Well this has not been the Christmas week I was expecting/hoping for/planning. Last Sunday Dom & Emilia started coughing. It has not stopped. We are 7 days into RSV, a highly contagious respiratory infection that is particularly horrible for children.
The cough started Sunday night, and progressively got worse throughout the week. I thought maybe they were getting better on Thursday, but then they both got fevers that night and we had to cancel plans. Then Friday they had fevers most of the day and Dom had a long sleep in the middle of the day. Today Emilia took a turn for the worse.
This morning I was considering the possibility we'd have to take Emilia to the hospital, wondering if it had progressed into pneumonia. Talked with some nurse and doctor friends and decided to medicate her, push fluids, and hope for the best. She perked up for the next 5-6 hours, and then by the evening her temperature was creeping back up again. Shit.
The coughing fits are so bad. Neither of them have coughed so hard they threw up, but there have been some quite close calls. The saving grace has been good night time sleep! We have humidifiers going next to each of their beds, and they're both great independent sleepers, so they've at least been getting good rest at night.
Dr. Google tells me RSV is usually contagious or 8ish days, or until 24 hours clear of symptoms like fever. The cough can linger. I think Dom is probably no longer contagious, but Emilia likely is. I think she's either been hit worse, or is a day behind him in the virus progression. The incubation period can be up to 4-6 days, which means they could still be contagious, and Dave, Eva and I could not even develop symptoms until next week sometime. The chances of us not getting it are near zero I'm sure. A 5 and 3.5 year old are not very good at keeping their germs to themselves.
I'm really nervous for Eva to get it. Seeing how sick the big kids are, and knowing how much stronger they are... That will be a rougher ride for sure. Can't reason with a baby!
I was going to get Emilia tested for COVID on Friday, but then like 15 minutes before her test they broke the news about the new testing rules which basically are if you aren't high risk, don't get tested. Crappy. It's not presenting like COVID though, but also definitely isn't a regular cough/cold. Bummer... Apparently RSV is rampant this year. I reached out on a Facebook group and so many other families are in the same boat, missing their holidays due to RSV. Many of them have been quarantined for 2 weeks because it's such a persistent virus. Fun!
Christmas is usually my favorite time of the year. Even last year when COVID stole Christmas, at least it stole it from everyone. This year I'm just allowing myself to have a pity party. The kids hardly know what we're missing. We still opened presents with them this morning, and Dave and I had a nice Christmas Eve date night last night at home, but I'm struggling to feel festive and honestly just want to take down all the decorations and try again next year haha.
Praying the kids are feeling much better tomorrow, and praying that the virus magically doesn't spread further in our house! I got out for a short walk in the snow with Sherlock this evening and it felt good to breathe again. It was so peaceful and beautiful and quiet! Even the cars make hardly any sound driving in the snow. Loved it. Looking forward to sun and snow for the next week or so!
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