awhile I checked on you and you were breathing very quick. I could tell from your stomach going up and down so quick that it was taking a lot of work to catch a couple of breathes. My heart started to panic and my mommy intuition was telling me something was definitely wrong. Needless to say your nap was very short.

When Dad came home later that day he noticed your quick breathing too. You were also starting to feel hot and so we took your temp and it was 105*, you had never had a fever before so we were getting concerned and didn't know what to do. All you wanted was for me to hold you and it broke my heart because you would just lay in my arms so lifeless and had no energy.

Dad was a bit irritated that I hadn't taken you to the Dr. sooner but I thought it was just a mild cold that would go away and you had only started to develop certain symptoms that day. We made the decision to take you to Urgent Care to get the treatment that you needed and to get a better idea of what you had. Thankfully there was just an Urgent Care down the street from us.

It was cold season so they were busy and there was literally a line out the door of people waiting to see the Dr. Jeff went inside to speak to the receptionist and to get her advice on what to do, she advised Jeff that since your temperature was that high it would be best to take you to the ER. Jeff came back to the car and told me this and I started to get so scared that something permanent would be wrong with you and they wouldn't be able to help us. At the time I was letting anxiety and nerves get the best of me and was thinking the worst scenario.

Living in a small town has its perks because we were only down the street from the hospital as well. When we got there they were busy too and we were getting stressed that it would take awhile for them to see you. It's not like we could hop to the front of the line either, we had to be patient and wait our turn. My tummy was just in knots though because as I was holding you I could feel your body temperature just rising.

Finally they called us back and started to ask a lot of questions to get a better idea of what you had. Once we had let them know you really hadn't been drinking they advised us it would be best to hook you up to an IV. I wanted them to poke me instead of you because I knew it would hurt and be hard for them to find a vein since you were kind of dehydrated. Once they had the IV in your arm you quickly went through 2 bags of fluid within an hour. They also drew some blood from your foot to get some testing done. When the results came back they were all negative for the flu and everything else which was a relief.

One of the Dr's we had that was checking on us periodically was really friendly and nice so we asked him if he knew Scott Adams. We told him that Scott was our good friend who also worked on the other side of the ER. We stayed at the ER for about 2 hours and then Scott came to visit us. He's always been so thoughtful and nice. As soon as I saw him I just started to bawl because it was just so comforting to see a familiar face. He had asked what had happened and you could tell he was concerned and wanted us to get the best care we could while there. We let him know what had been going on the last couple of days and he agreed that it was the best decision for us to bring you in. He was so sweet and even went to the cafeteria and brought us back some snacks and drinks. You know you have a true friend when they don't hesitate to help you out or ask for anything in return.

This is how you would just lay on the couch from being so sick, our poor little bear!

Laying with you at the ER when you first got admitted.

You were doing quite well until they poked you for the IV.

Daddy was trying to get your mind off the pain and was making you laugh,

he even let you pull his nose!

We had a little break and watched some TV and waited to see what the Dr's would tell us next.

After awhile of just hanging out in the ER the real Dr. came in to see us and told us he was worried about your condition, but that it looked like you were doing much better. He said we could stay as long as we needed, but we felt comfortable taking you home and just keeping a good eye on you and watching out for other red flags.

When we got home Dad and I were both still very, very worried about you and let you sleep in our bed and Dad went on the couch. We knew it was going to be a long night. We decided on Sunday that we would stay home from church and I would just go to YW's.

When I had gotten back from YW's Jeff said that you still hadn't drank very much and you were coming down with another fever and plus your breathing was getting bad again. I once again got really emotional and started crying and called Rachael to get some advice from her since she was also a nurse. I was getting frantic because I felt we had made the wrong decision and should have stayed in the hospital longer and admitted you. She reassured me everything would be ok and that Scott was out on visits but she would have him stop by when he got home to check on Annabelle. It's so comforting having good friends in the medical field you can depend on. We knew Scott would be over right away.

Scott did stop by with his Elder's Quorum President and when they walked in I was just sitting on the couch holding you and crying. I longed just to hear you little laugh or for you to babble. He checked your breathing and said that you definitely sounded kind of wheezy and took your temp and it was at 104*. They offered to give you a blessing and we happily accepted. Dad blessed you that you would have the energy you needed to heal and that as parents we needed to have the faith that you would get better. Scott had to run home and get some other things to take a look at you but told us to put you in a cool bath to take your temp down. At this point you were getting very fussy and did not want to be touched anymore.

Scott came back with Rach this time and proposed the idea that he could call Dr. Lafredo and get us a room at the hospital without going through the ER again. He said with how you were looking it would be best to admit you. The first time he called he had left a message but she called him right back. Scott left to the hospital to get all of our paperwork done and told us to pack our stuff and meet him there. We were in a hurry so I didn't pack much, but knew we lived so close we could always come home.

They have a small pediatric floor at the hospital but it was still very nice and clean. Thankfully the room they gave us had an extra bed that Jeff or I could sleep on. It was funny because right when we got there you started to be yourself again and would just laugh at things, I think you were happy just to be in a new place an explore. We knew the first night there was going to be rough. The nurses were in and out of the room every hour to check your IV and so it made it hard for me to get any sleep too. Dad and I decided to take turns and he would go home and sleep at night and come back to the hospital around 4:00 a.m. to send me home to get some rest.

They continued to monitor you and did more bloodwork and other tests to rule out any other sicknesses that you might have. They wanted to diagnose what you had so they would know how to treat it. They did a cotton swab on your throat to test for strep, but that came back negative. At this point you weren't drinking much on your own and going through a lot of fluids with the IV. They were making us keep track of all your wet diapers too, and it wasn't many. We still were trying to offer you milk, but you didn't want anything to do with it, not even chocolate or strawberry milk. It was great because at the hospital they were stocked up with plenty of snacks and a variety of drinks.

Finally the test results came back and they confirmed that you had RSV. I had never heard of it.

RSV: Respiratory syncytial (sin-SISH-uhl) virus, is a respiratory virus that infects the lungs and breathing passages. Most otherwise healthy people recover from RSV infection in 1 to 2 weeks. However, infection can be severe in some people, such as certain infants, young children, and older adults. In fact, RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia in children under 1 year of age in the United States.

On our 3rd day in the hospital you finally started to drink and eat more on your own. You started to drink apple juice and even took some bites of some cream of wheat and ice cream. We were excited because we could tell that you were on the mend. Before they would send us home you had to drink more fluids on your own the Dr said. There wasn't a specific medication that would treat your RSV, but it was most important that you were getting enough fluids.

We were so proud of you because for being a toddler and having to be stuck in a hospital bed most of the day you did so well. All the nurses just fell in love with you and liked to come in and check on you. At the time I think there were only 2 other kids on the floor so you did get a lot of love and extra attention! They did let you walk the hallways with your IV stand as long as you wore your little yellow mask, you were so cute with it and actually kept it on. Dad and I tried to set up your room like your own at home so that you would feel comfortable. We brought some of your toys and stuffed animals that you like to sleep with and your lady bug night light so you could see the stars on the ceiling, this really helped.

My friend Melissa Davis had let the RS know that we had been in the hospital. I was hesitant to tell them because I didn't want people to feel that they had to bring us dinner or send things. The word got out and everyone in our ward was so sweet and offered their help and dinners when we got home. I'm thankful for a ward who is so willing to serve, we appreciated all of the kindness.

Melissa Davis stopped by and brought you a cute book. Rach also came with 2 activity books that you loved. Megan Campos stopped buy with some cupcakes and lunch for Jeff. Desiree Johns also dropped off lots of toys from the dollar store that kept you distracted and busy. Melissa Brown actually works at the hospital and stopped in with a stuffed animal giraffe. My heart was full of gratitude from having such thoughtful genuine friends.

After the 4th day of being at the hospital the Dr. finally said you made enough progress and we could go home. I was so appreciative of all the nurses and the care they gave you that I made them a little card out of construction paper and left them some chocolate to go with it, they loved it. The staff at KRMC made our stay easier.

We brought you home and you still had a little cough, but all in all your were getting your energy back and wanted to play. We started giving you breathing treatments and that helped a lot. Dr. Lafredo was really nice and set appointments for us to follow up with her to check on you.

Having gone through this challenging period definitely made us appreciate the time we had with you more. Just seeing the risk you were at of becoming more ill made me dig out more patience for you. We never wanted to see you in that condition again. Dad and I are both so very thankful that you were able to heal quickly. We are so lucky to be parents to such a sweet and obedient child of God. We are truly blessed from the hands that helped us out, to the hands that were placed upon your head, and for the hands that healed you.

A lot of the times I would just sit with you in your bed, it was easier that way because then I could make sure you weren't trying to play with your IV.

It was so hard to do anything with your arm because they had to tape your IV to this board so that it wouldn't move around. You learned to adjust to it though.