This bug has floored Elliot. It’s been more than half a year since he’s been sick like this. Last Monday he complained of muscle aches and a bad tummy; we attributed it to walking a park trail on Sunday. Tuesday, it got a bit worse with his appetite decreasing and headache roaring; his head would throb if he moved his head. Well, that was just the beginning work up of a full blown vocal chord bug. That’s where parainfluenza comes in; it’s not the flu but a respiratory virus that affects vocal chords and breathing. It must feel similar to a strep throat.

His symptoms are many: headaches, nausea, vomiting, coughing that gets worst at night, low appetite, exhaustion. Ugh…it’s a miracle that the rest of the family didn’t catch anything from him.

When he was younger, he’d get croup about twice a year; the respiratory illness that makes children bark like seals when they cough. He’d get it every year and antibiotics would treat it. Nights were difficult as his throat would swell and impede comfortable breathing. The pediatrician recommended getting fresh air to open up the airways, use a humidifier, or sit by a steam shower.

Ellis has been sensitive.

Ellis: “I guess it’s ok that he gets a lot of attention now. He’s sick. But I feel like I’m not getting that much attention.”

Elliot: “What?!,” he shoots back surprisingly in a loud voice. “I’m suffering here.”

Ellis: “I still feel left out,” she quietly mutters.

Elliot: rolls eyes, sighs out loud, and turns over on the couch…

A few days later:

Ellis: “When is he gonna get better?,” she whispers into my ear. “He’s annoying me more than when he’s not sick. And I can’t get back at him because he’s not feeling well.”

Me: “I get it. It’s hard on everyone with him being sick,” I reply with a deep sigh and arms loaded with laundry that I need to put in the washing machine.

Ellis: “I know you said it’s only till he gets better, but I’m getting used to it now,” she moans snuggling with her blankie and feeling very sorry for herself.

Me: I didn’t show it but mentally I’m rolling my eyes and shaking my head in disbelief: her little heart is taking it hard that she’s not the center of attention. Do these people not understand that I’m tired too?

Elliot saunters over, sees us stopped midway on the stairs talking, and asks, “What did I do now?, ” pauses with his eyes getting wider and head tilted sideways, “You guys are talking about me, huh?” That’s past experience talking there; yep, we have some disagreements.

I hope we’re at the very tail end of this bug. It’s been 6 days and counting of dealing with a moody sick kid and a sibling feeling overlooked. Even though we talked about how Elliot must feel when she gets sick and he feels left out, she nods in agreement. We’re all in the process of learning empathy.

I’m learning to have compassion on myself too. It’s hard on the mama to take care of the family but I’m trying to stay healthy and sane to keep going. But on our walk around the neighborhood the other day, Ellis took a picture of me hugging Elliot. His embrace is so sweet in the picture but when I saw my bloated and tired body, I was shocked. I tried making sense of the picture; maybe I look bigger because the photographer’s angle was shooting from below. lol. Ellis told me not to delete it because she can tinker with it; it’s cropped and focuses on our upper bodies and smiles.

Categories: family Mom lIfe Personal growth Raising kids

Tagged as: croup parainfluenza self image sibling relationship

singlikewildflowers

Welcome to my blog! My name is Esther and I'm so happy you are here. I'm an avid nature photographer and a daydreaming thinker. My posts revolve around photos of nature's beauty, homeschooling adventures with my 2 kids, sporadic reflections on my child's heart condition, Bible reading reflections, gardening feats, and other mish mash things. Hopefully you'll leave encouraged, pensive, or smiling at the simple things of life. Thank you for stopping by and hope you'll find some interesting posts to read!