Brendan could do nothing but sleep in his cot, drips in his arm, oxygen on his face, and looking sick and pale for three days. I stayed with him the whole time, sleeping on a chair next to his cot. Being still breastfed, the hospital allowed me to borrow a
breast pump to keep my milk supply going while he couldn’t feed, so that he could go back to breastfeeding when he was better. The hospital we were at had a brilliant parent-child policy, and I was fed and allowed to use the washroom as if I was a patient as well.
On day two, Brendan’s breathing started sounding strange, so I pressed the buzzer and politely asked the nurse that came in if a doctor could see to him, explaining I was concerned about the change in the sound of his breathing. She agreed and soon after a doctor came. The mucus that had built up on Brendan’s lungs was starting to loosen and was threatening to essentially drown or choke him, so they had to wheel him off to clear it out. I waited in the room while this was done. I wouldn’t be able to do anything anyway, and I needed rest. Once that was done, Brendan was back to peaceful perpetual sleeping.
My hubby came to visit every day, bringing Aidan with him to see Brendan and myself. Aidan still didn’t look particularly healthy, but he was vastly improved over what he had been. He was cheerful at least, so that was a good sign. My hubby was really worried about the fact that Brendan hadn’t woken up since being admitted, and having some religious background, he contacted a close family friend that is a priest, who came to the hospital and saw Brendan and prayed for him and all that stuff that I’m not really into. As much as I’m not into religion, I did appreciate his concern and caring and going out of his way to do that for my son.
On day four, Brendan finally woke up. He was groggy, still wheezy, and not the slightest bit interested in anything but sitting in his cot or being held and cuddled. He quietly cried almost constantly. This was hard to deal with for me, even harder than it had been in the emergency ward, because on one hand I was overjoyed that he had finally awoken, on the other it was tearing me apart to see him so upset. Again, I had to keep control of my emotions. If he saw I was too happy he might mistakenly think that it was because he was sick. If he saw that I was too upset, it would upset him more. He had no idea how long he had slept for, to him it probably only seemed like a few minutes. He was in and out of sleep all day.
On day five, he was finally interested in feeding, though it took a week or so for that to get back to normal, as not having anything in his stomach for so long he had trouble consuming as much as normal, but even a small amount was a good start. It was almost like feeding a newborn all over again for the first couple of days, but we got through it. He had a bath, which he normally loved, but he really wasn’t fussed about this time, and he showed a vague interest in the toys and play things that the staff surrounded him with, although he wouldn’t actually play with anything. In the evening of the fifth day we were allowed to go home, but only because the staff trusted that I knew enough to properly care for him and would bring him back the moment something wasn’t right.
When in hospital for any reason, if something doesn’t seem quite right, politely tell a staff member about it. If you get no satisfaction from that person, it is okay to talk to another staff member. It is okay to request to see a doctor. The more information that you can give, and the better you can explain why you have a concern, the easier it will be for the staff to make a good judgement as to whether you concern is valid.
If your child, or any member of your family, is sick and someone that is very religious wants to pray for them or with them, even if it is something you are not into or they are of an opposing religion, don’t take offence to it. You might not think a prayer will help, but it certainly won’t do any harm, so there’s no reason to stop them. Take comfort in the fact that someone cares enough for your child to make such an effort for them.
When a child is recovering from a serious illness, be patient and don’t freak out if they don’t do everything they normally would quickly. If you are breastfeeding, extract the milk so you can continue with it once your child is better. Don’t expect the baby to start feeding normally immediately either. It could take a while for things to go back to normal, and the younger the child is the longer it could take.
(May 18th) (
