Tuesday, March 18, 2008

I will not get sick. I will not get sick. I will NOT get sick.

He threw up every 30 - 45 minutes from midnight til 7 am. We spent those hours cuddled up together on the bathroom floor.

Max left for work at 7, and I think we both slept (in my bed) until 8:30 when he needed the toilet again. After that, it was roughly every 60 - 90 minutes til 3 this afternoon. While he waited for the next wave of nausea to arrive, I used bleach. On everything bleachable. And I did laundry. Everything that he touched or breathed on got washed in hot water. I think I did 9 loads - washed, dried, folded, put away. All the while repeating my mantra; I will not get sick. This is not nausea. My stomach does not feel weird. I will not get sick.

At 4 he was feeling a little better, so he asked for my laptop and he chatted online about surviving the Norwalk. By 6 he was able to drink a glass of water without vomiting it back up, so he plunked himself down on the couch in the family room and played some online Halo.

Max and I sat down to supper at 7, and I noticed Drew wasn't on the couch anymore. I checked the three bathrooms, but found him curled up in his bed.
"Going to have a nap?" I asked. (You have to understand. Drew NEVER voluntarily goes to bed.)
"Uh huh."
"Are you cold?"
"Uh huh."
I put another blanket on him but he was already sleeping.

That was at 7.
I think he might be down for the night.
He so very badly doesn't want to be sick. It's Spring Break. He had friends over last night, and he was supposed to see "Horton Hears A Who" tonight with a buncha buds.

One thing about sick kids?
They're nice.
Cuddly.
Affectionate.
They're OK with you being in the same room as them.
They're OK with you rubbing their backs.

Another thing about sick kids?
Sometimes they pass their sickness along to you.

I so very desperately do not want to be sick. You can't even imagine. No. You cannot.
I mean, the being sick part, is bad enough. But do you know how much work I've missed? This is just not good.

And then there's the dad thing. What're we going to do? If we wait for him to be placed, it could take a month or more. Another month of him in the hospital? Oy.

My sister, BLESS HER, dealt with dad's gums today. She cleaned his dentures, (top), got his teeth brushed (bottom), asked for a solution he could swish around in his mouth to help with the sores. I'd been mentioning every day to the nurses that his mouth was sore, could they do anything and they gave him tylenol. Masked the pain, but sure didn't solve the problem. Jul, fed up, just dove right in and managed the whole thing herself.

Then there's the whole 'physio' aspect. His doctor ordered, two weeks ago, that he be walked everyday. Just 30 meters, but still. He needs to move. A nurse walked with him once. Once in almost 3 weeks. He's going to end up with bedsores. He just lies there everyday. All day.

So, Jul called me tonight and said she's going to get him up herself.

She is an amazing woman. I am so proud to be her sister.

And I feel so bad that I'm not helping out this week. But I can't take a chance that I'll pass this virus along to him.

Oh, Drew just got up. Headache. Weak. Thirsty. Feverish. Dizzy.
We're going to watch Indiana Jones together.

I will not get sick. I will not get sick.
Am I feeling pukey? Or is it all in my head?
I will not throw up.
I simply refuse.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Jane,
I hope the surprise at hearing from someone you may have forgotten exists, might cheer you up a bit. It's Ruth, your cousin. I've been thinking of you and your family a lot for a long time, but thought it's time to not just think, but tell you about it. Of course I've been hearing from my parents about your dad's situation (and now your mom's as well), but I've also started dipping into your blog occasionally. Needless to say I'm pained at what you're all going through. It's hard to imagine. We all know it's 'just life', but when it hits close to home ... well, you're the one to comment on that - on you do!
Just wanted to let you know that I'm thinking about you. Please give my love to your to your mom and dad (I do hope he remembers me ...) and, of coure, to Jim and Julie, too. And from Tony. Of all my relatives, Uncle Pete is his favorite, he says.
And I do hope you're spared the virus. We had it here around Xmas, but the two of us were lucky and didn't get it.
Take care.
Love, Ruth and Tony in London

Christine Lindsay said...

I had the same scenario in December with 2 of my adult kids. I swear it was the Norwalk virus. Just drink lots of water. I did and I didn't get it. I tried to purge the germs from me before they had a chance to stay. Not sure if it worked, but after 3 days of solid throwing up, I didn't get sick.