Tuesday, March 22, 2011

The Sickness Of Ignorance

   B and Odie spent last weekend with their mother. It was supposed to be all (spring break), but she didn't get them until Friday evening and returned them Sunday afternoon. B was sick when she got home, severe headache and sore throat and mild fever. Trying to decide what medicine to give her or if to rush her to a doctor, I asked her the last time she'd drank something. She replied with, "uh, uh". So I asked if she'd drank anything today, and she said no. I asked if she'd at least had a drink with the tylenol they'd given her earlier - no. So I'm looking at a kid with a headache (classic sign of dehydration), and a sore throat (classic sign of dehydration), who hadn't drank anything all day.
   She was unable to choke down water so we went out and bought her some sprite. It took her an hour and a half to sip down half a cup of sprite, and her throat didn't hurt anymore. By the time she hit the bottom of the cup, her headache was gone... And then she starts complaining that her tummy hurts. So, I ask her when she ate last. Then I ask her what she's eaten today - nothing. Her throat hurt too much for her to feel up to eating.
   So, I got out a box of butternut squash soup and heated some up... I kept her home from school yesterday (Monday), and spent all day giving her some soup every few hours and reminding her every few minutes to take a swallow of water. The good news? She got up this morning and told me that she had a little bit of a headache (from not drinking during the night), and that she feels all better now. She's smiling, giggling, eating cheerios for breakfast, and ready for school. She's been drinking her water this morning, and told me she's really glad I knew what to do so she didn't have to go to the doctor...
   I don't know why anyone would go without giving a six-year-old anything to drink for a day and a half, and not think that maybe the headache was from not drinking anything, but I really feel badly for the kids when they come home like this. I'm really glad that she's better today, and that this time it was something that simple. Unfortunately, next time it might not be.

No comments:

Post a Comment