Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Swine Flu

Where have I been you ask? About a month ago my husband came home from work feeling fatigued and generally crappy. He'd had a stuffy/runny nose the day before but nothing worth paying attention to. When he came home from work I made him take his temperature and it was 102 degrees. I immediately sent him to the spare bedroom and mandated that he stay there until further notice. In the morning he went to the doctor and had a flu swab done...the results were Flu virus "A" strain. That means it's a 99% probability of being H1N1. When he returned home I banished him to the spare room and called my mom. She told me to pack up and bring the baby to her house.
Wren and I were refugees at her house for nearly a week. It was very difficult for us. There I was, a new mother with a six week old baby away from home. My mom and her husband were very generous to open their home and keep me fed but it still wasn't the same as being home with my husband. I felt like a single parent. My mom tried to help me with Wren but it's been 27 years since she changed my brothers diapers and listened to him cry. And her husband doesn't have kids of his own so I'm sure it was quite an eye opener to have a crying baby in the house.
Poor Boo had to nurse himself back to health alone at home. He said it didn't feel any different than the regular flu. He began taking Tamiflu on the second day of his symptoms and his fever broke in a day. He also missed a milestone in Wren's life; she rolled over for the first time at my moms. I tried to make him feel better saying he would've been at work anyway.
We were so scared that Wren would get it. I felt like all I did was call the pediatrician. Coincidentally she developed a cough while we were at my moms which completely freaked me out because she'd never coughed before. So instead of messing around I took her to the childrens hospital emergency room where they swabbed her for the flu. Her test came back negative but they said the test for "A" strain is very sensitive so she could have a false negative. They prescribed Tamiflu for her. Boo and I decided to wait and see if she developed any other symptoms before giving her the medicine. I took her temperature every other diaper change.
As the week went on and neither she or I developed a fever or other symptoms I became more confident. Did I mention I did a LOT of praying? I prayed. And prayed. And had other folks praying that Wren wouldn't get sick. God protected us because we are one month post-flu and we're both fine. She still has that little cough and her doctor said it's most likely sinus drainage so I shoot saline in her nose about twice a day.
Anywho, that is what I've been dealing with. If I didn't have such a young baby, I wouldn't be worried about this flu. I feel like the media has really scared people about it. I hope you all stay well!