Day 124 (5/4/11) - Replenishing Fluids

After Ryan battled the stomach flu for 4 days with very little to drink, I decided it was time to call the pediatrician.  Despite frequent begging, pleading, bargaining, and threats from Mommy and Daddy to drink more fluids, Ryan would not cooperate.  I think he was afraid that drinking would lead to more vomiting and diarhhea.  I can't blame him for wanting to avoid that.  But, he was lethargic, drifting in and out of sleep all day, and had gotten to the point where he only peed once a day, at most.  We knew he would probably benefit from an IV, but wanted to consult the pediatrician first.  She concurred, especially since Ryan's lips were dry and chapped (a sign of dehydration), and referred us to GBMC for IV fluids. 

 I called Mike, who was working at Trooper 2, and told him we were headed to the hospital.  The boys and I then arrived at GBMC where we met with a pediatric triage nurse who took Ryan's vitals and then directed us to a room in the pediatric ER.  Ryan admitted he was scared of getting a needle (which he sometimes called ISV - a mix between RSV and IV), but put on a brave face for the nurses and doctor who evaluated him.  And, talk about divine intervention, Daddy walked in just as the nurses were prepping Ryan for his IV!  I don't know how he made it from Andrews Air Force Base to Towson so quickly, but we were all relieved to see him!  Ryan cooperated for the nurses and claimed he didn't feel anything once they applied the cold spray to numb the inside of his elbow.  He did not, however, enjoy having the IV hooked up for so long while the fluids slowly dripped in.  In fact, when the doctor came to check on him, he cried a little.  When she asked him what was wrong, he replied, "I just want to go home."  He recieved about one-third of the IV bag, and by the time it was finished, you could see a noticeable improvement in him.  He walked out of the hospital a completely different boy than the one who I'd carried in just a few short hours earlier!  As we left, the staff commended Ryan on how brave he had been.  Mommy and Daddy also praised him for being such a tough little trouper!

Ryan feels miserable as he waits to meet our new pediatrician.  We recently switched offices, and hadn't had a chance to schedule our initial visit yet.  The doctor was very impressive and was able to develop an immediate rapport with Ryan.   

Gavin apparently feels comfortable in ER rooms and considers them his home away from home.  Either that or he was bored waiting for the doctor to release us and, in the absence of anything else to do, snuggled in for a nice, long nap.

Daddy provided some much needed moral support.  He attracted a lot of attention in his flight suit.  But Ryan didn't seem to notice or care; he was just glad his Daddy was there!