Doctor Dilemmas

Looking so Vulnerable

I have a poorly soldier upstairs today. 7 years old but when feeling unwell he looks so much younger.

Doing the right thing

It is hard as parents to get it right when children are unwell. Last night Guy was running a temperature of 103 degrees and finding it hard to breath. I was torn between Googling symptoms, checking for meningitis rashes wondering whether to call the out of hours doctor or just dosing him up and going to bed! In the end I did all the above except call the doctor and rationalised that it was just the nasty cough making his chest hurt! This morning he climbed out of bed and collapsed in a heap as his legs had given way. I would have been most alarmed by this but my other children have had this 'dead leg' syndrome with a temperature and virus before now, so I just calmly helped him to the loo and back to bed to sleep it off.   

Did I get it Right?

To see him now tucking into his toast and hot chocolate on the sofa with his Care Bear I  am happy, that on this occasion, I did the right thing. It is not easy though, even though I have 6 children and the experience of many poorly soldiers through bugs, viruses and infections over the years I still worry with each one if I should be taking them to the doctor. I don't want to waste the doctor's time or infect the rest of the surgery, but at the same time they are a tad too precious to take chances. Parenting is no easy business and really does require us to have our wits about us and be a bit of a 'Jack of all Trades'!

What do you do when faced with a poorly child?