Last night, I called 911.
I've been a parent for 10.5 years, and it's taken this long for us to need 911 (which is a blessing!).
We tucked our kids in bed last night as usual, and went to bed ourselves, as usual. But around 1:00 am, we woke up to the sounds of a barky cough. I stumbled upstairs and into Sonia's room, because she's the one with allergies and an inhaler. She was sleeping soundly, though, and I realized that Zoe was the one coughing. I went into her room and discovered that in addition to her barky cough, her breathing was very labored and her little heart was beating a million miles an hour.
I made a quick call to the nurse hotline, and they instructed me to call 911. I hesitated for a moment, only because I'd never called 911 before, but Zoe really was having trouble getting enough oxygen and I was getting kind of scared for her. So, I made the call.
Happily, we live less than a mile from the fire station, so the ambulance arrived within minutes. The paramedics immediately hooked Zoe up with an oxygen mask and whisked her out to the ambulance, where they got some medicine into her system on the drive to the hospital. I didn't know this until later, but apparently they usually wait to administer medicine for stuff like this until the patient arrives at the hospital...but Zoe needed help right away. I'm so glad I called when I did!
By the time we arrived in the ER, she was doing much better (yay for ambulances that are well-equipped with drugs!), but the doctors needed to keep her for at least 6 hours for observation. So, Zoe and I spent the night together in an ER room. I think she slept pretty well, but I didn't. That's ok, though...I was just happy to see her sleeping (and breathing) peacefully! It broke my heart to see her struggling for breath before we got help for her.
Thankfully, she's pretty much back to normal, so we got discharged this morning and she's got a prescription to help her keep breathing easily for the duration of this virus.
I'm grateful like never before for the emergency services system that's in place here...how wonderful to have kind, efficient, and effective medical help just moments away from my house. And I'm so grateful to be living in a day and age where problems like this are not life-threatening...I imagine that long ago, children use to die from viruses that cause breathing problems.
I'm so glad my little Zoe-bear is back in good health.
(this picture is from our visit to the park the other day...she's home resting today, not out biking!)
But my time in the ER with her sort of cut into my blogging time this morning, so you'll have to wait until next Monday for a Q&A post. 😉 I love you all, but keeping my children breathing is a wee bit more important to me than writing blog posts!
However, my third Tropicana post and giveaway is scheduled to post soon over on my review blog, so check back shortly for that (I might even be in some pictures in that post!). And as long as the coming night is less, um, exciting than last night, I should be back here tomorrow with a regular post.
Thank Goodness she's okay! We'll keep her in our prayers as she recovers.
Thank you! She seems to be almost entirely better now, which is amazing, considering how bad off she was last night.
How incredibly scary; I am glad that she is doing better this morning! I will keep her in my prayers.
How scary! I am glad we have an emergency system too. Although I think I would hesitate to call at first, only because I have never called either. I am so glad she is ok! You are all inmy prayers!
So glad she's doing well! I've called 911 before and like you, so glad they make such quick responses.
I have never called 911 before. I would be a little intimidated as well. I am so glad you are both doing well now. I'll keep you in my prayers.
so glad she is ok! what a scare that must have been.
How scary! I'm so glad to hear she's feeling better.
What a scary experience! I will continue to pray that God protects her little lungs as she works through this. God bless,
Jeanne
Don't you worry about us :)....you take care of yourself and family 🙂 Glad she is feeling better 🙂
Very scary! I'm so thankful she is doing well now! She's in my prayers!
Very scary! Glad everything is better now.
Goodness knows how fast a little one can get so sick - and it always seems to peak in the middle of the night. Go figure! I'll be praying for Zoe's quick recovery ... and for everyone else to stay well! 🙂
Thank God little Zoe is ok. How frightening!
Gosh! Praying for you guys! So glad she's doing better. Isn't it amazing how fast they can bounce back? I have had my get well in a bit after getting to the ER and I was always worried someone would think I was a liar, lol. So glad she's better.
That's so scary! I'm glad she's on the mend.
I'm so relieved to know she's doing better today. I thank God often that I live in the 21st century with ambulances, antibiotics and the vast medical knowledge we have that didn't exist - even when my parents were young. I hope you all are taking a bit of a slow day to recover from the lost sleep. Nothing quite breaks a parent's heart like a very sick child. I'm so glad she's doing better.
I know just how terrifying it is to watch your child fight for every single breath that they take. My son has had a few of these episodes and he's only 16 months old. I've not had to call an ambulance service for it yet, because I haven't been alone with him. His dad took us. But I'm so grateful that they are there for when I DO need them. I'll be praying that she heals fast and is right as rain soon.
Thank you Lord!
Wow, thank the Lord that she has a guardian angel watching her! My cousin had a high fever when he was 1 and his parents didn't take care of it in time and it resulted in permanent brain damage so I know when I have kids I'll probably be that "get them to the doctor's ASAP" kind of parent. Better to be safe than sorry!
So what do you do when your kids have a bad scare or trauma? I remember my parents would do a sort of a treat for us (I remember when I tripped over the vacuum and landed face first into the rocking chair and got a bad nosebleed my dad bought me a McDonalds milkshake but I'm sure there were better treats than that.
I don't tend to be a freak-out-at-the-smallest-sign-of-ill-health kind of mom (i.e. I don't take them in to the peds every time they have a runny nose!), but the shape Zoe was in last night made it very clear that something needed to be done. Not being able to breathe well is really scary!
We do sometimes give our kids some extra special treatment when they've had a bad scare...I'm not sure what we'll do for Zoe. Maybe we'll all go out for ice cream tonight to celebrate her newfound ability to breathe! 🙂
I'm glad Zoe is doing better! Yay for God waking you up and EMS providers who know their stuff!!
I totally thought about you last night, Sarah, and I'm filled with new appreciation for what you do. 🙂 I wanted to give the paramedics both a big hug because I was so grateful they were helping Zoe.
I take hugs from pt's family members. As long as they aren't creepy guys 🙂 I've also been known to accept homemade goodies after the fact. Since you enjoy making homemade goodies...and have SO much time on your hands 😉
Never called 911 for my kids, but we have had several calls to the Poison Control Hotline! Glad to hear she is doing ok. Kids always seem less affected from stress like hospitals, unlike parents.
Oh yes...we have used the Poison Control hotline before (most memorably when Joshua drank laundry detergent and when he swallowed a small clock! lol). Fortunately both of those incidents had happy endings, but it was really nice to have the Poison Control hotline available.
I was a little worried for your family when I didn't see a post by mid-morning. I'm sorry I was right and very happy that Zoe's going to be OK. Are you indulging her a bit this morning? I hope your kids give you a break today, to make up for your lost sleep.
One of the major reasons for ambulances is that they are equipped with drugs and devices and trained medical personnel. That means that the patient is attended as soon as the ambulance gets there. If you take the patient to the emergency room yourself, s/he won't be attended till s/he gets there and is triaged. Which means: wait for the ambulance, folks. For almost everyone waiting means the emergency is handled sooner.
Oh, definitely. If I'd driven Zoe to the ER myself, it would have taken much longer to get her the help that she needed. And my goodness...the ambulance was there SO fast, there's no way I'd have been able to get her to the hospital that quickly. I'm very, very grateful that things went down the way they did, and I can't say enough good things about the paramedics.
So glad all is on the mend now. Our children can really throw us for a loop sometimes. There are very few things worse than watching one of our children struggle with a severe illness. God sure did make kids strong...he knew they would need it. Good thing we got some of that strength too 🙂 No worries on the blog post, family comes first of course. I pray tonight is uneventful and all is back to normal soon!
Oh my lord, how frightening. It's wonderful that you were able to hear her and know to pick up the phone to call your on-call nurse. Poor Zoe! 🙁
I had to call 911 myself last summer - and felt guilty that I did so. You know, as though our emergency wasn't *really* that bad to require a call to 911 even though in reality it was.
My treat for ER visits has always been crawling into my bed at home and taking a nap and getting coddled by my husband for a bit. LOL!
Praise Jesus, I'm happy to hear a good report!
It is scary the first time you ever have to dial 911! I had to do it a couple of weeks ago. J, my youngest son had a major uber bike wreck and hit his head on the cement hard enough to knock him out and cause a seizure. There is about 45 minutes to an hour he doesn't even remember. I was there a few feet behind him. Really scary, he pulled through it though. God is AWESOME!
I, like many others, was worried when your usual post didn't appear. Sorry to hear it was for such a scary reason but I'm glad to hear that all ended well!
I'm not sure if you have any first aid training but if you don't, I'd highly recommend taking a course. I've been trained in first aid since I was 11 and it seems at many of the classes I take to upgrade/renew my qualifications, there are parents attending who say they're scared to learn first aid. It IS scary learning about the situations you may come across but what is far scarier is being in one of those situations and being absolutely powerless to do anything. I've dealt with many emergency situations (worked as security in a bar for awhile, currently a flight attendant and apparently, I'm generally surrounded by people with horrible luck) and even when I can't do much, at least I'm doing something. Its also very helpful when having to call 911, you know what information to give the dispatcher so that when the paramedics arrive, they are better prepared for the situation.
BIG hugs to you and Zoe-bear!!! Hope you catch up on your rest!
I'm so happy to hear Zoe is ok. I, too, thought something might be wrong when you did not post this morning. You are just too reliable. 😉 I wish you all the best and hope you get a nap today (or at the least can get to bed early tonight!)
Ack!!! How scary!! I hope Zoe is feeling better. I'm sending positive vibes her way.
SO glad that Zoe is okay! Reading this post made me tear up...thank God that you heard her when you did (I'm convinced the Holy Spirt taps you on the shoulder at times like that)! I hope things for you get back to normal soon 🙂
Yikes! This exact thing happened to Riley when she was about 4 and it was SOO frightening! Glad everything is okay.
Oh my goodness, Kristen - how scary for you. I'm So pleased your beautiful girl is well again...
Much love, xx
So sorry to hear about your scary evening...glad everything is A-OK now. I, too, have hesitated about the severity of medical issues and the need for emergency care. My rough and tumble boys have each had some major head bumps and I always go back and forth on whether or not they are major enough to go to the ER. Luckily, when we've gone in for these times of head injuries, we've been sent home with a clean bill of health, a few stitches....and a little lighter wallet. Better safe than sorry though, right? Happy Bday btw!
Wow... so glad she's ok!
I'm so glad your nursing hotline suggested calling 911 and you didn't hesitate! My cousin has asthma and lots of breathing problems and has been in this situation many times in short (4 years) life. Recently, she had some breathing problems and her mother called her pediatrician's on call nurse for advice. The nurse suggested either waiting it out and waiting for her medicine to kick in or to take her downtown to Children's Hospital. I came over to sit with their other child in case it got bad enough to go to the hospital. Luckily, it didn't, but I know how heartbreaking it is to listen to small children struggle to breath like that. Poor Zoe! I'm so glad that she was able to get the help she needed and is feeling better!
I was diagnosed with asthma about a year ago and that is the first thing I thought of when reading your post, Kristen. I'm old, not little like Zoe, and have never yet had an incident where I just could not breathe. I have had a chest constricted enough to be panting instead of breathing normally and I can tell you right now, it IS kind of scary. I hope you get her pediatrician to check her out.
Wow, that must have been frightening. I'm very glad your little girl is okay.
Oh Kristen! You have a head full of common sense and I'm amazed by how you handled the situation! Bravo momma!
I tend to get panicky and worried, stressed and just downright nuts when things like this happen. I'll be a nervous wreck whenever I have kids, believe me 😉
So glad that the little cutie is better, and even more glad that the paramedics were so wonderful! Hope your evening and night tonight are downright boring and uneventful, and hope Miss Zoe likes her ice cream treat 🙂
Modern medicine is wonderful! I'm glad everything worked out well for you.
Wow. That's scary, but I am so glad to hear that she's doing so much better.
Yikes, that is truly terrifying and kudos to the nurse who told you to call 9-1-1 instead of trying to take her into the ER yourselves!
I think it's Nurse's Week, btw.
Poor Zoe! So glad she's better!!!! Hope you all stay well for a long time.
Oh no! Poor Zoe. Glad that everything turned out alright. Hope you make it to bed early and get your sleep caught up.
We live minimum 20 mins from an ambulance getting to our house. So its 40 min from the time the call is made to the time someone makes it to the hospital here. Luckily I know most of the first responders personally and have their cell phone numbers in case I need help with the kids.
Not being able to breathe ranks right up there with blood as far as scary goes for me. *hugs!*
Get well soon, Zoe! What a brave girl!
oh my goodness. that is so scary. i am a freak out mom. i've taken my daughter to the doc for what turned out to be mosquito bites =)
so happy she is doing well. i hope you sleep well tonight
The first time you call 911 is strange and scary, but I can only imagine what it was like to have to call for your own child. So glad she's doing better and can breathe now.
I'm so glad she's okay! I've been in an ambulance four times (as an adult, more as a child) and I'm not sure how many times I've been hospitalized. I almost died of pneumonia when I was two.
Knowledgeable and kind emergency personnel are always appreciated!
Why do kids always get sick at night?! 🙂 I totally sympathize with not wanting to cal 911 straight away - you feel as if your emergency might not as be as bad as someone else's, even if it is!
I'm SO glad she's better, and I hope it's not a recurrent thing!
Oh, that is so scary! Praise the Lord that she is okay! I've never had to call 911 for my kids (yet!) but my husband had to call for me once when I had an allergic reaction after spraying round-up. I know how it feels to not be able to breathe. It's pretty scary.
God is good! Glad everything is okay now. 🙂
So, so glad she is well!
Oh Kristen, how scary for you! I wish you lots of good sleep and of course quick healing for Zoe.
I am often quite calm in the middle of the crisis. It's only afterwards that I have the panic attack. I had to call 911 when my then-1-year-old had a febrile seizure, something I had never seen before. Once the crisis was over (after 2 nights in the hospital -- but she recovered fully) I was able to relax a bit, and boy did the waterworks start. I started crying and shaking uncontrollably.
Best wishes for you and your family. I hope she continues to improve quickly, and that you get to relax a bit too.
WoW... what a story... I just can't imagine how it must feel like to call the emergency line and have your child taken away in an ambulance. Unbelievable...
I'm glad you could tell us everything is ok with her. Wish her all the best from Holland!
Oh, Kristin, So glad she's doing better! I've had the mommy scares of a kid who can't breathe well and I empathize. Be good to each other...as I know you are!
We had our first 911 call recently too after 8yrs of being a parent! Its the scariest thing on earth but so glad we too have this available to us! I'm glad Zoe is doing well and I hope neither of us have to repeat it!
We had to do the same thing for my son this winter. Whenever he gets sick he always gets croup and this was the worst case of croup he has ever had. Barking cough, strider, labored breathing . . . my hubby called 911. They were at our house within minutes. They were more than happy to come out.
I'm a little late catching up on your posts - but I'm so happy Zoe is o.k.! It is a blessing to live in a country where the emergency services are so great. I've never needed to call 911 for the kids, but it is good to know they are there.
How scary! I am so glad they got there quickly and that she will be okay. I don't know that I would have been so calm during all that.
Oh, I know this. Its a scary feeling. My second child, when he was 1, woke up with the same cough, chest retractions (when he took a breath, his belly when out, and his chest went in instead of his belly and chest rising at the same time) and a whistling sound every time he took a breath. It was incredibly frightening. We called the doctor, who gave me the usual steamy bathroom instructions and told me to try to keep him calm and get him to sleep. This worked enough that we waited until morning to go in to the doctor, who gave us medicine. I guess this happens when the voice box gets inflamed and swollen due to a virus. He's been prone to this when he gets colds ever since and it still, 6 years later, scares the heck out of me when I first hear that barking cough in the middle of the night.