I write this feeling like a veteran of war. No, I didn’t dodge bullets or explosions, nor did I do anything even remotely heroic like the brave men and women of the armed services do every day. I simply survived the first time our baby was sick. And I’m here to tell you all about it.
The Sickness Comes When You’re Expecting It The Least
About 10 days ago we took our daughter to her pediatrician’s office for the second of the two-part flu vaccination series. She did extremely well during the first part, so naturally we were due to have a fussy and cranky baby for the second step.
Boy, did she deliver! She was very clearly uncomfortable and running a fever of 101.4 the next day. She didn’t nap as well as she normally does, and she definitely didn’t stay asleep during the nighttime. That was evidently the cost of doing business to (hopefully) prevent her from experiencing the flu.
Her fever subsided after day three of the vaccine, but she somehow ratcheted up the fussiness. That day also happened to be when I began to feel run down. My wife also had a little bit of a cough, so it certainly was the beginning of a family affair.
Here we are thinking we set our daughter up on the path of health, only to find out that we took a detour into experiencing the first time our baby was sick.
Just Keep Your Hands Out Of Your Mouth
It turns out that our daughter developed a mild case of hand, foot and mouth disease. It’s what we suspected as amateur online doctors searching Google because of a couple blisters on each hand. After calling her pediatrician’s office, we confirmed the diagnosis.
The bitch of is that there’s nothing to really do about hand, foot, and mouth disease besides waiting. It is extremely contagious, and in adults it mimics cold symptoms. I had it worse than my wife, but with her sickness is usually undetectable to the naked eye anyway.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too bad for either of us. For me, I just napped and took the Vick’s cocktail each morning and evening. For my daughter though, that was another story.
How Did Our Baby Get Sick?
Again, this is a highly contagious disease. She does not attend daycare, so we could safely rule that out. Maybe it came from the doctor’s office a day or two prior? Unlikely it could happen that quickly.
The only thing we could really think of is maybe she acquired it when we took her out to eat with us one day. We walked through a larger mall and once we got to the restaurant, she did what all babies do—touch everything and immediately jam her fingers into her mouth.
Or my wife could’ve brought it home for work, or me from a trip to Sam’s Club or Home Depot. At the end of the day, it ultimately doesn’t matter. It was the first time our baby was sick, and unlike our days pre-daughter, we no longer had the luxury of laying in bed streaming The Office or The West Wing without a care in the world. It’s time to parent!
What We Did To Survive
Continuing the wartime analogy, we hunkered down for a battle. The last time I remember hearing the screams and general loudness that our daughter was dishing out was immediately after she left the birth canal. How do these little humans make so much noise?!
Right off the bat we ensured she was at all times either wearing socks or footie pajamas to ensure she didn’t have access to her feet.
The next thing we did, and this is probably the best piece of advice for any non-life threatening baby sickness, was put her to sleep every single time she gave us a tired cue. 90% of the time that means an eye rub, but for her it can occasionally be a yawn.
We knew the naps wouldn’t be long, and she probably wasn’t going to be able to sleep through the night. However, adding it all up, she slept an average of about an hour and a half more throughout the day than she does while healthy. That was because she was taking an extra nap or two a day. When she slept, we did, too.
Nighttime was the hardest because she didn’t have an appetite and was pissed about it, in addition to general discomfort. We gave her children’s liquid tylenol/acetaminophen right before bed. That helped her sleep, but she was still waking up during the night when she finally decided she did want some food.
After the third day, things were generally back to normal. Her wake windows were much longer than even the prior day, and the fussiness was way down. Our happy baby was back!
What Would We Have Done Differently The First Time Our Baby Was Sick
Unequivocally, we would have started her on liquid tylenol quicker. It was painfully obvious how uncomfortable she was, but we didn’t think about the tylenol until the second day.
Babies panic. And they panic quickly. Just like adults, sometimes all they need is a little bit to take the edge off. After receiving the medicine she was certainly less fussy, but even more willing to take food. Two birds, one stone.
We also would have gotten her outside sooner. It was either day two or three when we just decided it would be a good idea for all three of us to go for a walk. It was in the upper 50s in the Midwest, so we bundled her up head-to-toe, and she loved being out. Certainly took a toll on my wife and I because really any level of exertion, even a minimal amount like walking, isn’t ideal while sick. Like I said earlier though, it’s not just about us anymore.
What We Learned The First Time Our Baby Was Sick
Remain calm. Period. The first time your little boy/girl is sick you’re going to blame yourself or worse, go into a dark place thinking that your baby has something seriously wrong with them. In reality, particularly if your child goes to daycare, it’s going to be a run-of-the-mill, insignificant sickness.
In fact, time and time again it’s been proven that it is good for babies to be exposed to mild sickness. It helps their immune system grow! Now, does that mean it will be fun? No—their sickness almost always will ensure that you or your spouse will be sick. It really fucking sucks. But you’ll suck it up and do what needs to be done during a frustrating, confusing, and uncomfortable first experience for your child.
But when the first time our baby was sick was in the rearview mirror and I got to see my daughter’s smiling face again. Damn. There’s truly nothing like it.
Looking for more articles like this? Check out articles about personal finance tips for dad’s, how to pay for a nursery, how to save money on things like diapers and clothes, and even read about my journey into fatherhood.
