I will be the first to admit, I'm one of those Mother's who tries to wrap my child up in cotton wool, and if I could afford human length cotton wool for the rest of Spud's life, which would have to be really thick, believe me I'd do it. The smallest things like Spud falling over and grazing his knee, something that all children do through out childhood makes me say to him I wish you was more careful, you need to look after your body. There are the accidents that can be avoided with a little more concentration, like the time Spud walked into a wheelie bin and ended up with a big bump on his forehead for lack of concentration (he was watching the children across the road) then there are the injury's that can't be avoided, the illnesses that creep up on us, infect your child for a few days, maybe a week maximum then they leave.
Meningitis isn't a common one is it though? You always hear one of your Mother friends complaining their child is ill, snotty nose, coughing, sneezing, fever, sore throat, mild headaches, all the signs and symptoms of a cold, we know the horrid stomach bug's don't we? The ones with the really bad sickness and dioreah, that doesn't seem to never end and makes you think where the hell is it all coming from because my childs been off their food but they are pooing like no tomorrow. But wait.. What about Meningitis who knows about it? Do you know the symptoms for it? Do you know what to look out for? The tell tale signs? If you answer no, your not alone, and don't feel bad about not knowing after reading the rest of this post.
A woman I know is in hospital now at her Meningitis infected babies bedside, she has been there for the last 10 days watching her baby fight and battle the horrid illness, her baby nearly died, the journey's along one, its been an emotional journey to watch as an outsider, someone I just say hello to at the school, watching this Mother's status updates of her baby girls journey has been heartbreaking and overwhelming, the community has once again come together to offer prayers, support & well wishes, the community have come together to moan, to bad mouth the local hospital, to yet again say how sorry we are for our local hospital is getting worse..again.
The baby girl just a few months old born February 2013 was admitted to hospital via ambulance and sent home by A&E staff in the early hours of the morning, but with her Mum's instincts, not long after baby girl was back in hospital, being poked and prodded, drugged up with medicine and being tested for meningitis, why did it take so long? Why didn't the staff who are trained, who learn of such deadly illnesses at university, notice the baby had critical symptoms of the illness that has taken so many lives? We may never know, for now, we pray for the baby girl, for her Mother & Father, for her siblings and family, we pray she keeps fighting as well as she has, we pray the Lord is with her guiding her every step of the way to recovery. Thank God the Mother trusted her instincts, thank God she sought medical help again.
Its always better to be safe then sorry, to seek help when we have a funny feeling in our stomachs or not, I'm pretty sure being a Mother is the best cause for a heart attack, just today Spud fell onto the Sofa arm, coated by leather with thick heavy wood inside, I called the out of hours doctor's, at the time thinking who do I call!? My mother first, then the emergency doctors? NHS Direct? Or 999? I settled with the emergency doctor's, who quickly gave me a call back. I called them again 20 minutes later when Spud had developed sensitivity to light, seem dazed and confused, after a little over the phone test, the DR diagnosed a mild head injury, I was told to keep Spud up for as long as possible, to keep him close by, possibly in bed with me, and to wake him up every two hours and ask him a question until I got a reply, something simple like what's the name of your school, to stop Spud slipping into concussion, or into concussion any further. Always always trust your instincts, yes I may be loosing out on sleep tonight, but at least I know my baby will be safer and I won't be sorry.
As for Meningitis, I think the government should do more to alert parents and guardians to the signs and symptoms, everyone thinks of the dreaded hard to hide rash, its the first thing that pops into someone's head who is familiar with the word meningitis, but what about other's who aren't? The people who have never heard of it? The people who have never read up about it? There are plenty of symptoms to watch out for, I won't tell you any here, because I do not feel comfortable in someone taking note from my blog (because I am not a professional , however you can find symptoms online.
Take care and remember its always better to be safe then sorry! I am no expert but the people over at the many Meningitis UK based websites are, for more information check out the Meningitis Trust website but please do note I am no expert, and if you think your child has meningitis to call 999 immediately.
Jade x
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