Not Allergies....

And I'm not happy about it, either. 

After my son had a nasty cough for two weeks, our family doctor diagnosed him with allergies (about a week ago) and told us to give him Claritin to help him feel better.  Well, Sunday he ran a low fever and last night (Tuesday night), he ran a low fever again, and coughed until he threw up.  Of course, at that point, I decided AJ needed to go back to the doctor.  So, I called this morning, only to find out that both doctors are out of the office for the entire week.

Frustrated, and not wanting to have to try to schedule an appointment with another doctor who is covering for their practice, I decided to take AJ to the Minute Clinic at the CVS across the street from my office.  Of course, this entailed going home after work, shoving food down everyone's throat, getting both dogs out, and then back in, getting the kids re-dressed and getting back in the car for the 30 minute drive back into the city. AAAAAHHHHHH!!!  Somehow, no one ever cooperates on these kind of nights, either, but I managed without wanting to duck tape anyone and throw them in the closet.

Thankfully, there was no wait at the Minute Clinic, so we got right in.  After a quick exam, the nurse practitioner there says AJ has fluid in his middle ear, and a red eardrum on the right side, indicative of an ear infection.  He also probably has a sinus infection, and from the sound of his cough, possibly the croup, too.  We're given an antibiotic and sent on our way with instruction to see the doctor next week to have them check out the croup part of his illness.

I'm happy now that we have an antibiotic, and I feel sure that AJ will be feeling much better in a few days.  Three weeks is an awful long time to have such a nasty cough. I am not, however, happy with the family doctor.  I never thought that AJ's cough sounded like an allergy cough.  Plus, he never had any of the other allergy symptoms (sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes), but I'm not the one with the MD or DO behind my name, so what do I know?  So I had to pay for yet another doctor visit, not to mention the time and the gas it cost me to run all the way to Harrisburg and back for a visit.

So, that's my mid-week saga rolled into a few short paragraphs.  Thankfully, I only have a 1/2 day of work tomorrow since it's the kids' last day of school, and then I should be working from home on Friday, but either way, the kids are going to spend Thursday night and Friday night with their dad, so I'll have a bit of a break from all the craziness. 

Big sighs of relief here.  I love my children dearly, but I'll be glad of the break this week.