Lukie-biotics

Bugs think Isadore is a tasty treat, and they always have. These bites at times get swollen and infected, but usually nothing a little ointment doesn't clear up. On one of last warm nights we had, we stupidly left the window open by her bed and the next morning she had a bunch of what looked like mosquito bites, two of which were on her hand and were causing some swelling. I spent the day icing it and using homeopathics and various ointments to no avail. that night she actually cried in pain unitl I finally gave her some ibuprofen to help her sleep. I though for sure a night of no scratching would cause the (assumed) allergic reaction to subside but nope, it looked awful. I brought her into the pediatrician that afternoon and the minute they saw it they exclaimed that it was not an allergic reaction but that her hand was infected. In addition to a course of antibiotics (they were worried about staph), she instucted me to do what I had to to keep her arm raised as much as possible. "Something you don't normally do...like let her watch some nature videos," the doctor said, which made me realize she must think we are uber-pure hippies with zero-tolerance for tv and media, which gave me an inner chuckle.

When I spoke to my sister (an ER nurse) later that day she told me that she frequently has to construct makeshift slings to keep peoples arms raised in cases like this. So I promptly got off the phone and looked around the house....I ended up using a camera tripod and an American Apparel scarf to hoist Lukies arm in the air. I plopped some puzzles and books in front of her and she patiently occupied herself until dinnertime. The swelling went down by the next morning and we'll be wrapping up the antibiotics next week.

Parenthood is such a trip, as these little experiences add themselves up, and we learn a little something each time. For one, I realized that I just sometimes really don't know if something is serious or not, because by the time I got to the ped's office I was sure I was wasting their time with a mere bug bite, but no, they had that medical "eye" and knew it was out of the realm of "normal." Second, it didn't occur to me that something as simple as building a sling out of common household items could be so helpful...once I knew there was a serious problem and my "alternative medicine" toolbox was cashed, I only saw the "big gun" medicines (over the counter drugs and antibiotics) which are so rarely used by our family. Finding a combination of different treatments is such a case by case balance.

You were a champ, Lukie-Lou!