Nursing a sick baby

Baby T is sick. It all started on Monday night after a busy day that included a trip to Mamas & Papas in the West End to try on baby carriers followed by a dash to Sainsbury’s, all without protest from T. It was only after I’d unpacked the groceries, cooked dinner and given Baby T her final feed that it became apparent she wasn’t feeling well. Her feed came straight back up and she was really irritable.

I put it down to wind, as we’ve been giving her Infacol with feeds for a few weeks as she has a gassy tummy. T’s daddy looked after her for a bit but she remained irritable and kept vomiting again and again and again. That night she barely slept and neither did we as T kept on crying and writhing with pain which isn’t like her at all.

My baby is usually happy and content and while she is often alert and bright-eyed at night-time she had never cried like this before. She was clearly in discomfort and it was making her miserable.

My husband suggested that I call the community midwife in the morning. I was hoping T would be better by then, but she wasn’t, so I called the midwife who immediately recommended I take T to see her GP.

Getting a quick appointment at our local GP surgery is a bit like getting a seat on the tube during rush hour when you’re wearing your most uncomfortable shoes, carrying a zillion bags and are completely knackered, If it happens you feel like it’s your lucky day. However I called and begged and the receptionist was incredibly helpful. If I could get there fast she would put T on a list to be seen before noon. I was still in my pyjamas but that didn’t matter, I threw a jumper on, grabbed my coat and bag, placed T in her new baby carrier and dashed to the surgery.

We didn’t have to wait long, which was really fortunate, as when the doctor examined T he agreed that she wasn’t happy at all and recommended I take her to see the paediatrician at the hospital immediately just to be on the safe side. I wasn’t expecting to hear that and I started to worry a little, but I figured the sooner we got to the hospital, the sooner T would start to get better.

I quickly cancelled plans for that afternoon and evening and T and I headed to the hospital by tube (still in my pyjamas, jumper and leather jacket). I hadn’t been to an accident & emergency department at hospital before, the waiting room was kind of scary, everyone there looked like death. I tried to find an empty seat next to the person who looked the least likely to have a contagious disease and tried not to touch anything.

Luckily we didn’t have to wait very long at all. T was taken care of by two lovely nurses and two lovely doctors who concluded she may have an infection brewing, but if not, it’s more than likely that she’s suffering from gastro-oesphogeal reflux. I have to observe her for 48 hours and if her symptoms remain the same I was told to start her on two prescription medicines for the reflux, that she would need to take until she’s fully weaned at around 12 months.

I was fearful T would have to stay in hospital, like I had to when I’d least expected it, so I was so l relieved to take her home. On our way back on the tube I realised I’d put on the baby carrier inside out. Typical me! I held T super-tight all the way home just in case the carrier popped open.

Twenty-four hours later T’s still not well but fortunately she’s not getting worse so it’s looking unlikely that she has an infection. She was bawling last night so I bathed her in the Tummy Tub to see if that would help and it really soothed her. She still didn’t sleep much, and is still crying with pain but the bath definitely helped pacify her and I got a glimpse of how she used to be before this started.

In the interim I’ve kept T indoors today, which has meant we couldn’t go to Mum & Baby meet up. I’m also going to cancel other visitors until T gets better. I’ve not slept much as I’ve had to keep an eye on her as she’s vomiting a lot. Her daddy watched her last night after dinner so I was able to get an hour nap which helped me get through the erratic night sleeps.

We haven’t done much today, I’ve googled the medication she will need, Domperidone and Ranitidine, to check for side effects and grabbed a bite to eat when she napped briefly this afternoon. T is only sleeping for 30 minute periods, as she is constantly getting pain spasms. When she’s awake she’s mostly been in my arms as I try to keep her upright which is supposed to help and giving her lots of cuddles.

Luckily the frequent vomiting hasn’t put T off feeding. She’s now requesting feeds on an almost hourly basis. It’s sometimes hard for me to decipher if she’s crying because of pain or because she’s hungry so T has devised a way to let me know clearly what she wants. She’s kicked “rooting” up a gear and now if she’s lying on my chest she’s started shuffling down to my chest, opening her mouth and bobbing her head up and down over my breast really fast. Sometimes she can’t make it that far and ends up bobbing up and down over my arm but I always get the picture.

It’s now 6pm and I haven’t showered yet but as I haven’t been outdoors I figured washing can wait and T doesn’t seem to mind her mummy has been in pyjamas for 36 hours.

It breaks my heart that I can’t take the pain away for her as it makes me feel helpless. All I can do is hold her close, which calms her down a little. Hopefully she gets better soon.

October 28, 2009. GP, Hospital, Midwives, Sick baby.