Starting about 3 weeks ago, Jane began having these "episodes" where she would stop whatever she was doing, begin SCREAMING, shaking, and writhing, only to last about 30 seconds and then she was fine. She also was pooping (which I will call BM for bowel movement just because I don't want to be saying poop all the time : )) during these episodes just a tiny bit each time. These episodes began happening every 30 minutes...even at night. She got a rash that was so severe her skin became raw and even bled. So of course I was going through diapers like crazy and wondering what in the world was going on with my baby. I couldn't hardly go into public because she would have the crying, screaming episodes that would hit her at any moment. Going out to eat was a disaster!
I researched like crazy trying to figure out what could possibly be going on with her, but couldn't find anything that sounded similar. We initially thought it was an allergic reaction to beans she ate for the first time at a mexican restaurant, but we were wrong. After about a week of this she got a fever of 102, and then the following night 103.7. So to the doctor I go! Turns out she has a severe ear infection, which caused the fever, but the "episodes" were non related and our doctor ordered an x-ray of her stomach just to see what exactly was going on.
This is her getting an x-ray. Is that not the saddest thing you've ever seen??
Joey and I anxiously awaited the results, praying it wasn't anything too serious. Turns out she was severely compacted and constipated. So we were told to give laxatives to see if it would clear her out. We went 2 days of the laxatives with no results. At this point I am exhausted, and seeing her in so much pain and suffering day after day was bringing me to tears. We finally gave her a suppository and viola! It was painful for her but she finally had a huge BM! We thought "Yes finally! It's over now and she can be back to normal."
Two days later the episodes began again. So I begin trying natural remedies to relieve constipation... prunes, peaches, fruit juice, probiotics, fiber, etc. Nothing is really working at this point and about a week goes by with the episodes continuing. Her rash does improve thanks to Crisco. It really can be used for anything!
So we go back to our doctor for her 9 month checkup. She weighs a whopping 20 pounds! That's 80th percentile friends, so she is definitely still healthy in that department : ) Our doctor believes she is showing signs of fecal retention, which he was surprised to see in a child so young. That is basically short for, it hurts to have a BM, and I'm afraid of the pain, so I am going to try to stop it from happening. Its pretty common in toddlers and young children. So she was put back on laxative therapy.
The laxatives along with a very strong Probiotic have been successful this time. And I'm relieved and happy to say that she has been episode free for 2 days now! Whew! We are rejoicing in this house!
At this point I am realizing that I feel so much closer to Jane and so much more bonded to her as a mother. I think sickness or illness in a child can do that for a mother. After seeing her suffer like this, all I want to do is comfort and love on her. I praise God for using this to draw me closer to her. We have prayed for the Lord to heal her and he is faithful. Poor little Kay was so concerned for her sister. She would come to me saying "What's wrong with Jane Mommy?" I just used that as an opportunity to tell her to pray for Jane. Needless to say we prayed alot!
She is now crawling and getting into all kinds of things!
Pulling up onto everything she can.
She loves to bob her head to music or "dance" which is just adorable.
No babbling or words yet, just squeals of excitement.
She has 4 teeth on top, 2 on bottom.
She just began eating baby food and I thought she was just stubborn and would never eat it. Lesson learned though... when they are ready they are ready and don't stress about it : )
We have begun training and discipline with her and she is responding to our commands. Never underestimate children and even babies... they can learn far more then you think! We are learning that daily.
She is still such a joy and I can't imagine life without her. I am a completely different person because of her life and God has used her to grow my faith in more ways I thought possible!
Our family is about to go through some pretty big changes soon, so stay tuned to see what the Lord has for us in the near future : )
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