My 9-month-old baby has just passed the two week point of being sick with multiple illnesses:
RSV (human respiratory syncytial virus), a wicked-nasty respiratory infection
urinary tract infection
irritant diaper dermatitis (diaper rash) to the point of requiring medical treatment due to the frequent diarrhea/vomiting
This has caused:
high fever
vomiting
diarrhea, even the best diapers leak because of how bad it is, so we have to pressure-wash her clothes and sheets at least once a day
blood in urine, stool, and in coughing
ear infection
10% weight loss
lots of mucus coughed up and flowing out of nose
hoarse voice
lots of screaming and crying, since she can't sit or lay on her back without pain, plus from the severe pain associated with everything else listed above
lost work and many sleepless nights for myself and wife to take care of her
stacks of very expensive medical bills from two hospitals, a pediatrician's office, and a *******y
loads of stress for all three of us
Stuff we've done to help:
Drugs: (censored a l b u t e r o l)
Amoxicillin
(censored b a c t r i m)
Ibuprofen
(censored a c e t a m i n o p h e n)
Desitin
Clotrimazole
Pedialyte
Vicks Steamer/Vaporizer
Nebulizer
I fear that's too much for a baby to handle, but I follow doctors' orders.
increased banana feeding to replenish lost potassium due to vomiting and diarrhea
raised head side of crib to allow gravity to keep drainage out of the breathing area during sleep
stayed home a lot (mostly wife, but often me instead) to keep the baby from infecting others and to take care of her
cut off vegetables, reduced all non-formula foods other than bananas
increased formula intake
administered all that stuff I listed above on a careful schedule
drove a total of a few hundred miles, since we're nowhere near a hospital and yet we've needed 2 hospitals, and consulted with more doctors and nurses than I can count
changed clothes and bathed her twice to three times as often as usual
read dozens of books to her multiple times each to try to keep her mind off of her misery
probably much more that I can't seem to remember now
I really wish she'd get better. If it were me I'd just bitch and moan and not be so worried, but this little girl is going through hell and she's only 0.75 years old. I hate that she has fungal, bacterial, and viral infections at the same time. I hope she's indestructible after this is all over.