Tuesday, February 24, 2009

I thought we had dodged it this year.....

I caught myself thinking it last week. I knew I should have erased that thought out of my head as soon as it entered as I didn't want to jinx us. Still...because it is almost the end of February, I found myself wondering if..JUST MAYBE...by the Grace of God..we had avoided the FLU this year.


ahhh...no such luck.


I should have known yesterday when Jayden came home and said his head hurt. I should have guessed when he actually asked for Motrin. And when he was uncharacteristically grumpy, I should have thought twice about it. When will I learn that when my children do something out of the norm...that I should realize that they are usually getting sick. Did I? Oh no. What did I do? I gave my kid Motrin then proceeded to drag him all over, probably infecting everyone we came into contact with. Watch out Piano teacher...Jayden left a lovely flu gift on your piano last night. Sorry dear long lost cousins we visited last night, Welcome back to Indiana..here is your complimentary dose of the flu. Check out lady at marsh last night....you didn't know that every item that Jayden handed you was a flu time bomb. Sucks to be you.



Every February...for the last 5 years or so, my family is struck by the flu. And it's BAD. BAD I TELL YOU!!! If you haven't had the flu..the REAL flu...you don't know. Most people think the flu is vomiting and diarrhea. WRONG YOU ARE!! The flu hits you like a ton of bricks..suddenly and without warning. First, you feel this sensation in the back of your throat..way down deep at what I envision is the entrance to your lungs. It's an odd sensation...sort of like burning or tickling..but it's very subtle. 12 or so hours later? Raging fever. I mean 102+ fever. Which really isn't much if you are a kid...as an adult, it practically renders you bedridden. This lasts for a few days....while the fever is ravishing your body, your nose fills up with snot, ears clog up and your lungs burn every time you take a breath or cough. After 3 or 4 days of high fever, it becomes a week long low grade fever combined with a terrible cold. All and all...it takes 7-14 days to get better. And IF you are lucky, you will not get a secondary infection..like ear infection, sinus infection, bronchitis.


BUT WHAT ABOUT THE FLU SHOT???? you ask.


Yep...I don't think they really work. I get the shot every year...pay my 25 dollars because insurance won't cover it and I still get the flu. Last year, I got it so bad that I actually thought I was going to die. Then, just as I was getting better, I ended up with the mother of all sinus infections...I was sick the entire month of February. And I never missed a day of work.


And now my baby has it. poor Jayden. He woke me at 4:30 and said his throat hurt. I dismissed it as his throat being dry, gave him a drink of water and off we went back to bed. At 6, he came down stairs crying about his head hurting....I could see he had a fever and we took it. 103. When the Motrin kicks in, it's down to 100 degrees and he feels like moving. When the Motrin wears off, he lays listless on the couch, his face flushed, eyes glassy.








Poor sick little guy.
And I am following him around like a mad woman, spraying Lysol on everything he touches..and just randomly in the air. The Flu is air born, you know. I am popping vitamin c like it's candy and dutifully taking Zicam every three hours. I DO NOT WANT THE FLU.
And now I have to go take care of my baby. I think that maybe my throat hurts a little...or is it psychosomatic? I don't know.
Much Love.

1 comment:

Becky and Scott said...

didda, darling, i am so sorry the flu has entered your home once again. i hope your efforts to keep the ugly thing away from you are highly effective. AND i hope your little jayden gets better soon. xoxo