Frustration

After a fairly decent day with Garin, the evening has gone downhill a bit. He added a stuffy nose to the mix this evening, and he is still having a lot of chest congestion, coughing and gasping. He seemed to feel better today even though his symptoms were not much improved, but he woke up about an hour ago with fever back to 102.5, vomiting and struggling to breathe. A dose of Motrin has the temperature back under control, and after some snuggling he has gone back to sleep.

As all parents know, it is so hard to see your kids go through something like this. He's had colds before, and those don't bother me so much, but this is scary. He isn't able to tell us what he feels, and we aren't able to help him. I am increasingly frustrated with the lack of assistance from the medical community. There was a time when there was a multitude of medications for any given illness, and doctors handed them out like candy. I do think it's good that they are more cautious about filling our kids with chemicals these days, but there are times when some medicinal help is warranted. This is one of those times. The medical professionals we've seen in Garin's almost-two years all say to wait it out, as if it were no big deal at all. Up until now, we have been able to do that successfully. This time I'm just mad. They have been dismissive of his discomfort and anguish, and it seems as if they really don't care that neither of us has slept for three days, and that we sit up crying together: Garin because he's suffering and I because I can do nothing but hold him. I realize that they probably do care and may be as frustrated as I am that there isn't a good, safe decongestant out there for the little ones, but I didn't see much compassion during our middle-of-the-night ER visit. He needs something to loosen up his chest, so he can breathe.

Please forgive my ranting. I am tired and worried. I will take him to his regular pediatrician tomorrow (if I can get an appointment) and beg and plead for something, anything, to help him. In the meantime, I'll keep praying for his healing and a chance for some decent sleep.