3 year well baby visit

Last Thursday was supposed to be a day dedicated solely to checking up on my babies. Unfortunately, I only got to see about my first baby because my doctor got stuck in emergency surgery.  My first OB appointment had to be rescheduled for tomorrow instead.

Jackson's appointment went amazing well, and speaking of well, it was his first well baby check-up in about 2.5 years! Man oh man have we come a long way with his health, thank you God!

Jackson weighes 36lbs. and is 37.5' tall, which puts him in the 87% for weight and 41% for height.  He's always been a little thicker than taller, just like his daddy:)

After checking out Jackson's sinuses and tonsils, his doctor thought for sure that we'd decided to go ahead with sinus surgery! He was surprised when I said we had not, we just finally had him healthy and under control.  Jackson's tonsils have returned to a normal size, his ears are clear and tubeless, and his sinuses are not infected!!! This is the first time he hasn't had a sinus infection in 2.5 years, y'all.  The months of antibiotics were hard, but obviously worth it.

Jackson got one quick shot before we were on our way! He cried for a minute, but was happily distracted by stickers and a promise of a popsicle:) I got all of his prescriptions refilled and a new spacer for his inhaler.  Now we'll be able to keep one at school and one in my purse, I've learned to never leave home without it!

Everything else was pretty routine.  Jackson is potty trained and right on track developmentally.  He just started in the Pre-K3 program at school and we're super excited that all is going so well! Jackson loves going to school and talks about seeing all of his friends and his teacher every Sunday night, and can't wait to see them the next morning.  I can't tell you what that means to us.  I feel like his little school is such a hidden jewel!

Happy boy with his stickers:)

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CT Scan and Results

Due to Jackson's chronic sinus and upper respiratory infections, and wheezy cough, his pediatrician recently recommended that we seek out treatment with the pediatric ENT specialist in New Orleans again.  After our lovely visit with him in August, I was anxious to hear what he had to say, and I blogged about Jackson needing a CT scan done here.

Checking out the fish while we waited

Fast-forward a few weeks: Jackson had the CT Scan of his sinuses on Tuesday.  We left our house at 6:30AM and arrived at Oschner at 9AM for his prep.  They called us back to the holding area where Jackson was a total ham for a good 30 minutes.  He had the nurses bringing him balloons and toys and then helping him decorate his balloon with stickers.  They even took him around the halls to wish the other patients well before their procedures - and this was all done before he was given "happy juice".

The "happy juice" had the same effect on him as when he got his tubes and adenoidectomy...tired, drunk ol' man.  My nerves always get the best of me when I see the medication start to take it's effect.  I can't help but to worry, but try to always put on a brave face.

They wheeled Jackson away from us at 10:54AM and it was an hour before we were called back to recovery.  After about 30 minutes, I really started to get anxious and worry about the what-ifs.  Luckily, the procedure just took a little longer than expected because the anesthesiologist had a hard time getting Jackson's iv's started.  Poor guy has some beat up little hands! 

Jackson was a pretty typical toddler coming out of anesthesia, crying and super irritated with everything.  Especially the fact that his balloons were gone from his room.  But, after a couple popsicles, he was finally ready to take home.

I thought he'd sleep the whole way home, but that certainly wasn't the case.  He ate almost all of the banana bread muffins we had made together the night before and asked a bazillion times for his balloon, with the Santa stickers on it.  Pitiful.

Such a good lil baker:)

By the time we all got home, it was bath, breathing treatment and bed.  We all slept in our bed, and were out by 8:30...just what I needed!

The doctor called us with the results from the scan last night.  They came back abnormal and showed that Jackson has significant sinusitis aka blockage in his sinus cavities, specifically in his maxillary sinuses under his eyes.  Hence, the reason why he constantly has puffy, dark circles under his eyes.

Considering Jackson's age, he just kept saying it was significant.  He even offered to do surgery to basically drain and irrigate his sinuses.  The downfall to this, is that children under the age of 4 heal so rapidly that the irrigation would close up within weeks.  We discussed this surgery with him in August and he was very against it then, and still doesn't think it's the best option, just offered it to us...

His next step for us is a sweat-chloride test to test him for CF, cystic fibrosis.  While Jackson is a thriving little boy, he does have a good bit of the symptoms and this test has been brought up in numerous doctor's appointments.  So, we have an appointment for the lab test at 1PM tomorrow.

Other possibilities or reasons for the abnormal scan is that Jackson may have a syndrome called Immotile Cilia Syndrome.  This basically means that his cilia's aren't able to move mucus through his sinuses.  We'll have to go back to his immunologist for this test.

The doctor spent a good 20 minutes on the phone with me, which was amazing.  He gave me a lot of medical information on diagnosis possiblities as well as medications to try.  The good news is that Jackson is thriving and developing right on track.  He will eventually get better with age, or grow out of this.  This phase too shall pass:)

He advised us to not proceed with allergy testing because clearly Jackson is allergic so there is really no need.  His orders are to keep a dust free house, no feathers, no pets, no carpet, and no cats.  All of those seem pretty easy to do, and maybe I can convince Mr. that we need our cleaning lady to come once a week now!

UPDATE: Thank you God, the sweat test was negative!!!

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A Hodgepodge Post

Call it what you will - a catch up, a catch all, a recap, a hodgepodge or sorts, or a brain dump - here's what's new with the Wilson's:

Jackson is literally leaping off of anything he can climb, trying to fly like an airplane or soar to infinity and beyond like Buzz Lightyear.  Why? you may ask, well that's a simple answer.  He is sick yet again, and had another steroid shot that has him bouncing off of the wall.  Don't believe me - watch the video and you'll see for yourself!


And speaking of hodgepodge, please ignore the hodgepodge of an outfit he's in!

After our last trip to the pediatrician with an ear infection, sinus infection, respiratory infection - and I'm not sure what else because he just said it was all infected - we are headed back to New Orleans on December 13th for a CT Scan of Jackson's sinuses.  I'm sure I'll be back to blogging before then, but could you please keep him in your prayers on the 13th? He has to be put under general anesthesia for this and it will be treated as an outpatient procedure due to his young age. 

The holidays are always hectic for us - as we're truly one of those families with Four Christmases.  In an effort to lessen the stress, we decided to host Thanksgiving this year.  So, as of today, we'll have 28 members of our immediate family over for quite a feast.  The only thing that would make this holiday better is if my dad and sister increased that count to 33, which is just wishful thinking.  We started setting tables and making plans to stuff the turkey this weekend.  I truly can't wait for us all to be together, even though I'm not really sure this is less stress!

The Thanksgiving Invite (with our address marked out)

And since my body loves to mess with me, on top of planning Thanksgiving for 28, I of course started my period this weekend.  I would be lying if I said that I wasn't hoping for a Thanksgiving pregnancy announcement, but I've closed that door and moved on.  I even went in today for my CD3 blood work at the RE's office to begin down that path, wherever it may lead us.

Jackson loves his big boy bed, and I promise to take some pictures and dedicate a post just to that.

I wish my almost 2.5-year-old was ready to potty train, but it looks like I'll be wiping butt's for a while longer.

I am having the best time playing Santa already this year, it's amazing how children can change you.  I normally don't even start thinking about presents until after Thanksgiving, but the UPS man has already delivered a few packages to the Wilson address!

Speaking of Christmas, have you seen these cute Reindeer pillows that Sweet Meredith is making?!? I haven't placed my order yet, but I just love love love them:)

I'm helping out with Thanksgiving Lunch at Jackson's school and am so excited, as this is my first mom-opportunity to do such a thing!

And if you're still reading, I promise to get back to blogging - as I foresee a lot to blog about in the upcoming months!

Lastly, I'm so thankful for each and everyone of you! I love reading your sweet comments and emails, and reading your blogs as well!

Loves,
Kristen - aka Momma

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Test results...

Just a quick post to let everyone know that Jackson's immunology test results came back and everything was normal! While this is such wonderful news, it still means that we don't have the answers as to why he's always sick. But, we are overjoyed that there wasn't an underlying immune deficiency that was going undiagnosed.

Jackson is tolerating the antibiotics pretty well, even now that I'm dosing him correctly...momma fail moment last week when Mr. discovered I was only giving him 1/2 of the dose prescribed. I couldn't figure out why all three of Jackson's doctors were calling to check on him.  I knew the prescription was very aggressive, but I was shocked when we realized we were supposed to give it to him twice a day.  Now I know why everyone was so concerned, I thought it was a lot just once a day!

Anyway, we're dosing correctly now and have about 4.5 more weeks to go. We have decided to wait on allergy testing until Jackson's done with the antibiotics. I'd hate to put him through another test if his issues are because of an infection somewhere and not allergies!

I hope y'all are having a nice holiday weekend. We've enjoyed the blustery, raining weather from Tropical Storm Lee and have slept more hours than we've been awake! Jackson especially needed to catch up and rest his little body:)

More updates soon...

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Doctors, doctors, and more doctors

I'm just going to jump right in and start rambling on and on about Jackson's health.  This blog has proven to be more than just a fun way to share our life stories, it's also my documentation for my sick kid.

I'd like to add this disclaimer: There are thousands of sick kids that are far sicker than Jackson.  From an outsider, I realize that Jackson seems to be a perfectly healthy, thriving toddler.  We are blessed beyond belief that we are only in and out of doctor's offices, and not hospitals, and ER's. 

So, here I go!

After Jackson's last round of mastoiditis, ear infection, sinus infection, and tonsillitis - we finished 10 days of aggressive medication and three days later, he started getting sick again.

Jackson is at the doctor with sinus infections and bronchitis once a month.  In the past 6 months we've had 32 prescriptions filled, this doesn't include the shots and samples that we get in the office or the over-the-counter drugs.

Jackson's chronic sinus infections cause a lot of drainage down the back of his throat, which makes him cough.  And because he is one of the lucky kids that was left with hyperactive and restricted airways from RSV, his cough quickly turns into a bronchial asthma attack.

This past Saturday afternoon, Jackson woke up hoarse from a 4 hour nap, hello red flags.  By Sunday night, Jackson was in a full blown episode.  Gagging and retching from couching so hard.  Holding his chest and crying from pain. Pressing on his eyes and holding his head telling us how bad it (the sinus pressure) hurt.

First thing Monday morning, we were back at the pediatrician's office.  He ordered a chest x-ray and sinus x-ray, and then told us there was nothing more he could do for us.  Jackson really needs to see a specialist.  He also gave Jackson his 4th round of steroids in the past 6 weeks.  Most adults aren't supposed to take more than 4 rounds in a year, just to put this in perspective.  However, after conversing with a pulmonologist it was deemed necessary if we wanted to keep the bronchitis from developing into pneumonia by the weekend.

Tuesday morning, I took Jackson to see his ENT.  Her only option for us was surgery to irrigate his sinuses and replace his tubes, which are about to fall out.  This would require Jackson to be under general anesthesia for 30 minutes, and have a few days of recovery.  Again, this was her only option to us and we still wouldn't know what exactly was causing Jackson to be sick all of the time.

I left the appointment and knew we had to look at other options.  My mom and I spent the day looking for our next steps.  She took Jackson's charts to all of her top doctors in the area and they all agreed that Jackson needed to be seen by a doctor in New Orleans at Ochsner Hospital.  He is a pediatric ENT that specailizes in cases like Jackson.

So I called, expecting to get an appointment with him 6 months down the road...and they were able to get us in on Wednesday, the very next day! Thank you Grandma and God, for answering my prayers:)

Wednesday morning, my mom drove me and Jackson to New Orleans for the appointment.  We arrived at Ochsner about 20 minutes early, and they took us right away! The doctor spent one full hour with us, and not a minute of that time was spent warming up to Jackson.  Jackson left with a sticker that he proudly gave him that said, Dr. G made me scream!

And boy did Dr. G make Jackson scream...

He first sat with us reviewing Jackson's charts and patient history. Then we went into a different exam room, where it took 4 of us to pin Jackson down so that he could look at his ears through a microscope.  This allowed for him to rule out any ear disease or need for tubes.

Next he jammed some numbing medicine up Jackson's nose and told me to hold him down tight.  Note to self: Do no wear a dress to hold and pin your screaming toddler down.  Bring football pads and Daddy!

Once the numbing medicine kicked in, Dr. G was able to put a scope up Jackson's nose and down his throat.  We were all able to watch on a big screen, as he checked everything out.  It was pretty amazing, I have to say.  Jackson's sinuses are full of puss and mucous, causing a lot of drainage down the back of Jackson's throat.  It's no wonder he coughs all the time.

The scope ruled out a lot of possibilities; he doesn't have a deviated septum, or malformations, or need to have his tonsils removed, and his adenoids are still gone.

He believes that Jackson has some sort of secondary infection, on top of his chronic sinus infections.  In order to clear up his bronchial issues, we have to clear his sinuses first.  However, he does not want to do surgery like his regular ENT recommended because the results just aren't proven in children his age.

His prescription: Jackson will be taking 42 days - 6 weeks - of aggressive antibiotics, in combination with nasal steroids and a diluted Afrin nasal spray for 10 days.  IF Jackson gets sick again within one week of completing the antibiotics, then he wants to sedate him and do a CT Scan of his sinuses. 

More importantly than that, he wanted Jackson to be seen by an immunologist to have an immunity work up done.  Dr. G highly recommended a doctor in Alexandria, Louisiana...

So, we literally left Dr. G's office in New Orleans, and called Dr. C's office in Alexandria and they told us to come on up that afternoon!

We arrived at Dr. C's office at 3:30 and didn't leave until 5PM.  He spent almost that entire time with us, reviewing Jackson's history with me and asking a lot of questions.  I was exhausted by the end of the appointment.

We discussed a lot of possibilities and next steps.  A lot of if this, then that situations.  And we left with orders to go to our local hospital's lab for an immunology work up.

And 12 hours after meeting my mom to begin our day, we arrived back home!

Thursday morning, Mr. took Jackson to get his lab work done before school.

We have to wait a week for the results, which I'm praying goes by fast and answers the mystery to Jackson's health.  I need a plan.  I need answers.  I need to know what to do to make my baby feel better.

I know that some of these test could give us answers that will change our lives, I'm praying for the strength to handle that news.

I also know that these tests could all come back completely normal, which would mean that we would move forward with allergy testing immediately.

It's a 50/50 chance. If this, then that.

While I avoid Dr. Google, please join me in praying for all of those seeking answers.  Please pray for the healing and peace for all of those who are sick, their families and the doctors and nurses that care for them.

No matter how healthy or how sick, our children are our everything!

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We didn't make it...

Well we didn't even come close to making it 6 weeks without seeing a doctor. We only made it one week, to be exact. Why does this keep happening?!?

I'm in search for a bubble to put my sweet Jackson in at the moment.  So, if any of you have ideas or recommendations on how I can keep this kid out of a doctor's office, I gladly welcome them!

10 days after Jackson finished his last dose of his antibiotic, the cough came back. After two whole weeks of not one cough and a happy boy, I'm completely devastated. Monday morning I heard the cough and my heart broke. I hoped that it was just a fluke, but by yesterday he was coughing all day and all of last night.

We went back to the allergist this morning and he believes that Jackson has come down with yet another infection.  However, I am not sure if I buy this or not...

He still doesn't think this is allergy related, so I question whether or not I need to take him back to our pediatrician?!? We're starting another round of antibiotics this morning and he got a steroid dose as well.  I'm hoping that the second round of antibiotics will continue to fight whatever is bring Jackson down.

The glimpse at life with a well baby was too wonderful to stop fighting for. I love my baby, but y'all just don't understand what a different kid he's been for the past two weeks. Falling back into the whiny, clingy, pissed off toddler last night was just so frustrating. At least now I know that this is because he doesn't feel well and not his "terrible two" personality.

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Clean bill of health...

Y'all, I can't hardly believe that I'm actually typing this - MY JACKSON IS HEALTHY!!!

We had our follow-up appointment this morning with our allergist and their diagnosis seems to be right on - Jackson has most likely had a bacterial infection in his lungs since he was sick around Halloween.  We just never found the right antibiotic and steroid mix to totally kick the infection out of his system...until now!

As of today, Jackson's lungs are official clear, his cough is gone, and there is no need at this point for any allergy testing!!!

Mr. and I cannot tell you the relief this brings to us.  Seriously, Mr. even got teary-eyed during the appointment.

We'll keep Jackson on the Flonase everyday and dry max as needed.  These are just because we live in Louisiana and who doesn't have some sort of allergies right now?!?

We can drop the Xopenex from his breathing treatment and only use it as needed for a cough or rattle, which again can be expected just because of the climate we live in.

The doctor wants us to continue Pulmacort daily as maintenance at least through the Spring.  He imagines that Jackson will require this drug seasonally, which is fine.

The last medication Jackson will continue to take is the Prevacid, just for the next month to see if he was having any silent reflux issues.

And the best news, Jackson doesn't have to go back to the doctor for another 6 weeks!!! The real test will be if we make it that long without going to the doctor...which hasn't happened, ever.

The grand total in medical expenses this month topped over $1,000 - but having a healthy boy at the end was worth every penny.  Jackson is like a new kid I tell you, and it's amazing.  He is so happy and you can tell he feels good.  I'm rethinking the terrible two preview, maybe it was just a desperate cry for help to make him feel better!

my happy boy with his Popsicle

a little water fun after dinner

this chair can finally be used for lounging instead of breathing treatments around the clock!

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Another day, another doctor

Y'all, I think I'm going to have to change the name of my blog to "mother who spends her life in a doctors office with a sick kid"! Seriously, something has got to change.  Between co-pays and prescriptions for Jackson, I'm going to go broke! However, I have high hopes that things are going to get better.

During Friday's appointment with our pediatrician, Jackson got a cortisone shot and we were told that Jackson needed to be allergy tested ASAP.  Well Friday night was by far the worst night, ever! I expected the shot to help and boy was I wrong.  We rotated between breathing treatments, hot steam shower, the recliner, our bed and the couch.  Jackson's cough and wheezing was just terrible.  Words cannot describe the pain and struggle Jackson was in. Not to mention, he also ran 100 degree fever most of the night.

I'm no doctor, but since when do you run fever with allergies.  And if this was an allergy/asthma coughing attack, then his fast-acting rescue drugs should have helped, but did not.

Since none of us were able to sleep and staying inside didn't seem to help, we decided to walk in the Race for the Cure Saturday morning.  Surprisingly, Jackson did really well.  He coughed a little during the walk, but nothing at all like the night before.

Again, I'm no doctor, but if this was allergies then wouldn't he be worse outside with Spring in full bloom?!?

Saturday night was amazing, Jackson slept from 10PM straight through to 8:30AM.  Hallelujah, the medications must finally be working!!!

We all woke up Sunday feeling so refreshed and hopeful.  However, as the day progressed we were singing a different tune.  The coughing kept Jackson from napping and playing and he got very pissy.  The days of coughing were finally catching up to him and bringing him down fast.  With every cough, you could just watch him hold his chest in pain.  Talk about heart breaking and feeling so helpless.

First thing Monday morning, I called our pediatrician and told him something was just not right.  I begged for something to help Jackson's cough - he said to give him honey.  I mean seriously, honey.  I try and keep my blog PG, but I'm sorry, you've got to be fucking kidding me.

Well, all I can say is thank God for my momma! As I've said before, she is a pharmaceutical drug rep and spends her days with allergists and pulmonologists.  So literally within the hour, she had her top docs looking at Jackson's medical history and working together to figure out what in the hell is causing him to be so sick.

We were able to get in to see an allergist yesterday, and we finally feel like we're heading in the right direction.  Here's how our appointment went:

Is it possible that Jackson has allergies?
Absolutely.  He has a tone of clear mucus in his nose, which is causing a good bit of drainage down his throat.  

Are his allergies bad enough to make him this sick?
Not likely.  A child younger than 2 should not be this sick just from allergies.  There's something else going on here.

Does he need to be allergy tested?
Maybe, but again, we need to find out the root of the problem first.  And this isn't it.

Shouldn't his maintance (pulmacort) and rescue (Xopenex) medication work better?
Exactly, Jackson's on a very good dosage and he doesn't seem to be responsive to either.  We did a treatment in the office and confirmed that it didn't really help.  This would indicate that the big problem isn't asthma, which is a good thing.  I would love for Jackson to be asthma free!

So, what gives?!?
Looking back on all of the medications Jackson's been on since January, he was not properly treated for Pneumonia.  We did steroids and breathing treatments for the RSV, but no antibiotics for the bacterial Pneumonia infection. In her personal opinion, we're dealing with an unresolved case of Pneumonia.  Jackson should have been hospitalized when he had RSV and Pneumonia, with out a doubt.


His ears looked great, no blockage at all.  She said not to worry about the hearing test, Jackson is obviously not deaf.  He's a boy and he's sick.  We need to get him well and then see.

Now what???
Jackson is on a super strong antibiotic for the next 5 days, and he got more steroids yesterday and today.  She changed up his medications a little bit, including a different GERD medication twice a day.  Silent reflux could also be a factor here.  We need to dry up his nose and get his lungs cleared up!

In a perfect world, by this time next week, we'll have a perfectly healthy Jackson! Fingers and toes are doubly crossed hoping that this finally fixes our precious boy!!!

Jackson's revised medication list

My little boob man before the Race

Oh.So.Pitiful.

Riding:)

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Back to the doctor

I'm sure y'all are just as tired of hearing about Jackson's health as I am writing about it. However, it's nice to look back and use this as documentation to remember what's happened when. I reference these posts a lot before doctors appointments!

Jackson is never well, never 100%, never as good as I believe he should feel.  Some days are worse than others, and well sick has just become our normal.  Jackson is still a wonderful sleeper, and thankfully, he doesn't let the snot nose, wheezing and coughing bring him down.  I truly believe the sound of his cough is much worse than it actually feels.  Wednesday and Thursday night and morning, Jackson coughed and coughed and coughed.  Once these coughing fits start, they last for a good hour or so.

Last night was the worst night we've had in a long time.  Jackson randomly ran fever on and off all night.  It never goes above 100 degrees, so I rarely give him anything for it.  As fast as it comes, it goes.  One minute he's warm, the next he's nice and cool.

At about 9:30 last night the coughing got so bad I went into his room and got him.  We slept together in our recliner, upright, for as long as my neck and back could take it.  Then we went into our bed and slept on a couple pillows up for a little while.  At about 1AM another coughing fit started and it was a rough one. 

I gave him another breathing treatment and by about 3AM we were all back to sleep for the rest of the night.  I decided to let Jackson sleep in his crib with the humidifier on full blast and turned our monitor up to hear for him.  I just worry that he'll cough something up and choke, it scares me to pieces.

When we woke him up at 8AM this morning, the coughing started once again.  I felt terrible waking him, but it's a work day and there was no other choice.  I called our pediatrician and asked for the first available appointment this morning.  I went ahead and gave Jackson his cocktail of medication and we were on our way.

We went back to the pediatrician instead of our ENT because this is clearly a lung/respiratory issue not his ears, nose or throat.  His doctor couldn't hardly believe Jackson sounded the way he did after seeing the list of medication the ENT has him on.  His cough was in full force and he was very wheezing for just finishing a breathing treatment.

Outcomes of today's appointment:
We're all on the same page that we have to get Jackson well and figure out the root of the problem. 

Jackson's ear's aren't infected, but his tubes are blocked due to the amount of congestion he has.  Which is most likely why he failed his hearing tests.  He'll continue to fail until we get him well. Ear drops will be needed for the next two weeks and again anytime he's sick - which right now is all of the time!

We're going to treat him for GERD/Silent Reflux for a month to see if that helps the cough.  This will be a new prescription given 30-minutes before dinner.

We are doubling the amount of Pulmacort Respules and giving him one large dose a day, instead of breaking it up twice a day.

Xopenex will still be needed to relieve coughing, as needed every 4 hours.

We're replacing Singular, Dry Max/Vazotan, and cough medicines with Flonase.  If we dry up his nose, and clear up the congestion with the Flonase, then the post-nasal-drip will stop with the coughing.  Fingers crossed!

We are going ahead with the full panel allergy test, ASAP.  Jackson's allergies and asthma seem to be too bad to wait until his 2nd birthday.  I'm slightly overwhelmed at the thought of spending two days a week in a doctor's office for allergy shots in our near future, but if it works, it will be worth it!

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19 months...

At 19 months, here's what Jackson is up to:

weighs 30lbs.
is about 33" tall, still a little on the short side
seems to be sick, more than well
has a mouth full of teeth
loves to play with a ball or a balloon or anything in my make-up/hair drawer
eats bananas like there's no tomorrow
uses a fork, and well
loves to be chased and play hide and seek
pushes his trucks and furniture all over the house
kisses, sweet sweet kisses, all the time
puckers up his lips to give kisses when you tell him "no"
still isn't the best sleeper, and well I'm accepting that
talks a lot, just not English yet...
he definitely verbally communicates, we're just not sure what he's saying
I don't have a "word list", see above
he loves elmo, dinosaurs and cars
still takes a good afternoon nap to recharge
throws a ball
puts his hands up in reply to "how big is Jackson?!?"
refuses to drink milk, organic, silk, soy, skim, 2% - we've tried it all
only nurses before bed...which is about to end very soon
melts.my.heart.

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How to get your toddler to do a breathing treatment?

If you read this post, then you know that day one of Jackson's breathing treatments were terrible. Seriously, I felt like a failure as I sat in the pediatrician's office giving Jackson his first test treatment.

The nurses had me practice giving Jackson a treatment to see how we "handled it". I mean, how hard could it be, right?!? WRONG. It was a test, and we didn't do so hot. I'd say we failed, but they let us go home, so I guess we passed with a D.

I was not able to keep Jackson calm or even console him what.so.ever. When I say that Jackson lost his shit, he LOST IT! It took me and TWO nurses to hold down all 29 pounds of toddler. Talk about the longest 10 minutes.  I don't know who was more red at the end of it - me from utter embarrassment or Jackson was being so pissed off. When they turned the machine off, Jackson buried his head in my chest and passed out.

I thought for sure that Jackson would do better at home. In the quiet, with just me. We could do this, I can get my kid to do a breathing treatment, I know I can. Once again, WRONG. Mr. came in for back up, and well you saw that picture. It was torture. And I'm not sure why.  It's not like the treatment hurts in anyway.

So I called in for help, and help I got! Here's what worked:
• We let Jackson play with the machine, he turned it on and off. He played with the tube and pointed the air on us. He got comfortable with the loud noise the machine makes. I guess this made it all less scary.

• Instead of sitting quietly in his room, we sat on the couch and watched a show for distraction.

• Elmo was an awesome distraction, and we turned up the volume to drowned out the machine.

• We ditched the elastic strap around his head. It did nothing but piss Jackson off, so I just held the mask over his face.

• After the medicine was out, I let him play around with mask. He made the cutest fishy faces for us and thought he was such a big boy!

And with those little bits of advice, we had a happy boy that could breath again!

THANK YOU!!!

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Steroids, Antibiotics, and a Nebulizer for my Toddler

Well friends, it's never a dull life in the Wilson's. Last Friday sure proved that! It all started with a runny nose on Wednesday... of course that was because I scheduled Jackson's 16 month well baby visit for Friday. Every time I schedule these appointments, he comes down with something!

I didn't think much of the runny nose. Jackson slept great that night, so I figured it was just his allergies. Thursday night I gave Jackson his allergy medicine and had Mr. set up the humidifier in his room... well, let's just say we didn't get much sleep that night.  We've had a rough few nights, with not much sleep.

At one point Thursday night I thought about taking Jackson to the ER for his wheezing. I've never heard Jackson sound like this before.  I knew my baby was struggling to breathe.  My sister had asthma as a child, and this was all I could think about. Jackson sounded like a 90-year-old, chain smoker. It was terrible!

We went to the doctor first thing Friday morning, and I laughed as we checked in for Jackson's "well baby" visit. It was obvious that Jackson was not well!

Turns out that Jackson may have allergy induced asthma, we'll know more this week after they run some tests. The good news is that he responded well to the medication. I'm still not convinced that he didn't just have a respiratory infection, but it may be denial.

Jackson got a cortisone shot on Friday as well as antibiotics for another ear infection. On top of that, we were sent home with a nebulizer for Jackson to have breathing treatments as needed for his wheezing.

At first the breathing treatments were torture! They don't hurt, the machine doesn't scare him, I couldn't figure it out. His first treatment took me and two nurses pinning him down. Not fun! A few mom's recommended not using the face mask strap and distracting him with a show. Hello, genius mommas!!! Thanks to Elmo, his treatments have been successful.

Everything seems to be under control for the time being. Mr. and I are so ready for the steroid high aka Tasmanian devil, side effects to wear off. Jackson is like a ball in a pinball machine. Literally, he's bouncing off the walls and climbing everything!

We cannot thank everyone enough for the thoughts, prayers and advice! I'll be sure to update as we know more. Our weekend was relaxing, full of lots of cuddles and kisses:) We didn't trick or treat, but Jackson was as cute as can be handing out candy!

Sick Baby J

First treatment at home with Momma and Mr., not good...

Thankful for momma's advice, Elmo was the perfect distraction.  No more tears or fighting the treatment!

Big boy, fishy face:)

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