December 12: T+48, hospitalized with fever

Yesterday I got caught up with my posts, reveling in how well Ryan's been doing.  I may have jinxed him.....

Yesterday afternoon, Ryan felt really cold - not unusual.  But he felt so cold that he went to bed around 4 pm and put on lots of extra covers.  He woke up at 6 pm, still cold.  At 8 pm he recognized that he had been shivering for several hours and took his temperature which was 101. 

We called Dr. Cutler who told us he would need prophylactic IV antibiotics for at least 48 hours and a fever work-up with blood cultures.  We packed up the usual hospital amenities like computer, iPod, chargers & underwear and went to Albany Med's ER.  We had them call Dr. Cutler, per his request, for his recommendations.  Great care - prompt treatment of his nausea and headache, protective isolation, etc.  Because of the nausea drugs and pain meds, he slept through most of the ER visit and was sleeping when I left him at 3 am.

We took along his medicines just in case they don't have the tacrilimus in their pharmacy - and so he can self treat for nausea and pain if we run into problems!!  Not kosher, but I'll do what I need to do to keep him comfortable. 

Ryan asked the nurse (who is GREAT) to put on a mask. She replied, "Oh, you want me to wear a mask?" I was impressed with Ryan's response: "No, I don't want you to wear a mask. Everybody needs to wear a mask."

I warned them up front that due to some past experiences I was a bit of a control freak and I would be proactive in getting what he needs. The nurse was understanding. I asked her to put my phone number on the front of the chart and ask the resident to call me after he saw Ryan - wanting to be sure that all the bases are covered in the orders.

He was pretty dehydrated with a heart rate of 150 (his normal is around 65-70).  The nurse called around 4 am to say that the resident who was to admit him was tied up with other emergencies and said that Ryan's admission exam would be done in the morning since he is stable.  I asked the her to get a verbal order for a bolus of IV fluids and an increase in the rate to keep him hydrated and she readily agreed. 

He was given tap water to drink with his pills in the ER.  The only "safe" water was in the vending machine.  So I bought him a couple of bottles.  Today I packed up some Dasani and Gatorade, bought some frozen entrees, cereal bars and cereals that will be safe for him to eat.  Foods that have been sitting on trays aren't safe, and he doesn't like to food there anyway.

I took Kaia to her speech therapy today and went to my physical therapy appointment (plantar fasciitis is the PITS!), now I'm off to Albany Med.

This is most likely just a bump in the road - I expected that this would happen at some point, if not repeatedly.  Just hoping the antibiotics work and that he comes home in a few days.  More prayers!