Anaphylaxis

Tuesday, January 4th is not one I'll remember as a good day!

After eating swedish pancakes & applesauce for breakfast 

I set Campbell down on the ground to play.

I noticed his nose and top lip were red 

but assumed it was related to his runny nose that began the day before. 

His nose was extra runny as well, but I didn't think anything of it. 

About 15 minutes later I looked down at him crawling around, 

his ears were super red, so I picked him up to take a look. 

Thats when I noticed his ears were swollen (& sticking straight out)...

like the picture below but worse.

His face also have red blotches all over. 

I panicked and called 911. 

The dispatcher said an ambulance was on its way

and to call back if he started having trouble breathing.  

While I was waiting for them to arrive,

I stripped off his pjs to realize his whole torso (front & back) was bright red.

He looked like he had a terrible sunburn.

There were also a few welts on his chest and shoulders. 

I paced the house like a mad woman while trying to get a hold of Chris until they arrived.

All the while Campbell didn't seem phased at all. 

He was smiling and laughing because I was walking around so fast. 

The EMTs arrived quickly (although it felt like forever) & said he definitely needed to be looked at 

but his lungs sounded fine, so I was probably ok to take him in myself. 

I got dressed, threw some diapers and formula in his bag & we were off to the ER.

We picked Chris up at work on the way since I can't see Campbell in the back seat & wasn't able to tell if he was getting worse.

Here he is on the way to the hospital...

the photo does not show how red and swollen he was. 

The nurse took me right back and they got to work. 

After asking a few questions they started an IV in his little arm... now he's freaking out. 

They gave him Benadryl & a steroid. 

At this point he started getting weezy & coughing. 

This worried the doctor. 

He checked his mouth and saw that his uvula was swelling 

so they gave him more Benadryl, more steroids, epinephrine, & a breathing treatment. 

The redness started to go away quickly & the swelling slowly went down as well. 

Soon after we were moved upstairs to the children's hospital to be monitored for 24 hours. 

The rest of the time he did just fine. 

He didn't love getting medicine in his IV at first but quickly got used to it. 

The nurses all loved him... but I who doesn't :)

The hardest part for him was not being able to get down and crawl around.  

He only tolerated the cage bed for so long. 

... oh & not being able to eat anything but baby food. 

He hasn't eaten pureed baby food in months.

He loved showing off for the nurses by pulling up in his cage :)

I will say that the Childrens Hospital is the saddest place on earth. 

I couldn't help but be thankful that we would only be there for 24 hours. 

Those doctors & nurses are angels!

We are now equip with Epi Pens that must be with Campbell wherever he goes. 

I'm still a little freaked out knowing that each reaction is worse than the one before,

& frustrated that we don't really have answers as to why this happened. 

We'll have our first appointment with the allergist this Tuesday. 

For now the poor guy isn't allowed to eat wheat, egg, or milk.

I'm pretty certain it's an egg allergy... we'll know soon enough. 

I hope!

The Millers came by for a quick visit and to bring Cam this super soft bear. 

Thank you so much!

We spent lots of time walking around the halls to kill time,

and keep this boy from realizing how stir crazy he was getting. 

When we got home, I set Campbell down in the living room while I unloaded the car. 

I came back in and he was gone.

I heard some noise & followed it...

He just wouldn't wait another second to see Zoe.