Multi-pronged post...ATTN: Tammy, Beth, Nicole, Shira, Rachel, Naty and Laura (specifically) and everyone else too!! Sorry, LONG!

[etwahl]

Oh Joanne sweetie, I'm so, so sorry that little Gannon is suffering so much, the poor thing, and the toll it's taking on you and Shawn. It seems so wrong that he should have to just live with it for 2-3 years and that this is just going to keep happening each time he has a cold. I hope that they can come up with a better solution soon. I hope your boss continues to be patient and understanding and allows you the time you need to be with your little sweetheart. We're all here for you and just hope you feel better soon.

Tammy,
Mom-to-be Mar 8, 2003!

[Shirale]

Oh my G-d Joanne, what a nightmare for you....wow. You poor thing. It is SO awful to see you baby sick, and high fevers are frightening...Poor Ganon....I hope he feels much much better soon. I agree that you should take him to a specialist, there must be something they can do for the poor little guy....wow. I hope he feels much much better soon, and that you get some rest soon...and thanks for thinking of me as well...it is nice to have support!!!

[cara1]

So sorry Joanne. Have you thought about bringing him to Stony Brook?

[mama2be]

OH Joanne,

I am so sorry to hear all fo this, he is so lucky to have such a great mommy!!! Let me know if there is anything I can do for you...I hate to see you going thru all of this.

Please keep us posted, but more importantly stay as rested as you can and then keep us posted...you'll exhaust yourself if you don't get your sleep when you can..

Hugs and Kisses to that cutie pie!!!

[kathsmom]

Joanne,

I have been off the boards for the weekend. I am SO sorry that you all are going through this. I wish I could be there to help you out. Poor Gannon! I agree that you need to get a 2nd opinion. Do you have to get a referral from your ped. to see a specialist? If not, I would just call a respiratory specialist as the others have recommended.

Please make sure that you and Shawn get some rest, so that you two don't get sick either.

Take care and tell Gannon that we all hope he feels better. Give him big hugs and kisses from us. Also, big hugs to you and Shawn too.

Toni - mom to Katherine (5/19/96) and Andrew (9/23/02)

[COElizabeth]

Joanne,

I'm sorry you guys are having such a rough time! I hope you get some more helpful advice and that Gannon is feeling better soon. I know fever is not the primary issue, but I just wanted to add that it might be a good idea for you to talk to your ped about high fevers and your family's experience. I don't know what the circumstances with your relative were (sorry, I can't remember now if it was an uncle or someone else), but your ped might be able to ease your fears on this subject at least somewhat. My doctor's office gave us a whole handout on fevers in children that basically said it is impossible for a child to get brain damage from a high fever itself, that there has to be something else going on for a child to have any lasting harm. It also said that fevers work as a natural antibiotic to kill off viruses making your child sick, so you shouldn't try to lower them with Tylenol or other meds unless the child is really uncomfortable from the fever. Again, I'm not an expert, but it was reassuring to me, and it would be worth asking your ped about.

Elizabeth
Mom to James
9-20-02

[momathome]

Joanne,
I'm so sorry to hear that Gannon is having such a hard time. Kasey was diagnosed with asthma at 21 months-old after several bad episodes, many pediatrician visits, and visits to 2 different specialists. The first "specialist" totally blew us off - he said at 15 months-old Kasey was too young to have asthma! Definitely seek out other opinions until you find someone who will not just dismiss the symptoms because of his age. Kasey also has the terrible cough whenever she gets any type of cold and it lasts for weeks on end and always leads to her throwing up - we're actually in the middle of a 3 week-long bout right now and her asthma specialist just put her on a steroid (Pulmicort) and albuterol through her nebulizer. Child Magazine in March had a small article about kids with astma and they said that over a 1/3 of children diagnosed exhibited symtoms in their first year - Kasey definitely did! I told her pediatrician at her 1 month check-up that her breathing didn't sound right to me, she was definitely wheezing, but all he said was that all babies make strange noises. 20 months later, we were finally diagnosed. If Gannon's coughing is really bad, you may to try giving him some Delsym, an otc cough suppressant - it's the only thing that really helps Kasey when her coughing is bad. The specialist recomended 1/2 tsp for Kasey when she was 21 months-old and about 22 lbs. She is also taking Singulair and Zyrtec. Good luck and if I can answer any asthma-related questions for you, don't hesistate to e-mail me -
[email protected]
-Lauren

[SASM]

OH MY GOSH...I am soooo sorry that you guys had to go through that scare. Wow. I cannot even imagine how you must have felt.

As far as the asthma, just think that your breast milk probably made Gannon's immune system a lot stronger than if you had bottlefed him. Childhood asthma sometimes gets better with age - sometimes it completely disappears. And I am not certain about this for his age right now, but look into medical Qi Gong. This helped me tremendously when I had a HORRIBLE asthma exacerbation (one short treatment). My cousin is a practitioner and used it on her son, who had asthma. Note: I said "HAD" because the treatment and exercises helped his asthma in that he no longer needed the inhalers :-) He was ~10 yo when he began treatment and is still inhaler-free (and symptom-free) at 18 yo - I am not sure if this can be done on a baby. There are some great alternatives out there.

Good luck. I'll say a prayer for Gannon's immune system. :-) Take care.

[jojo2324]

Thanks everyone for your well wishes. In a fit of mommy-induced be-otchiness and Gannon having another coughing attack, I called the ped and left a rather curt message telling them that just using what they had prescribed was not cutting it anymore. Luckily, the doctor happened to call back during yet another coughing fit, and she prescribed Zithromax and Prednisolone. I say luckily because it is always the way that Gannon will be all smiles and laughs when he is near a doctor, with no wheezing or the slightest sniffle. :D

We did go up to Stony Brook last time this happened. This was in December. We saw a pediatric pulmonologist (sp?) and she basically said the same thing as everyone else. "This is a case of bronchiolitis and, if it is recurring, most likely a precursor to asthma." She also recommended the nebulizer used with albuterol.

I have to go to a class tonight (I am learning how to use QuickBooks) and Shawn will be with him and have to administer this first dose. Funnily enough, I was actually signed up for this class last semester and had to miss the last two sessions because Gannon was sick with this then too! These classes I am going to are to make up for the last two I missed, and now he is sick. Maybe he doesn't want me to venture into money management. I sure as heck need to! :P

PS...BTW, with all of this breastmilk he's been getting, the frequency of poop is returning, but that sweet smell sure ain't!
PEEE-EEWW :D

[KimberleyDawn]

Joanne,
Thanks for the warm welcome to William:). I'm sooo glad the doctor has finally given Gannon something else to try!! I was sort of shocked to read that more wasn't being done to help him breathe. Keep us posted on how the new meds help.
Hugs,
Kim