Friday, January 13, 2012

The Joys of Strep (No, Really!)

So maybe the word Joys is a little bit misplaced here, in describing that vile, oh-so-contagious illness (muy contagioso, as I have learned to say to Sammi's aide in times of need - hey, if I'm going to learn any phrase in Spanish, I guess it may as well be that one...).

But in all honesty, there's a lot to be said for it.  As wretched (ooh, how I love that word!) as one feels in the throes of fever, delirium and the miserable sensation of swallowing large, pointy objects, the quick turnaround to recovery is all that much more sweet.

Sammi has strep.  After a perfectly good day at school on Wednesday, followed by two hour-long therapy sessions, she was still bouncy and full of energy.  By 6pm, when Daddy asked her what she wanted for dinner, she burst into tears.  Usually a good indicator that something's up...  Samantha, for all of her playing-doctor, telling us exactly what hurts during the role-play, being the model patient, is, in all reality, a pretty horrible patient.  She tells us nothing when something's really wrong.  She shuts down, puts her hands behind her back, looks at her feet, and responds to all questions, "Nothing.

"Does your throat hurt?"  "Nothing."

"Does your tummy hurt?"  "Nothing."

"Does your head hurt?"  "Nothing."

You get the picture.

However, Sammi was sporting a pretty hot fever.  Within an hour, she was at the pediatrician for a check-up.  Strep hadn't even crossed our minds, and the doctor, after looking down her throat and seeing nothing, thankfully decided to do a strep test anyway.

Ohhh, how I hate to put her through that. 

But the test was positive. 

Yay!!  Hooray for strep!!

This meant a few things - a) we knew what it was and didn't have to worry about some unknown illness, b) we could swing by the CVS drive-through to get antibiotics right then and there and get her started immediately, c) she'd be feeling better by morning, d) she could go back to school on Friday.

See what I mean?  Nothing to it.  (Oh, and I won't mention how ticked-off I was at the CVS drive-through person who told me to park across from the drive-through window to wait and she'd motion to me in 10-15 min. when the meds were ready, who then proceeded to either go to dinner or leave for the night and neglected to tell her co-workers that I was out there waiting, in the rain, with a sick, crying child, how after waiting 25 minutes, happy that Samantha had fallen asleep, and entertained by Facebook, I finally went back into the drive through lane to see if they were ready and they were, but who knew for how long??) 

And just to show how not wretched she felt in the morning, and to tell me how right I was with all of my whispered promises that she'd feel better in the morning, (all while force-feeding her medicine through a syringe as she screamed and flailed her arms), she woke up and announced, loudly, "Mommy!  I'm awake and I feel better!!"

Whew.

9 comments:

Heather said...

Simple. Easy. I like those kind of illnesses.

Now, bring on the weekend. And hope it is a good one.


* I swear the package will come. When you least expect it!

Rochelle said...

Glad she was quickly diagnosed and is all better! Happy weekend!

Lisa said...

Once again - Cate is just like that, we never know she is sick until she has a full blown 103 fever and infection. The way you even know to check her temp is that she sits still for more than 5minutes at a time, and gets really clingy. She never complains about pain when she is really sick. Glad Sammi feels better - have a great weekend.

Leah said...

Glad you had a quick diagnosis. Hopefully your little patient feels better soon!

Melissa said...

So glad Sammi is already feeling better!

Anna Theurer said...

I used to always tell my patients with strep "there is good news and bad news. The bad news is that you have strep. The good news is that you will be feeling much better in 24 hours." Glad Sammie was diagnosed and treated quickly. Not so impressed by your CVS drive through.

Rob Monroe said...

Great news indeed - love when it comes and goes so quickly.

Neil Bates said...

Hello, best wishes to Sammi from another Bates! (I have the advantage of initials "N. Bates", and BTW loved getting into the Psycho sequel for free because of my last name!) Good point: the irony of it being a relief to know what bad thing has happened, to at least better deal with it. BTW anyone around interested in physics, check my blog, esp. if you love quantum paradoxes etc.

"Fine minds make fine distinctions."

Lacey said...

I agree, strep is great because you start those antibiotics and bam, all better!
Your CVS sounds as bad as ours!