What the Croup, again!

So, Gavin has had Croup several times. The first time was 2 years ago when he was 6 months old. He had it so bad he was at Primary Children's Hospital for 2 days. Then he got it again a year ago (also in March) when we were in St. George with Dan's family. We spent half the night in the ER with him then. Then last summer he had it, but it wasn't too bad. Bless my Pediatrician's heart! He have me 2 doses of the steroid they use for Croup to have on hand because he gets it so often and so bad. So he told me at the first signs of it (which I know very well now) I can give him the steroids. Well, this past October he woke up one morning barking like a seal and struggled a little bit to breathe, so I gave him some steroids and it loosened his airway and he was pretty good the rest of the day. Well, thankfully he has been pretty healthy this past winter (better than last year). This past Monday night, we put him down to bed at 8:00. He did not have a cough or a cold. He went right to sleep. At about 11:00 pm, I was in the kitchen and Dan was in our bedroom. We heard Gavin cough and it sounded like a dying seal. Then he started crying and it did not sound good. Dan and I both went running into his room. He was sitting up, half awake. We got him out of his bed and brought him into the kitchen . We lifted his shirt and he was sucking his tummy in so hard to try and breathe (a big sign). We got out our last dose of the steroids, crushed it up and put it in chocolate syrup on a spoon. He fought us to take it, but we got it in him. Then we turned on the hot shower and let the bathroom get steamy. Dan took him in there for about 10 minutes to help open his airway faster. Within the hour he was breathing a lot better. It was so scary and if I hadn't had those meds on hand I would have driven right to the ER, that's how bad he was struggling to breathe. He watched Dan play some video games for a while then he wanted to sleep in his own bed! I was shocked. I wanted him to sleep with us so I could watch his breathing through the night, but he was fighting us to sleep in our bed, which is very strange.

He did good through the night, thankfully. The next day, I took him in to see the doctor. They gave him one more dose of the steroid so he would be ok for that night. Then they gave me more to have on hand. He told me because Croup comes on so suddenly and he gets it so often, it's a good idea to always have it on hand. He said he would eventually grow out of this. I am grateful for medication and for a doctor that trusts me to have the medication on hand. Gavin now has a cold and loose cough, but is doing better. So if you ever wonder if your child has Croup, you can give me a call! :)

What the Croup?!?!?!?!?!?

Definition of Croup: Croup is characterized by a loud cough that may sound like the barking of a seal and may be accompanied by fast or difficult breathing and sometimes a grunting noise or wheezing while breathing.

Well, Gavin has Croup again! This is 3 times in a year and a half. The other 2 times he was in the hospital for it. This time I caught it sooner, now knowing what it sounds like, and took him to the doctor the second day of the first signs. The doctor gave him a steroid pill and said, "this should keep him out of the hospital" which it has so far. Actually, when he woke up this morning his breathing was only a little tight and he slept all night which is a very good sign. I'm not quite sure why he is so susceptible (yes, I had to look up how to spell that word!) to it. The doctor I saw on Friday isn't our pediatrician so I didn't ask a whole lot of questions, but Gavin has his 2 year check up in a couple of weeks and I'm going to go with my list of questions of why, etc... Dan is in Las Vegas for a Computer (nerd) Convention for a few days. He says he's having a great time (of course he his. He's not at home with sick kids.). Actually this is his very first time going on the Vegas Strip. I warned him.....