Our day started as usual, with us trying to get dressed. The teen tried to help me by taking Mieka from me. When she picked her up, Mieka cried out in pain. I immediately knew it was the red bump under her arm which has been growing. It looked like an insect bite, but on Sunday we saw that the bump was redder and more inflamed! I wanted to take her to the doctor on Monday, but we had other errands to run. This morning we had no other option, although I still believed that she only needed a cream, or something...
The doctor immediately said that it was an abscess, and that she had to get a surgeon to look at it. Horrors!! We landed up at the hospital, having to book the toddler in for the day. The surgeon came round during his surgeries, but said that it wasn’t such a big deal. He would drain it, and leave it open for it to keep on draining (no stitches).
It was extremely stressful to walk into the operating theatre dressed in the green clothes, holding her in my arms. She was fighting against the gas mask and crying. The next moment she was sleeping, and I had to leave her. I heard her little wheezy chest when she went under and it made me even more uneasy...
While we were waiting, I shed a few tears, telling Dries they were taking too long. 20 minutes felt like forever!
She was crying when they placed her in my arms, but luckily she went to sleep while we carried her back to her bed. The anaesthetist told us that the abscess was bigger than they had predicted.
I breastfed her when she woozily woke up, and after about 40 minutes she was eating and playing again. Luckily we could go home when they saw that she was fine... (How easy they bounce back! Tonight she was playing and babbling again, bouncing all over!)
It was an unexpected day! It seems we get lots of these with children. (Gulp!)
How do we get them to grow up? All in one piece?
(Photo: Mieka on Sunday - busy with one of her favourite activities - "talking on the telephone".)
That is really scary! But aren't you glad you went to the doctor? It could have been so much worse! Sometimes we just have to go with our gut feelings.
ReplyDeletewow i really feel for you, how horrible! but good to hear she's bounced back so nicely:D P.s. haven't sorted out that url issue on my blog yet!
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