She's Alright!

For those who were there or have heard, the first and most important thing is that Mercedes is alright!

The second thing, I hope to GOD that I (and anybody I know) NEVER has to go through that (again).

For those who love 'Cedes and will be concered when you read this, first and foremost, she's fine!

She has been having cold-like symptoms and fevering off and on for a few days, but seemed to be on the mend yesterday. She was not overly hot so I had not given her any Tylenol. About 3:20 she had a febrile (fybrile) seizure for about a minute to a minute and a half. During that time she stopped breathing for afew seconds and turned blue. We had already called 911, but I didn't know if they would be there in time and I was scared. I tried to get my neighbor who is getting ready to start her residency in a few months, but she wasn't home, so I went to the next one thinking (hoping) that she had been a med tech. She hadn't but she was a heck of alot calmer than I was and I am eternally grateful for that. She took Mercedes and seemed to know a bit more of what was going on than I did. The fire dept arrived shortly thereafter as Mercedes started to come around. They were wonderful as were the EMT's who arrived after that. Mercedes was very (very) upset and didn't even get to appreaciate the fire truck or ambulance ride. All of the neighbors who were there were wonderul. They helped me take care of Mercedes, Alexis and Mom who had also had a set of paramedics called since she couldn't breathe, but that's another blog.

We (Mercedes and I) were transported by ambulance to the Children's hospital where we stayed until around 11:00 last night. They found an ear infection, ordered medicine, suggested we keep her dosed with Tylenol, and sent us home. I think that ANY temperature over 99.5 will be treated with Tylenol or Motrin until it's gone from now on!

We spent the night making sure she stayed dosed, slept, and was not too hot. She had a 102 temperature this morning, but took her medicine and wanted to watch Scooby Doo. Daddy's holding her and taking care of her. She was quite normal last night and seemed to have no serious side effects. She was grumpy about being woken up during the night, but has been requesting water and taking her medicine like a big girl.

A few facts, just in case you wanted to know.
* This happens to about 3% of children ages 6 months to 6 years.
* It can happen when there is sudden rise or fall in bisy temperature (their little thermometers don't regulate well).
* It can happen even on medication if the meds aren't controlling the temperature.
* It's most likely a one time occurrence.
* Some kids have it happen more than once, but overall it's a one-time bad deal.
* There are generally no side-effects unless the child seizes for more than 5-10 minutes, and/or stops breathing for a significant period of time.
* They don't teach you about this in CPR or other child care classes.

Thank God for everyone who helped. 'Cedes is safe and seems to be perfectly normal despite scaring everyone out of 9 lives.