Ugh, We're Sick

It's harder on kids with trachs to be sick. Imagine when you are sick with a cold that I made you breathe through a drinking straw. That's what it's like for kids with trachs. Except the drinking straw is in their neck. I can only imagine it's not so comfy to cough with a straw in your trachea. That is why I try so hard to keep Ainsley from getting sick. If she gets a bad cough it often ends up eventually causing bleeding.  The trachea becomes irritated and that causes more coughing and sometimes that results in a vicious circle of non-stop coughing that is hard to break.

That is what's been going on this week. Adrian had a bad cough this week and unfortunately Ainsley caught it. For Adrian he was able to continue going to school and didn't have a fever. Ainsley coughed so much neither she nor I got much sleep and Thursday I had to pick her up from school and she developed a 103 fever. Her heart rate was in the 160's. I even brought out the oxygen for the first time in 15 months to see if that would help her get more comfortable and breathe slower (it didn't). (Thanks though for your help Christy.)

The acetaminophen she'd had didn't help a lot but a dose of ibuprofen helped lower her temp a bit (probably to about 101.8) and heart rate. I've gotten to the point that I can judge temperature with my hand and just occasionally double check myself.  She is still miserable and in no condition to go anywhere. So unfortunately that means I'm at home with her today missing Adrian's final basketball game of the season and the end of season party.

I was on the computer researching the law about the legal age for babysitting and how that pertains when nurses are in your home when I looked over and saw Ainsley slumped over on the floor. She had been sitting on her knees on the floor watching a show but then leaned forward and fell asleep laying down in the fetal position. She'd lost circulation in her feet and they were blue and since I couldn't see her face for one fleeting second I thought she'd died. Of course she hadn't. (There is always a minuscule chance of trach obstruction.) I picked her up quickly and put her back on the couch where she then continued watching Martha Speaks.

Here you can still kind of see how purple her feet are even though they'd pinked up quite a bit by the time I got the camera. I should mention she doesn't have good blood flow to her feet so she is prone to losing circulation easily.

Of course dealing with so much trach snot and suctioning I can't help but catch whatever Ainsley has any time she has anything. Luckily it's not as severe for me since I still have to take care of her day and night. Adrian also woke several times throughout last night with severe ear pain that required a hot pad and Ibuprofen. Evie also has a bit of a cough.  I'm so thankful that I don't have the terrible cough. That is the worst! It's real fun around here.

Thankfully we got word yesterday that Steve's company decided not to extend "crunch" another month. After this past year I might have lost it.  They will work extended hours just during next week and then will go to normal 40(ish) hour work weeks to finish the game in June. Thank God! Plus he got the weekend off again. It's great that he's home again this weekend, I just hope he won't catch what the rest of us have.  Though Steve needs to recuperate too from the extreme work schedule, maybe I actually will be able to get away by myself soon, for a day or two.  Wouldn't that be something?!

Honestly having my husband at home to help out with the nighttime routine and Ainsley's care will feel like a vacation. I'm still not giving up on some PTO though. ; )

Well, I've gotta go suction, give meds and a tube feeding and get Ainsley cleaned up and dressed. I hope you all have a good weekend!(Actually, the best thing about being sick is getting to sit around and watch movies guilt free so this might turn out to be a nice family weekend for us after all.)