Flash back Friday - new asthma diagnosis

 

I was thinking back to the time when Son #2 was diagnosed with asthma. 

Pediatrician admitted my son to the Pediatrics ward of the hospital when the respiratory therapist told me my son had asthma.

I still remember the shock, thinking 'wait a minute!' I already took my son to the pediatrician clutching my wrinkled magazine article about asthma from a parenting magazine. 

Something just didn't seem right when the Pediatrician said my son didn't have asthma - that it was just a virus. I still felt unsettled with that diagnosis.

The day my son was admitted to the hospital, I had taken my son to the doctor because he was sick AGAIN, with a cold and cough. But my son's color was really off - he looked very pale, had purple circles under his eyes, and his lips were a burgundy color. 

He looked terrible and I just felt something wasn't quite right. So, off we went to the doctor's office. The physician's assistant came in first, then suddenly the room filled with the head doctor and a couple of nurses. I remember Son #2 seemed very sleepy. He couldn't even sit up right when they were doing a breathing treatment, so I had to hold him.

They quickly said I needed to take him to the hospital. Luckily, the doctor's office is connected to the back of the hospital, so if was a quick drive to the front of the building. I still remember calling Hubby at work. He said, "What do you mean they're putting him in the hospital? Why?" All I knew is that he was having a hard time breathing.

Boy, were we in for a new chapter of our lives! He's been admitted 7 times for asthma since then, and daughter Kitty has been in the hospital 4 times. 

If I only knew then what I know now......

Trust your instinct and keep pushing. You know your children best. If you feel like there is something wrong, keep searching for answers.

I remember telling the respiratory therapist that I had already visited the doctor to see if Son #2 had asthma, and he had said no. In the 30 pages of information the respiratory therapist printed out for me about asthma, one of the articles had talked about asthma being called the 'hysterical mother's syndrome'. 

Mothers would be up all night with sick kids, take them to the doctor first thing in the morning, and the kids would be better by then.

Now I know cold air affects asthma, getting up and walking out to the car affects them. So when they are up and moving around, their oxygen levels look okay. But they do drop during the night when the kids are relaxed and sleeping.

So, I've said it before, but if you think something is wrong, be persistent.

 I've been told the kids are okay, only to have them admitted to the hospital 4 hours later. Keep a sharp eye on them and get a second opinion. 

We, as mothers, are our kid's best defense.