Friday, February 22, 2008

FLU - The Sequel :-(




Those of you who read my blog at least semi-regularly are probably thinking, oh, she already blogged about Son #3's recent bout with the flu. But, sorry to say, this is a new flu post.

First, I have to say that for a family of five living in a house smaller than 1200 sf, it's pretty amazing that only Son #3 suffered from the flu. The rest of us managed to dodge it. (Click here if you need a refresher.) If there was a small blessing, it was that the kids were off of school for a week because of the Mardi Gras holiday and therefore, Son #3 only missed one day of school due to the flu.

That was then, this is now.

Fast foward three weeks. Yes, a mere three weeks. To the day. Son #3 (yes, him again) wakes me at 2:00 a.m. with a host of complaints. He's hot, he's cold, his tummy hurts, his legs hurt, his head hurts, he can't stop coughing, etc. This sounds familiar, I thought, but what are the odds?

I called the doctor's office as soon as they opened, and thankfully, they didn't try to encourage me to "just keep an eye on it for a couple of days" like last time. Bad advice for the flu. If you catch it within 24-48 hours of the onset of symptoms, it can be treated with Tamiflu. Tamiflu doesn't 'cure' the flu, but it decreases the rate at which it multiplies in the body and therefore lessens the duration and the severity of the symptoms (5-7 days, rather than the usual 7-10 days).

Of course by this point, the receptionist probably thinks I'm a likely candidate for Munchausens by Proxy. The doctor, however, check Son #3 out, did a culture for strep and the flu. Guess which one came back positive?

Yep, it's going to be a loooonnnnnggggg week.

7 comments:

Jennifer (mom of four) said...

Hey!

Thanks for the comment over at my blog.

You asked about Etsy. It is a cool place where people showcase things that they make. It costs just .20 to list an item and then 3% of any sales you make. They bill you every month. I love looking at what everyone is selling.

tracey.becker1@gmail.com said...

Yuck... Hope the sickies get out of your house soon!

Full-On-Forward said...

Wow Elle!

Totally NOT fair. I have seen the shuffle of the Living Dead streaming into Urgent Scare and I can almost fill in all the vital signs before I even assess them. I'm sooo sorry your little one had to put up with a double whammy!

Prayers going up that the rest of you stay healthy "Again" as we have a new mutation of influenza A that is not covered at all in this years vaccine. I forget the name but it's Berenstein like the bears or Ber shine-lol, heck I'm not sure but it's gonna be a long spring I think!

John

Elle*Bee said...

Thanks, Jen, I had never heard of it until I visited your blog, but I make custom made beaded jewelry, but I'm too fidgety to sit at the local craft shows and I know the eBay market is oversaturated. Etsy might be a nice venue. I already registered my Esty name. It did ask who referred me but I didn't know your Etsy ID. When I clicked the link of your blog, it took me to their main page. If you get an incentive for signing up folks, I'd happily reference you, if you want to tell me your Etsy ID name. I'm considering re-registering with my "real" name (as opposed to my alias/nickname). Feel free to comment again or email me at ellebee@bellsouth.net. (For security reasons, I'll delete this comment in a week or so.)

Elle*Bee said...

Thanks, tracy, it is a royal bummer.

And thank you, john, his pediatrician joked that she's never seen one person with the flu (not a relapse, mind you) within the same month. How's that for over-achieving. Knock wood everyone else is healthy, but the poor kid had to miss "our" birthday party at Grandpa's house (where all the aunts, uncles, cousins get together for cake, ice cream, gifts). I brought his presents home to unwrap and took digi pix to email, but it's not quite the same thing.

john, that's what the doctor said: that this year's flu shot (which is an educated guess at best) only covered about 40% of the cases. The mutated strain, and another strain seem to be more prevalent. She feels that Son #3 has a different strain than before since some of the symptoms are very different (this time it's more respiratory - scarier - than last time when it was more gastro-intestinal).

He's been fever-free for 24 hrs, but I'm not sending him back to school yet. He's still easily run-down and that kindergarten class is a petri dish (or cesspool), I tell ya! We'll continue with the Tamiflu.

Sue said...

Elle, I hope son # 3 is feeling better soon...Not fair that he's gotten the flu twice!! Although, it does seem to be a particularly nasty strain this season (and I'm not saying anything else, otherwise I'll jinx myself/you/ everyone else!)...Stay well!

Elle*Bee said...

Thanks, sue, yes, it does seem to be a run of bad luck for the little guy. So close to his birthday too. There are apparently several strains going around right now. :-(