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Published On: Aug 25, 2004 09:37 PM
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Aug 25, 2004 09:37 PM
A Pox on Thee!
Why does a diagnosis, a label make things so much
easier?
I finally broke down and decided that the ant
bites on Søren's legs weren't actually ant bites, and having gotten our
phone service back, Aodán into the three day old routine of the new school
year, and being totally exhausted from Søren waking at 3 am uncomfortable,
inconsolable and ready to wrestle for three hours, we broke down and went to the
doctor's yesterday. And I was surprised at how happy I felt to have
Søren's misery officially labelled chickenpox. I've been thinking about
the power these simple labels
have.
Knowing this is chicken pox, I am suddenly much more patient with Søren -- it no longer feels like I am purely a slave to the whims of a small tyrant who will never, ever let me pursue my own interests again. He's uncomfortable and I am Comfort Personified. And it won't last forever. Delving just a bit into the really personal, it's like having PMS confirmed as PMS and realizing you're not actually crazy, mean, or unfit for human society, and you can be a bit more patient with yourself, which actually makes you a little bit easier for everyone else to be around.
Anyway, chicken pox! The doctor hadn't seen a case in a very long time. Aodán and Xander have both had immunizations for it. Raven and I have both had it. I am not able to totally quarantine the poor child, since we have to pick Aodán up from school each day, but I'll avoid pregnant women and other infants for a while. I am considering the nickname "Germ Magnet" for the little guy -- I have never known a child to get sick so many times in his first nine months, but he'll have a fine immune system by the time he's in school, I guess. We are relatively isolated even, it's hard to make room for much play dating when you've got three kids with different needs and abilities (I fear the older two strike terror into the hearts of those poor first time mothers of Søren's cohort) and while it's nice to not have a long list of people to call and warn that they've been exposed to chicken pox, it's even more of a relief not to sit and blame the person who unwittingly exposed us to the germ, always a rational game to play when you're up and worried about a fever at three in the morning. And there's a grace in letting him be sick and resting that I am fully taking advantage of.
Knowing this is chicken pox, I am suddenly much more patient with Søren -- it no longer feels like I am purely a slave to the whims of a small tyrant who will never, ever let me pursue my own interests again. He's uncomfortable and I am Comfort Personified. And it won't last forever. Delving just a bit into the really personal, it's like having PMS confirmed as PMS and realizing you're not actually crazy, mean, or unfit for human society, and you can be a bit more patient with yourself, which actually makes you a little bit easier for everyone else to be around.
Anyway, chicken pox! The doctor hadn't seen a case in a very long time. Aodán and Xander have both had immunizations for it. Raven and I have both had it. I am not able to totally quarantine the poor child, since we have to pick Aodán up from school each day, but I'll avoid pregnant women and other infants for a while. I am considering the nickname "Germ Magnet" for the little guy -- I have never known a child to get sick so many times in his first nine months, but he'll have a fine immune system by the time he's in school, I guess. We are relatively isolated even, it's hard to make room for much play dating when you've got three kids with different needs and abilities (I fear the older two strike terror into the hearts of those poor first time mothers of Søren's cohort) and while it's nice to not have a long list of people to call and warn that they've been exposed to chicken pox, it's even more of a relief not to sit and blame the person who unwittingly exposed us to the germ, always a rational game to play when you're up and worried about a fever at three in the morning. And there's a grace in letting him be sick and resting that I am fully taking advantage of.
Posted: Thu - August 21, 2003 at 12:06 PM