All's well again

Little R is well again, after a long fight with the fever monster. She's back to her cheery, cheeky, jovial self, though a much thinner and weaker version. She's not eaten since last Thursday but is slowly, but surely getting a bit more each day. Literally just a bit more.

We're thankful that she fell ill (well, all things equal) during the long holiday weekend which allowed me the time to really be there for her. Since all she wanted was to be held and by me. We're sorry that we had to cancel our short holiday at Sheshan and missed our friends who went dearly.

Thurs 2nd April
She informed nanny at dinner time that she doesn't feel like eating dinner and isn't feeling well. Says her feet and hands are cold, which was true. Asked for her hot water bottle to warm her extremities. I arrive home to cuddle her to bed and discover that she does have a slightly raised temperature of high 37s.

Fri 3rd April
Make her stay home from school due to fever. She was really upset and offered to get up early and voluntarily changed into her unifornm. I said no and she got upset and cried. Insisted that she misses her friends and want to go to school. This school must be doing something right.

Received text message from nanny about 2:30pm that her fever had spike to 39.9 degrees. Decided that it was better to get her seen before the long weekend holiday started and non of the regular doctors would be on duty. Managed to bag an appointment with a Family Doctor at United Family Hospital and rushed off work to pick R up and swing by the hospital.

Poor R was shivering and had glazey eyes by then. Though the eyes did light up when she saw Tom & Jerry in the wait room. Asked Doc to test for Strep Throat as I knew that was going around. Test came back negative after a 15 min wait and I was told to just keep her away from other kids and wait out the fever, which should break soon. And since it was viral, no antibiotics were given.

Sat 4th April
Had a tough night with R as her fever spiked to 40.3degrees. Had to use suppository and Calpol to bring her temp down to a "manageable" 39 degrees. She was hot and I was tired. Her breathing was labored and I willed myself to keep awake to watch over her. Fever did not break at all throughout the day only to hover up and down 39ish degrees. She hadn't eaten anything since lunch on Thursday and her weight was falling. She didn't even want milk - which is her all-time-hands-down favorite.

Sun 5th April
After yet another tough night battling temperature in the 40s and more suppositories and Calpol, we decided to take her into ER in the night as her temps just refused to back down. ER was surprisingly busy that night and we were blessed enough to be able to bag the last private curtained off area. ER Ped was quite distrubed by R's glazy eyes and mentioned her tummy was rather distended - probably from gastric wind for the lack of food.

Her temp. registered at a high of 39.4 when we went into the ER and we anxiously waited for it to come down after she was given some Motrin. Ped ordered a blood test and R bravely watch the lab technician tediously squeeze her tiny finger for blood droplets. I was counting under my breathe to stop from yelling at him to do a better job. Lab work showed that R's bacterial count was 10 times over the acceptable limit. No wonder the poor dear was fighting such high temps. We were assured that the temps would be managable with the antibiotics, suppositories and calpol routine.

Mon 6 April
Another restless night for R and I. Fever did NOT come down, and was still in 40s. Decided to ring her Ped in SG who adviced us to shorten the timespan between fever medications and to take more baths each day, once after every medication is administered. Poor R screamed when I held her down in the tub for her shower, teeth chattering, tears streaming down her small face and crying mama.

Her blocked nose has intensified and this made it hard for her to breathe. I sat up with her most of the night to watch her gape for air and try to work a position with her (her lying on my belly, kangeroo hold etc) so that she can catch some winks.

Tues 7 April
The long awaited 5th day that every doc thinks the fever will break. I anxiously check her temps when my eyes flickered open about 6am. Temp is down! Praise the Lord! Nose is still very blocked but hey, at least fever is gone! I go to work with a lighter heart though it pains me to see how skinny this girl has become. She's still not eating and looks pale but at least I know she's on the road to recovery. She asked to go to her last Edudrama class for the term in the afternoon and I let her, though asked Nanny to keep a close eye on her and to take our thermometer along. We went home together that evening and I took her to have some chicken rice at Frankie's since she said that's all she wanted to eat. She ended up taking 4 spoonfuls of rice and 3 pieces of chicken. I shamefully ate the rest.

Wed 8 April
She's back to school today and she's so happy. She still looks really pale and is still not eating. I asked her teachers to please keep an extra eye on her since she looked like she was going to collapse any moment. I return home from work to find that her spirits are back up again - she's her usual happy, cheery, cheeky self! Albeit all she ate today was some chicken pieces and a muffin.

I'm so glad my daughter is alright again. And now to catch a little sleep.