Hello from the hospital

The nightmare started at 2am this morning. S had sneaked into our room and clambered on to our bed some time before. She woke up with a start and started coughing and told me she wanted to vomit. I took her to the toilet and let her empty herself. I washed her face and brought her back to bed. She felt hot so I checked her temperature. It was above 102 def Fahrenheit.

I quickly gave her some medicine and put her back to sleep. Half an hour later she had puked in the bed. We went through the whole ritual and put her back to bed. We chatted about how she would have to miss school and how much her friends would miss her. She nodded off only to wake up half an hour later wanting to vomit. This continued throughout the rest of the night. Her fever remained above 101.

We rushed her to the doc in the morning and thankfully were only 2nd in the queue. Her doc was worried. S looked very weak and was on her way to being dehydrated. She was unable to drink anything and the high fever had made her weak. She thought she would need to be hospitalized but said we should try for a few hours at home to see if the vomiting could be controlled.

We picked up some of S' favourite drinks to entice her at home to drink more fluids. At home she was more relaxed and had a little bit of coconut water and juice to drink and even managed to have a few bites to eat. Just as I thought she had turned a corner, she vomited again. We then got her to have some Milo but she immediately vomited that as well. I decided to give her the next dose of suppository then though there was still 15mins to go before it was due. After that we got her to watch cartoons and started giving her some electrolyte with a syringe. She drank about 30ml and I brought her to my room for a nap. She nodded off, only to wake up 15 mins later and puke everything. That's when I decided it was time to take her to the hospital.

Her doctor had given me very specific instructions to take her to the hospital if she didn't improve. I called DD and he told me he would meet me there directly. We quickly packed a few things and drove to the hospital.

When we got there the admissions clerk told us the hospital was 'quite' full and they couldn't spare any beds. It was humbling to realize that you could be in a developed city with enough money in a private hospital but you were still at mercy of others. Thankfully her doctor got involved and sorted things out for us. There was a delay of about 30mins but they got us a bed in a double room.

S lay on the bed listlessly and I kept checking her temperature. Her fever kept climbing but the hospital staff were busy and hadn't even contacted her doctor to discuss medication. A lot of following up later we got a nurse to start giving S the attention she needed. We were getting frustrated at the pace at which medical attention was being provided but we kept reminding ourselves that there were more serious cases in the hospital.

The nurse gave S a fever suppository and put her on a drip. S was very brave. There was hardly a whimper as the nurse inserted the needle and she didn't struggle or resist in any way. I was very proud of her.

Within a few minutes of being on the drip there was a marked improvement. Though her fever remained high she lost that listless look. She started taking and chatting a bit more and by the time her grandpa came to visit she could spare him a laugh

S has been making full use of this hospital visit by watching as many cartoons as possible. Not to mention sucking on the lollipop while doing so. She's eaten a few bites of soup and porridge and hasn't vomited since we came to the hospital.

Her fever remains high. The nurse just came and changed the ice pack under her head and replaced the cold towel on her forehead. Another dose of paracetamol went in. I can hear her toss restlessly as I type this post.

We will need to be here for 48hrs. Can't wait to get out and return home with a healthy Squiggles. Wish us luck.