Twice in 12 Hours

........is how many times we've been to the ER with Meyers since yesterday evening.

I wish I had the energy to document it better, but neither one of us slept much last night. We just took a nap. I'm awake now, so I'm trying to blog while she's still asleep:)

Meyers has asthma and has been on preventative medicine and an as-needed albuterol inhaler since October 2010 - our last ER visit and 3 night hospital stay. In May, her allergist took her off of her medicine because he wanted to see how she did off of medicine. I was so excited for her to not have to do her inhaler and medicine everyday. She did have a tiny little cold in June and did fine off of her meds. But she woke up Friday snotty and with a low grade fever. She had a little bit of a cough so I was giving her albuterol. Ever since our ER visits, we just err on the side of caution and give her that because coughing with a little wheeze is normally how it comes on. Every time she has ever had an attack, it comes on so fast. It was the same this time. I went from calling the doctor on a Saturday night to refill the albuterol because it was low and required an authorization to telling the nurse I spoke with that her breathing was getting faster and she was retracting. So scary.

So we went downtown to Lebonheur. She was wheezing bad by then and her oxygen levels were low when we got there. Long story short, we were there for 3.5 hours, they gave her a steroid, and more albuterol with an inhaler like we have at home, as well as they entertained her with some bubbles:)
They monitored her and then said we could go home. I was SO excited to not be spending the night like last time, but we probably should have stayed.

When they discharged us, they said she sounded clear, but I could still hear her breathing fast in the way home. She was so hopped up on medicine, but I finally got her to calm down and go to sleep around 2:30 am. She slept with me and I've never heard her wheeze like she did. It was the worst sound ever and she was breathing so fast! They said she could have another steroid in the morning so I was hoping that would help.

It didn't. She was now just as bad as she was when we went to the ER the night before. Part of me feet silly for taking her back to the ER, but she was having so much trouble breathing, so that thought quickly went out of my brain. Especially when we got to the ER and her levels were 90.

So today in the ER, they gave her 2 breathing treatments, a steroid, and a chest x ray - that was about as fun as when she had one at 18 months. And by fun, I mean horrible. After her breathing treatments, her oxygen levels stayed low until they finally tested her with a pediatric O2 level tester - whatever that is called. It was then up to 95. To be honest, as much as I didn't want to stay there any longer, I didn't want to leave. I was scared we might just be coming back in a few hours.

She has been asleep for almost 3 hours and I'm listening to her now and she sounds so much better. We follow up tomorrow with Dr. Catherine and her allergist. I'm pretty sure she will be back on all of her preventative meds now.

I am so proud of my sweet girl. I've never experienced what it feels like to struggle to breathe. I CAN'T even imagine how scary that must feel. I know it's scary on my end as her mom, but to actually feel it has to be terrifying. But through the last 24 hours, she has been so brave, sweet, and polite to every nurse and doctor she saw. They all wanted to eat her up.

I am beyond thankful for modern medicine and am praying we are on the down side of this!