The impact of Noah's illnesses became a reality to us when we went for his 9 month visit to the pediatrician. Noah has always been a "little guy" but he has always been consistent on his growth curve. During this visit we learned that Noah had fallen into the 10th percentile for weight (all the way down from the 36th at one time). At this visit he weighed 17lbs 15 oz. The pediatrician ordered some lab work that revealed that Noah was anemic but his immune system was normal (praise God). All this resulted in a plan of action to begin iron drops (2 mls per day), push food and milk intake, and a gentle warning that if there wasn't an improvement within a month we would need to pull Noah out of school for 2-3 months.
After this visit, Noah caught a fever virus and eventually croup. Noah's weight dropped to 17 lbs 5 oz and we became more concerned. My sister came in town to help us out about a month ago and stayed for nearly 3 weeks. During that time we were able to keep Noah out of school for over 3 weeks. During this time he got well and gained weight ---up to 18 lbs 5 oz (WOO HOO!!). Sadly, Missy had to leave and we put Noah back in school. After 2 1/2 days back in school, Noah came down with the worst case of croup he has ever had! I had to do two rounds of Orapred to get the poor kid to quit barking in addition to some cough/congestion medicine. It is sad when the doctor writes for you to have more medicine than you need because they know that your child's croup WILL recur. His nose is still green 2 weeks later!
Anyway, we made the decision to pull Noah out of school for the summer. This was a difficult decision for us because Noah LOVES school so much. He is a very social little guy and really enjoys his friends and teachers. In fact, he has never once cried when I have taken him to school. He would turn and look at me, wave, and say bye-bye. We will be able to return to school in August to the 1 year old classroom. For now, Noah is staying at home with a nanny. Our nanny, who recently graduated from high school and is going to college in the fall, is living with us for the next two months. We are very thankful that we were able to work something out that was best for Noah AND affordable for us!
So today we went back for our monthly weight check and blood draw. Noah's weight was down by a couple of ounces (18 lbs 3 oz) placing him somewhere between the 5th and 10th percentile for weight and he is still anemic. We will be going back for weight and blood again in 4 weeks. Noah didn't even cry today for his blood draw. I'm not sure whether to be proud or cry about that. He is either really tough or just used to having his blood drawn which makes me sad.
So, for now, that leaves us with a constant push for food and milk (despite the fact that I am SO ready to wean this child), iron drops twice daily, and scheduled weight checks and blood draws. I am very thankful that what we are dealing with is very mild compared to the illnesses other parents have to deal with. I mean Bryan saw a 2 year old with a massive brain tumor the other day and I just can't imagine how those parents must feel. I am, however, as any parent would be "concerned" and feel like I have failed my child in some way. If only I could afford to stop working and keep him home all the time. Is there something I could have done to make him drink more milk? eat more? I know that this will pass and Noah will probably be just fine. Just wanted to share. If anyone has been down a similar road, I would welcome any advice, stories, support! I'll update again on this after we go back to the doctor on July 7th.
Hope everyone has great weekend!
5 comments:
gracie! i am so sorry that you are having to deal with all this. bless your hearts. i am going to add noah to my prayer list starting right now. praying for health and appetite and peace for you and bryan. give that handsome wittle fella a kiss for me.
Oh Gracie, that sweet little Noah! I know what it is like to feel like you are doing everything in your power to get your child to gain weight and maintain it. You and Bryan are wonderful parents to Noah. God has such a great plan for him. I will continue to keep y'all in my prayers. Please let me know what I can do for you! We love you bunches!!
Poor sweet baby Noah!! I'm so sorry that you and Bryan are having to go through this with your little man! As you know, we had a hard time between 6 and 12 months with William, as far as weight gain. He had always been around the 10-15th percentile for weight, but dropped to the 5th around 6 months. He totally dropped off the chart soon after that, and we were sent to a nutritionist and ped GI. He had multiple tests run, most of which were painful. We just continued to pray for our little man, and offer him as much food as he would eat. Once he got on table food, things improved. By 12 months, he was back on the chart at the 5th percentile. Our ped isn't concerned anymore as long as he continues on the growth curve. Over the last 6 months I have learned that babies will only eat as much as they will eat. William never drank more than 4 oz at a time until he turned a year, and even with me taking meds to boost my supply, he still wouldn't take more. You can't force-feed them, so just offer it, and that's all you can do. I really had to come to terms with this as a parent, because there were people out there that made me feel like it was my fault that my child was small. That I wasn't feeding him enough because I thought that he would get "fat", or that I was ignorant about how much he should be eating. I felt like a failure and a horrible parent, and was really scared that his diagnosis of "failure to thrive" was going to end us up in the hospital. But, like I said, I just had to really pray for a peace about the situation, and continue to offer him food as often as possible. Things turned around for us around 10 or 11 months, and they will turn around for you too. He's still just over 20 lbs at 13 months, but I don't worry about it any more.
I'm so sorry about about the health problems. Glad it's nothing serious, but I know it's very frustrating for you both. He's definitely going on my prayer list. I pray that these next few months of rest will be what his little body needs to build up immunity, and that his new class will have fewer little germies crawling around! Please let me know if I can do ANYTHING for you guys!! If he ever needs to come over and stay with us, he's more than welcome! I'm off every Monday and Tuesday, and William would love a playmate! I hope things get better soon. Sorry for such a long post...love you guys, and hope to see you very soon!
gracie...i konw too well also how this feels. lou didn't love croup as noah did, but her fave were the ears and fevers. she too, was a baby that didn't eat. i am guessing it all had something to do with her sleeping disorder, who knows. but, with that said...as a mom of a baby that stays at the 5th percentile or not even on the charts, do not beat yourself up over that chart. it will easily consume you, but you cannot let it. my best advice, you are the momma, watch your child. not in the staying home aspect, but just watch his development. he may just not be an eater. he wouldn't be the first. iron drops are a great idea, but i will tell you first-hand that growth chart HAUNTED me for a while and made me a different mom, and not a better one. once i realized that my child is just not going to be a grower, eater or sleeper...but she was happy as a clam and healthy (once we got her out of daycare, i know we have talked about this before) i suddenly realized that things were fine. i wasn't going to continue to force-feed her, she would eat when she was hungry. it worked (for us) and she was happier as i wasn't as stressed at every meal time and it just eased some issues at our house.
with ALL of this being said, you are his mom gracie - and you know best for your child. i am so happy for your situation this summer and just have been keeping my fingers crossed that something will work it's way out so this can become permenent for you. i know this is hard, it just about beat me down for about 2 years, but it does get better, i promise. the great news is that his immune system is great. that is a blessing in itself, i think that his time out of school this summer will be so amazing for his that you just may see a small increase in weight, his want to eat/drink, etc. as soon as we got lou to not being sick after i pulled her out of school, she became a different child. she still dosent sleep, and still has yet to make an appearance on the growth charts again, but that worries me none.
i don't know if this novel helps or not, but we are rooting for you. as julie said, you are an amazing mom - and you can do this. i have no doubts. :)
Awwww, Gracie, I am so sorry that y'all are having to go through all this! And sweet Noah, bless him. Praying for you and that precious boy!
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