RSV has reeked havoc in our lives here. First, Hester got it and ended up having to go to the ER on Valentine's Day because of retractions when she breathed. Luckily, she did not need to be admitted to the hospital and was better after being on oxygen blow by for a number of hours and her fever breaking. It was quite a nerve-wracking night for Clementine and I. We did sleep a wee bit by trading off who slept on the stretcher. But by 9 AM when the doctor discharged Hester, we were all exhausted and took the day off. (In actuality, those decisions were made many hours earlier and the proper people notified on time). Hester has made steady progress each day since then and now just has a wee little runny nose.
However, RSV set up camp in me Valentine's Day night. I started coughing and had that "Oh crap, I'm getting sick" feeling. It really came on over the weekend. Each night, I did not sleep with Clementine, for fear of keeping her up with my coughing. So I laid on the cough, coughing more than sleeping. I said, "This is good. The worst is now so I will be well for work Tuesday."
"Not so fast" replied RSV.
Tuesday, I went to work and coughed my fool head off. I tried to sing with my horse voice. I ended up doing a lot of work in the office. Wednesday, my cough was worse. I ate a whole package of cough drops in eight hours. Luckily, my intern was there and she did all the sessions. I just observed. Wednesday night's train ride home was a nightmare of coughing fits that went on for minutes at a time and happened every 2-5 minutes. I got so many dirty looks from fellow commuters. I could not blame them. I got home and cried for 5 minutes in the bathroom because I was so tired and felt like such crap. I decided if I did not sleep good that night, I would not go to work. And I didn't so I didn't. I went to the doctor who said I had a asthma like process going on in my lungs and that was why cough medicine was not helping. She gave me a steroid inhaler. Thursday night, I sort of slept but was so tired in the morning, I called in again. My boss, perhaps knowing the severity of my cough on Wednesday, had found coverage for my night shift, freeing me of any guilt driven need to go to work Friday. Thank you, Boss!
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, I pretty much slept, drank fluids, knit, and read magazines. Did you know that all the parenting magazines, like Parents, Baby Talk, and American Baby (when did we start getting so many baby magazines?) have short pieces that are easy to attend to when you are wicked sick? I tried to read a book my brother gave me, Cloud Atlas, but could not get up to page 20 after four days.
Today, I woke up and did not fall into a huge coughing spasm. I only had maybe 6 throughout the entire day. The steroids are working. I have one more day off to rest and recuperate and I think Tuesday, I will be able to hit the ground running at work. Thank goodness.
RSV is not one of my favorite illnesses, not that one has a favorite illness.
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2 comments:
hope you feel better, and though it is proably not convenient, we would be happy to have HW visit us if you need a hand that day or any other day.
Oh, poor you! I'm so glad Hester is on the mend, and that you're starting to get there, too. My friend's newborn had to spend 2 days in the hospital in Jan because of RSV - it's nasty!
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