Can't Catch a Break, But He Can Catch Croup

Teddy seems to have a perpetual snotty nose. It seems like he holds onto colds longer and just can't completely shake the snot. So we didn't think much of his snotty nose this past week until he didn't want to eat breakfast Thursday morning. He played with other children happily and seemed mostly his usual self at his neurology appointment (more on that another day - nothing alarming). When he didn't want to eat lunch, that's when I wondered if he had a fever. Sure enough, he was over 100 degrees.

That meant quick calls to the bus company and the school to let them know Teddy wouldn't be gracing them with his presence that afternoon. He perked up with Tylenol, and we dismissed it as the same bug AJ had the previous weekend. Teddy was back up and running the next morning with no fever.

Then on Saturday, he developed the characteristic barking cough and wheezy breathing of croup. Dave took him to the walk-in clinic, where he was diagnosed with croup but given no medication because it's a viral infection.

Hanging out at the doctor's office - great place for a Saturday.

He napped both yesterday and today and slept fairly well last night despite the barking seal cough that punctuated his sleep. Dave slept next to him a good portion of the night and early morning hours, just to be sure all was well.

The last time he had croup, that I recall, was unseasonably late in the year in May 2015. I remember that distinctly because that bout of croup led to a middle of the night ER visit with me rushing him to the ER because of a seizure. Croup is bad enough because it's tough to hear your little one barking like a seal and wheezing for every breath like a smoker with lung disease. But for me, croup is scary because it was one of the illnesses that caused him to have seizures and has all those memories of the seizures and ER visit associated with it.

He's seemed less wheezy throughout today with only periodic coughs, but night is when croup worsens. I'm hoping tonight goes as smoothly as last night. I'm expecting him to stay home from school until he's past the worst of it to avoid sharing it with all his classmates (since he doesn't know how to cover his coughs ... and licks everything).

On the bright side, one of the things that makes it easier to breath with croup is cold air. Fortunately, in Wisconsin this time of year, we have plenty of that. So he was bundled up this morning before 7 a.m. for a bike ride to start the day with a bit easier breathing. That's a win-win for him!

Look! I can bike and breathe!