J has been really ill these last few days.
He has slept for nearly all of the weekend and most of yesterday.
He seems to have contracted a stomach bug, but he has been bringing up even the small amount of water he was drinking, within minutes. This is the fourth day of it now.
He seems better in himself today, sitting up, and more interested in his simple pleasures such as watching the Teletubbies, but he is still in pain, as he is making little noises that I recognise as pain.
He has avoided major dehydration thankfully, but even last night from around 2am - 5am he was retching every 30 minutes or so.
It is hard enough having an ill child, but harder when that child can not communicate at all, either verbally, through sigh language or by PECS (picture exchange communication system), and can not tell me where it hurts. He will not allow anyone to touch him. And even taking a temperature is a no go when he is awake. He panics if you come near him with any kind of equipment, and will scream blue murder and fight you off like a rugby tackler would.
One major positive though has been the location of his vomitting and retching. The bath.
He has been using the bath to wee in for some time, despite my requests to use the toilet.
Well his refusal has actually swung in my favour, as he was also leaning over it and containing his content in there.
Before it would have been everywhere and anywhere. I have lost count of the number of times I have been cleaning sick off of floors as he would not get up and do it in the toilet, or even the bowls I gave him.
So the bath has been good for me. Easy to clean and no worries about little toddler feet stepping in it.
He will still be off school for at least another day, even if the vomitting ceased early this morning, as he is wiped out. He needs a normal day of eating to gain strength back. He has lost about 10lbs as well, which is not detrimental to him really as he is a bigger boy.
It has been a rather rough and scary few days for him and for me, and I am hoping he will continue to improve quickly. My poor boy.
