Pneumonia

Christmas Eve Brityn was having some allergy problems. We think she came in contact with some peanuts and/or peanut butter. It was no big deal she was just itchy. Christmas day she got a really runny nose and was sneezing a lot. We assumed it was allergies again. Sunday she started coughing. Coughing for her is not good. It usually leads to breathing treatments. That night we gave her one even though she was breathing fine at that point. She woke up at 2:30 and not doing good. She was wheezing and breathing pretty fast, I gave her another treatment. She woke again at 4:30 and sounded worse, which is really weird because a treatment will last at least 4 hours normally. She was coughing so hard she threw up and asked for another treatment. I told her she had to wait... probably not a good decision on my part, but I didn't know better. By the time she woke up for the day she was even worse so I called the doctor and they told us to bring her in at 1:00. I took a nap with Ryder because I hadn't gotten much sleep the past two nights. Brent took care of Brityn. She wasn't eating or drinking. He took her to the doctor so we didn't have to haul Ryder out.

After being gone for about two hours Brent finally called, they wanted to admit her to the hospital. They sent her for x-rays and they thought she had pneumonia. Her oxygen levels were really low, her respiration's were really fast (40 breaths per min), and breathing treatments were not improving her lung functions.

We decided to put her in the hospital in Anaconda rather than here because that is where her pediatrician has hospital privileges. It broke my heart not being the one going with her and knowing I couldn't just run to the hospital to see her when I wanted to. They were great at the hospital there though and she got excellent care so it was a good decision even if it was not the most convenient one.

Thank goodness she has such a good daddy. He does not do well with needles and such, especially when they are being stuck in his little girl but he did great with her. They kept her there two nights and he didn't leave her for a second.

Brityn did great too. She cooperated with the doctors and nurses. Didn't give them too much grief about putting in the iv. She didn't like the oxygen and kept pulling it out until they added some water to keep her nose from getting too dry. By this afternoon she had made herself right at home and had the nurses wrapped around her little finger. She was scared to death before she went in and by the time she left I think she thought it was some big adventure.

I'm so glad she is home and well. We're going to be busy in the next week with all the medications and the breathing treatments we have to do but it's better than the alternative. Unfortunately Brent is on night shift for the next two nights so I've got my hands full!

We have an official diagnosis of asthma. She will be on a inhaled steroid to treat it.


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Monday night Ryder started getting a stuffy nose and a little cough so I brought him in to be checked out. He is fine. Apparently it's just from milk going into his nose and irritating his sinuses. My milk comes out fast so he's constantly choking on it. I had the same problems with Brityn but it never caused her to have nasal problems. So far he has escaped his sisters illness, thank goodness!