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Wednesday, December 10, 2008

False Promises

I did a bad, bad thing as a parent today... I made a promise I couldn't keep. Madison woke up still coughing quite a bit this morning, and was clearly more miserable than the previous two days, so I made her a doctor appointment. On the way to the appointment she asked me over and over, "No shots, right?" I was fairly certain it was an upper respiratory infection, maybe bronchitis, so of course I'm thinking antibiotics, maybe cough medicine, and we're out. So we get to the doctor's office, and she's now quizzing the nurse... who was nice but made no promises (a smart move, I find out later). The doctor gets there and Madison is grilling her too. "So you're just going to listen to my chest, my heart, look at my throat and ears, and that's it, right?" Man that girl is too smart sometimes.

Then the doctor gives me the bad news: Madison has croup. It's a viral infection of the voicebox area that causes the airways to close up, causing the cough and trouble breathing. The treatment? She needed to give Madison a steroid shot to open up her airways.

Madison needed a shot, and I'd told her she wouldn't get one. I felt horrible. Madison took the shot like a trooper but she gave me the traitor look... how could I do this to her? Uh yeah. I'm an ass. So I took her to Target and let her pick out a mermaid Barbie, and she was happy again. That's the last time I pretend I know what's going on.

I've missed two days of work, and I'm feeling totally discombobulated. Madison and I are pretty sick of staring at each other... it's not like when we're having days together and get out to do stuff. I'm hoping she's feeling much better tomorrow.
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4 comments:

jiggins said...

A Mermaid Barbie! haha..

Man i love reading these stories.. I remember living the stories from Madison's point of view, though not nearly as stylishly as she does. Thanks for sharing them.. that girl of yours is a smart one!

JoeinVegas said...

Yup, since you weren't in control of the doctor you couldn't promise. Next time be more careful. But it sounds like Barbie made it better.
But next doctor appointment, well, she'll remember.

Bar L. said...

"That's the last time I pretend to know what's going on". Ok, you may have learned the hard way but the bright side is you learned it EARLY!

I cracked up about the trip to Target for Barbie....for us it would have been Legos. It think all parents have similar ways of coping with things :)

Nik said...

Now that's just harsh. The good news is, she's still young enough for this breach of trust to have long-lasting effects on her. Not to mention the mermaid Barbie save that you pulled off as well. Hell, seeing the possibility of getting mermaid Barbie's following icky shots at the docs might work in your favor.
Don't beat yourself up though. Chalk it up to lesson learned.