Thursday, October 22, 2009

It's all about perspective



I know you are asking yourself if this is part of Ben's new Halloween costume. However, while he absolutely adores his pediatrician and probably would go for dressing up as a physician, he is totally set on trick or treating as a "nice pirate" ("nice" because we aren't allowed to dress up as mean or scary things, so as long as the pirate is a "nice" one, he's in the clear).

No, this, my friends, is the new mandatory dress code for attendance at our pediatrician's office. Well, it's only mandatory if your child has experienced any of the following symptoms in the last 48 hours: fever, cough, runny/stuffy nose, chills, aches, diarrhea, or vomiting - in other words, any reason a parent will bring a child to the doctor. But, I have to say that I totally understand the precautions. With all the H1N1 scare going on and the many, many cases of the flu in this area, I too would be donning a face mask to avoid it.

You're probably wondering what exactly we were in the office for this morning. Ben has had a runny nose, congestion, fever, and a seriously scary sounding cough. And while I didn't really think that flu was going to be the diagnosis, I have to admit to being a little anxious nonetheless.

However, "croup" was the word.

While I am not thrilled that Ben is feeling crummy, has been coughing so hard that he has vomited, was up crying and clutching at his sore throat last night, and has to be on steroids for the next three days, do you think I'm thankful that it's "only" croup and not something more serious?

You bet your face mask I am.

2 comments:

The Stums said...

Sweet Ben, I'm sorry. Those little eyes peering over the mask are still so cute. Hope he feels better very soon.

the Provident Woman said...

I'm surprised kids keep the masks on!
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