Still Suffering :(

James had an ear infection in both ears that we discovered last Thursday when we went to see our old pediatrician. She placed him on a new medication since he's basically had back to back infections. Last night we gave him his last dose before bed and he slept until 4:00am from 8:00pm. As usual I went in and nursed but afterwards he had a coughing fit and vomited everywhere. I woke Adit up to help and change James while I put on another uniform (I refer to my PJ's as my uniform for nursing, lol!). Then we tried again, after a few minutes he started coughing again and vomited. So Adit was up again to help for the second wardrobe change. After that James was unable to sleep because he was hungry. I sat him more upright and nursed him while taking pauses. This seemed to work and he feel asleep. Then I brought him to my bed so I could monitor him.

He woke up late around 7:30 which was understandable. We made breakfast for him, but he didn't eat much. So we made his egg and got him ready for daycare. I made a doctor's appointment for 2:00 to recheck his ears as I suspected that they didn't heal. When I went to daycare they advised that he didn't have his egg this morning. They also said that he had lunch but ended up vomiting after his meal because he got upset when a teacher tried to prevent him from playing with his sippy cup. As for milk he only drank .5oz and took a sip of his second bottle. James was still asleep when I got there and I was sad to wake him up for the appointment, but it was important.

Once at the doctor's office James was crying non-stop. He didn't want any checks so I nursed him so that the doctor could check his lungs and ears. The doctor advised that he wasn't too concerned about the vomiting since James didn't seem dehydrated. However he still had a terrible ear infection in his right ear. The left side was almost clear. This meant that the 7-day medicine he just finished didn't work. I was left with the what now question. The doctor advised that ear infections are common during this cold and flu season and that once the weather warms up that he'll be better. In the meantime he suggested another medication. :( I am not a big fan of medicine so I asked about other options. He said that I can give tylenol for discomfort, but that James needed this new medicine.

This new medicine has the usual side effects of vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and a few others. I didn't feel comfortable giving it to James tonight as he just finished the other medicine. Instead I will give it to him tomorrow morning with breakfast. The doctor also referred us to an ENT (ear, nose & throat doctor). I am looking forward to that appointment.

Otherwise James had a good late afternoon, we went to the park with friends and he had a great time walking around, going down the slide, using the teeter-totter, and going on the swings. I am so lucky that I have a happy baby that still loves to play after being in all this pain. Now he's sleeping, we elevated his crib by placing a cushion under the mattress which should help him sleep. Let's see how it goes tonight. Also my mom suggested that I apply heat to his ears which helps with the pain. Does anyone else have any other tips that can help James? Please share with us by commenting on the blog.

Happy reading!

Rachel

PS: Here are some pics from the park today!

My Poor Baby! :(

We had a typical morning except that James woke up at 5:30. Eeekk for me! I nursed him in his room until around 6:30 then I brought him into bed to wake up dada. After nursing he usually plays with us, but today he wouldn't stop crying. I thought he was still tired and hungry so I continued nursing. After that he kept crying. So then I thought it was his diaper and changed that, but he was still unhappy. Our next thought was that he was hungry so we quickly made his breakfast, but he refused it. We even offered him an egg which he loves, but he also refused that. That's when the "something is wrong feeling" was confirmed.

I quickly got dressed and drove him to the doctor. Of course once we arrived it started raining. So I grabbed the diaper bag, my purse, an umbrella, and James and ran to the doctors office. After waiting 30 minutes, we discovered why James wasn't feeling well - he has an ear infection. :( As she was writing up a prescription for that I mentioned his experience with dairy. So far he's been vomiting after having less than a teaspoon of yogurt and when he tried cream of veggie soup at daycare he had bumps on his chin. I suspected that he has an allergy to dairy and she agreed so she advised that he should have no dairy for 3 months. Looks like I'll be pumping for awhile longer than I expected.

Once home I gave James his medicine and put him to sleep. He nursed until he slept so looks like our progress of him drinking 2 ounces of milk yesterday might be thrown out the window. I let him sleep in my arms because each time I put him down he kept waking up. Once he woke up I held him and tried to encourage him to eat by offering him a cheerio. He took it and once he put it in his mouth he puked everywhere. It was all over me and him. Plus this wasn't normal puke, it was medicine puke which reeked. I had to breathe out of my mouth when changing and sponging him so that I didn't puke too. However this was a turning point, because now he was hungry and he readily accepted food. I tried cereal and he ate it all. Then I made him some pancakes with steamed apples and he ate some of that too. I was just happy his appetite was back.

Since he was feeling better, we ventured to Dufferin Mall with Adit's mom. I had to run some last minute errands for the party. On our way home James fell asleep which was good since he didn't nap since noon. Once up he had a few bites of food, had a quick shower, and got ready for bed. It took me a long time to nurse him to sleep and even after that he woke up a few times. Luckily he's sleeping now as he needs his rest. I just hope he feels better for his party on Sat. He's in good spirits, but I can still see that his ear bothers him. I hope another day of medicine will help.

Well I'm off to bed now since I'll probably be waking up a few times tonight to comfort him.

Happy reading!

Rachel