Pin Cushion

It all started Thursday evening…

Tyler had two bouts of projectile vomiting. After the second bout, I decided to call the after hour nurse’s line for assistance. What I thought was just a cold...

In accordance with the nurse’s instructions, I proceeded to the emergency room. The physician’s assistant (pa) came into the room and stated that she was ordering a chest x-ray. Immediately, I knew it was more than a cold but I was not concerned.

She came back several minutes later and reported he had pneumonia. I couldn’t believe it. I tried to think of everything I could to determine how he could have contracted pneumonia. The pa explained that he aspirated some vomit and it formed an infection in his lungs. She proceeded to advise that he would have to be admitted to the hospital immediately. Okay, so I am still calm. In shock, but calm.

Four nurses came into the room in an attempt to start and i.v. None were successful so they called two nurses from the maternity ward. They too, were unsuccessful. The two nurses from the maternity ward called the pediatric unit and asked for assistance. That nurse came down and didn’t even try because she didn’t want to subject Tyler to anymore unnecessary pokes. Finally, the anesthesiologist was called and he located the vein on the first try. My little guy was trying to be a trooper but he just hurt so much. He screamed and screamed to the point where I started crying. He was in so much pain that tears couldn’t even flow. He wore himself out from crying.


Finally, he was admitted around 200a. By this time, he was sleeping. When he arrived in the pediatric unit, he was subjected to more testing which set him off again. However, this nurse gave him something called "Sweeties." One doctor described it as baby crack. It is a high fructose water solution which helps to take the edge off of a baby's pain. To a degree, it worked.

On Friday, Tyler was still very sick. He would barely open his eyes and he just whined and cried constantly. When he settled down, he just slept and slept and slept. It was so hard to see him lying there in pain and I was unable to do anything for him.

By Saturday, he opened his eyes but he was still very much out of it. The doctor switched his antibiotic because the original version administered wasn't working as quickly as she wanted. He was on O2 because he as having difficulty breathing on his own. His i.v. came out so he wasn't receiving enough fluids. But despite all of that, my little guy was a trooper.

Each night, I stayed at the hospital and only left for about 1 hour each day to return to my parent's house and shower.

When I left Saturday morning around 545a, he was still on O2. When I returned, he was off the O2 and breathing on his own. The nurse stated he had been off the O2 for about an hour and was doing well. He has a slight relapse later that day but after that he was off the O2 for good.

This morning, I left around 600a to go to my parent's house and shower. When I returned, he was sitting bright eyed at the nurses station smiling and cooing with them. I was so glad to see his eyes wide open and him smiling. (He is quite the ladies' man already.)

When the doctor made her rounds, he was up and alert and she readily released him this afternoon. He has some medication to take for about a week but overall, he is healthy and happy.