Fever

feeling all better

Last weekend was by far our toughest weekend as parents. Jesse was down with high fever and he was practically puking his guts out. In the two years that Jesse had been in our world, he had never actually gotten sick, so you can imagine how disorienting and heartbreaking the whole experience turned out to be.

We took him to the doctor when he started puking the water he drank. By the time we got there, it had gotten so bad that the poor boy was vomiting bile. The doc suspected a stomach virus and our orders were simple - keep the kid hydrated without making him puke any further, otherwise he'd have to be admitted for intravenous drips. His prescription; 10 mls of 100 Plus every once in awhile!

"I'd give you oral rehydration salts," Dr Lee shrugs nonchalantly, "but he's gonna want the 100 Plus!" He gives me Clint-Eastwood-esque sneer that quashes whatever wussy concerns I had about his unorthodox methods. I fall on my knees and worship the very ground on which this brilliant man stands.

Then came our second problem; the fever. You can't give fever syrup to a kid who can't hold his fluids in. The good doctors tears open a paper sachet, and withdraws a small, white cylindrical object. He then holds it up to my face. This is the only way." I knew at once that it was a suppository. (That's an ass-pill in case you've never heard the word!) Poor Jesse. Thankfully for him, the doctor reassures us that the medicine will give our boy a 6-hour relief.

By nightfall, like clockwork, the fever resurfaces. Jesse was clocking 39.9 degrees Celcius - and we were all set to take him to the hospital. Fortunately, he had started eating again, stopped vomiting and was in pretty good spirits. We gave him a fever suppressant syrup and sponged him with luke-warm water. His fever came down quickly, but we stayed vigil all night to be sure. Thankfully, Sunday came, and the boy was up and about - completely restored to his regular monkey self and all was right in the world again.

Disclaimer: No toddlers, or monkeys were harmed in the making of this harrowing episode of A Day in the Life of Jesse. Thanks to Dr. Lee of Damansara Utama (same row as 7-11), good advice from MIL's doctor friend and the ever-dependable Baby Center, our boy was never at any risk.