Thursday, October 7, 2010

In Which They Figure Out What The Heck Is Going On With Connor

So we have some answers!

Over the past few days they've done many, many tests on Connor to see if they can figure out what's going on.  One of the things they did was take a nasal swab to run a bunch of rapid viral tests.

Sure enough, they found something. Connor came up positive for parainfluenza.

Parainfluenza is not the flu and there's no immunization or effective antibiotic for it; it's the family of viruses that cause the common cold with fever, a good portion of cases of croup, and a number of cases of bronchiolitus or pneumonia too.  So far Connor's is sticking to the upper part of his respiratory system, which is a good thing.  He's developed a pretty good cough, though, and spent most of the day today sleeping.  There's really not a whole lot the hospital can do other than to keep him hydrated, comfortable and seizure free.

The little guy is still desatting while asleep (he hovers in the high 80's without oxygen) so until that resolves and they think they can take him off of the Ativan every eight hours I'm pretty sure we'll be sticking around the hospital.  Jeremy's spending the night there tonight and I've come back to the house; we'll switch off tomorrow night.  Hopefully Connor will be able to get over the worst of his illness soon and we'll be able to bring him home!

Jeremy actually gave me the latest update on Connor by phone while I was on my way back home from roller derby bootcamp.  Yes, I went to roller derby bootcamp while my son was in the hospital.  I seriously needed to get a good workout in, because after two days of sitting in my living room watching my kid breathe, and then another full two days of sitting in a hospital room watching my kid attempt to breathe, I was just a wee bit tense. 

It took me a little while to relax once I was up on skates (and believe me, if you are really tense on roller skates you fall down a lot) but once I got into it and was able to take my mind off the little guy for a while I felt much better and actually managed to stay on my feet.  I think that after four years of doing these sorts of crazy adrenaline rushes I've learned what my limits are and when I need to take a break from being Mom, and tonight I was pretty close to that limit.  I'll get a good night's sleep tonight, and then tomorrow I'll be able to go back to the hospital refreshed to relieve Jeremy so he can get his much-needed break.

So anyway, thanks to everybody for your continued prayers and thoughts of support; keep your fingers crossed for us that Connor will be able to hold his own soon!

~Jess

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm glad they have figured out what is causing the problem, and it's staying upper respiratory at this point. Many prayers for Connor to get better soon and for you & Jeremy to stay strong. I can't even imagine how stressful that would be. I'm also glad you are taking care of yourself too - if you & Jeremy don't take care of yourselves you won't be much good to Connor. ;o)

Wherever HE Leads We'll Go said...

So glad that you have some answers. And that you got a break too! We all need that once in a while and I think it makes us better moms in the long run. Praying the little guy is feeling better and heading home very soon!

Chloes Mom Mary said...

Hi Jess, Jer, & Connor;

Many prayers and positive thoughts that Connor continues to improve and will soon be home.

It is good news that they finally know what is happening with that sweet little boy.

I am so glad that you took time for a much needed break. You and Jer are awesome parents and very wise. Too often we forget that we need to look after ourselves in order to take care of our loved ones.

I hope that today will be blessed with good news and much improvement for Connor.

krlr said...

Hugs to you all. My neighbor would bring over a casserole for you but I can't cook so you're probably safer with my virtual casserole. Sending good thoughts.

xraevision said...

What a relief it is to have a diagnosis! Even if little can be done, at least you don't have the frustration of not knowing what it is. And good for you for recognizing your limits. It is so important that you take care of yourself during times like this!

ANewKindOfPerfect said...

I'm glad they at least know what's ailing Connor! My daughter had parainfluenza when she was 10 months old and was hospitalized for almost a week because of it. She stopped eating, etc. It was horrible. I hope that Connor recovers quickly!

And I am so glad that you and Jeremy switch off. We do the same. You HAVE to get out of the hospital. Hanging out in there 24/7 is SO hard on us, emotionally and physically!

TC said...

Also glad for the answers. And don't spend even 30 seconds feeling like you need to explain your need for a break to ANYONE.

As a buttinsky (I'm not a doctor, but I play one on the internet...), I want to point out that yes, there are no antibiotics for viruses (which is why antibacterial soaps are useless in helping to prevent things like swine flu!), there ARE immunizations for MANY viruses, if not this one. I think it's just a question of how you wrote that sentence (with the parenthetical 'like all viruses' coming before mentioning that there's no vaccine), and I bet you actually knew that, being as savvy as you are medically, but just in case...!

Jess said...

That's true, TC! Sorry about that-- it does sound misleading. I'll change it so it doesn't sound that way.

KLB said...

Jess and Jeremy
I'm also a daily reader and am so sorry to hear you will be in Children's for a bit. We did a week there this summer and became quite familiar with all the parent haunts, like the newish Starbucks on Giraffe 1. Good for you to take some time off, rejuvenate and go back ready to advocate for your little guy. Thinking of you all as Connor beats this Paraflu. Karen

 
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