Motherly Instincts & Campylobacter

At times in my life sometimes I feel like I'm just a worried mother. Your kid gets sick so you try and doctor them up and they don't get better so you take them to the Doctor. Sometimes the Doctor says, "It's just a virsus" I usually hate those words because it means your kid's going to be sick for at least 2 weeks. No mom likes to hear that. Well I had a recent experience with the whole "motherly instinct" issue. Last Tuesday July 1st my oldest daughter Kimberlee started acting sick, you know the ususal laying around the house, telling me her tummy hurt. On Wednesday she slept a lot, I don't think she even got out of bed that day. In the late afternoon I took her temperature and it was 102.3, she began complaining of a worsening tummy ache. So I treated her with motrin and tried to make her as comfortable as possible. The pain was so great the motrin wasn't touching it. On Thursday she woke up screaming from her bed at how bad the pain was. I gave her more motrin, took her temperature and it was still 102 so I called her doctor's office. I told the receptionist her symptoms and she said I needed to take her to the ER. I guess with abdominal pain there isn't much a Dr's office can diagnose. I didn't want to do the ER thing so I put it off. We tried warm compresses, more motrin, and me just rubbing her arms. Still no relief, fever still raging and Kimberlee telling me it felt like somebody was kicking her in the stomach. So I succombed to the fact that we needed to get her some help. When we got there the ER waiting room was empty much to my surprise. We went straight back to the ped unit and they gave her IV fluids and ordered a cat scan. The cat scan showed all of her organs to be normal but they showed her colon to be thickened, and inflamed. They diagnosed her with Colitis and needed me to follow up with her Doctor for more treatment. That night was horrible, she was in so much pain she didn't sleep, she cried out frequently, her fever persisted, and she started having diarrhea. Well the next day was the 4th of July. No offices were open and I didn't even hear a phone number for after hours emergencies. With the diarrhea, she became so dehydrated, so not being able to contact her pediatrician I took her back to the ER, day 2 was much the same, noone was there so we were able to get right in. They started her on IV fluids again and the Dr. ordered an x-ray of her abdomen. He wanted to rule out a blockage from her colitis. He said everything looked good and really wanted a stool speciman. (Lucky girl) Actually lucky lab people who have to take care of it. That would have to rank as one of the nastiest jobs ever! Anyway, the Dr. said the results of the stool would take 3 days or so because they have to let it grow. They told me they would be in contact with me to let me know of the results. So we went home defeated, and still sicker than a dog. She literally had no energy to even speak. Friday night and Saturday morning were much the same as the previous night. MISERABLE for Kim and me, I felt so bad for her. There is nothing worse than watching your kiddos suffer and not being able to do a thing about it. Saturday morning we found blood in her stool which scared me even worse than I was already scared. I called her pediatrician and was so thankful to find they had Saturday appointments. I took her down and the Dr. took one look at her and said here's a script you give this to the ER Dr. and they will admit her. I was so grateful that I could finally get help for my daughter. I knew that whatever her illness was, it was serious and that I couldn't do a thing about it at home. The wait on Saturday morning was 1 hour. We waited patiently and when they called her name it was wonderful. Kimberlee didn't even flinch when she received her IV, it was her 5th poke in 3 days, she was an old pro. They were very fast at getting her to her room and the nurses took such great care of her. I was relieved to know that they could help her manage her pain and Kimberlee was able to rest finally. Her pain was still present but not as severe. The Doctor and the GI Doctor both thought she needed an endoscope to see what the problem was. They were preparing to do that procedure this morning. This would tell us if she had Ulcerative Colitis or Crohns Disease. None would be a good condition to have. Last night I received the greatest call of my life. The pediatrician from the hospital called to tell me the stool results came back and showed high levels of Campylobacter Disease. I was relieved, yes my daughter was still very sick, but we didn't have to worry about this horrible life long illness any longer. This morning Monday July 7th we were discharged from the hospital. I took a 2 hour nap and it was WONDERFUL! So for the record I will give some insight of this disease. Campylobacter is found in the intestines of many wild and domestic animals. It is passed in their feces and is transmitted to humans via contaminated food, water, or person to person when someone comes into contact with fecal matter from an infected person. HAND WASHING is ULTRA important. I have always taught the kids to wash up well after going to the potty and before meals, but I don't recall being assertive about it after they would gather the eggs, 0r handle the animals. Anyway the disease attacks the gastrointestinal tract and causes all the things Kimbers was experiencing. Hence the diagnosis of Colitis. Symptoms appear 1-7 days after ingestion and last roughly 7 days. We had 13 chickens, 8 we raised from little chicks and they are laying eggs now. 5 we acquired from some folks getting rid of them from AJ. One of those 5 died mysteriously on Monday June 30th. The very next day was the day Kim starting feeling sick. So Kimberlee was a text book case of this disease and how quickly it spreads and how powerful it is. The Dr. told me on the phone that we lost a chicken to it, but we aren't going to loose our daughter. I was so grateful that moment for the motherly instincts that I have, for the ability I have to be a mother and to know of each of my children's needs. They are many and sometimes it is overwhelming but I am not alone. I am grateful for blessings and for all the many prayers on behalf of Kimberlee and our family. Just barely getting Eric home from his surgery and being Nurse for him was not easy when this other trial was handed to us. We were able to pull through because of our faith and the faith of many others. We now have 4 big bottles of anti-bacterial hand gel all over our home. The kids use it frequently. The Doctor said there is no need to get rid of the chickens. He said most carry this disease or others and the important thing is to practice good hygiene. Sorry I took NO pictures of our hospital stay. I can think of some great ones that I shoulda coulda woulda have taken. Like the 2nd day of waking up in the hospital, Kim's hair is soooo THICK and has lots of natural curl to it. We hadn't brushed it in a couple of days so by the time she woke up her hair looked like a curly rats nest. hehe! I'll just leave the rest of the missed pictures up to your imaginations!