J was brought to my front door today by the school van escort. I usually meet him outside the house when they pull up. The escort needed to pass on information from the school that J had been upset, crying and pulling/rubbing his ear. He was very upset still as he walked through the front door.
They had written in the home school book the same thing.
I looked and could not see any redness either on the outside of the ear or in the entrance.
I dosed him with children's Nurofen.
I telephoned the GP.
I was booked a slot for a telephone consultation after describing the problem and the fact I also had two other children with me. J is a bad patient in terms of being examined and the wait before hand is hard for him.
I received a call within five minutes asking me to take him in.
Upon arrival we were ushered into a side room away from the main reception, much to the tuts from a gentleman waiting in the seated area with a female companion.
We waited for twenty minutes and were then seen.
The female GP was amiable and understanding of J and listened to me when I explained he would not be examined of free will.
I had to grapple him and hold him in an almost headlock so she could look inside the ear canal with a light.
It was inflamed and red.
A quick print out of the prescribed antibiotics and we were off.
Now, I have to thank firstly the school staff who were on the ball with this. When he came home he was not ear pulling or rubbing at all. I could easily have taken his crying as a sign he had been upset by something at school, not by the reasoning he was in pain.
I then am grateful I pursued my instinct in calling the GP. Again I could have medicated him with pain relief and presumed it was a headache.
Then finally the staff at the GP clinic were swift, non-questioning and polite to all of us.
All the boys were well behaved.
No crying from them, apart from J panicking that the GP was going to do something terrible to him.
He has now had two doses of the penicillin and topped up with pain relief.
This side of his disability is so frustrating and so sad. He can not tell us what is wrong. We have to guess from clues he gives off. Clues we could miss if we are busy or not focusing.
He is sleeping now thanks to the pain relief calming him enough to drift of without the usual pacing around the floor.
