My baby girl was sick last week. OK so she’s not really a baby, she’s 8 but you know how it is….. She will always be my baby girl
My baby girl is stubborn as a bull. Now picture this…..
The girl hates taking medicine!!
How frustrating is that? Not only does she hate medicine and gag at even the thought of taking it, but she is prone to very high fevers. Has been her whole life! Once when she was 5 she caught strep and her fever was 103!! She was even hospitalized for it as a baby. At that age we would just hold her down or give her suppositories. (Gross I know, but you do what you have to.) What the hell do you do when she is 8!!
I can’t hold her down now because she just runs from me or screams and cries at the top of her lungs. That was the scenario 2 days ago after a night of no sleep and her saying “I don’t care, I am not taking it” to every threat we gave her.
That morning, I ended up crying because I felt the worst sort of tyrannical-mean-mom frustration come over me and had to leave her crying in her room where I had cornered her armed with 2 small chewable Tylenol tablets and a cup of water. It was even worse because my husband was the one to walk in and stop me from trying to force her. He said that we couldn't’t so we would have to find another way. Nothing like having yourself dressed down for being a meanie in front of your daughter. I felt like one too, and after about only 4 hours of sleep because she had been up all night tossing and turning with a fever, I looked into those eyes glassy with fever and tears, the lips chapped and bleeding from hours of high fever, and that pale face from nausea at the mere thought of taking medicine, and something in me snapped. So, like the meanie I felt, I told her how disappointed I was that she was being such a baby, sent her to bed, and shut the door to her room so I could calm down. Then I sat on the couch crying for being so mean when she felt so sick, and asking myself “What do I do?”
The answer was, there was nothing I could do. After taking some time to calm down I went into her room, sat on her bed, and apologized for getting angry with her. I told her that some day when she was a mom she would understand the helplessness of watching your baby girl get sick and not being able to do much to help, and not being able to convince your girl to do it for herself.
After that I sent daddy to the store for whatever he could find that she might take. He could have brought me home diamonds and I would not have been happier. He brought me the savior of every mom who has to go through this with their child. He brought me tiny junior-strength ibuprofen tablets that you swallow.
No nasty taste and they are the perfect size. I have never seen them at the store, and had no clue that they even made them. I was excited. Armed with a cup of water and clinging to the pills like a life-line I approached my daughter.
“Honey, I am going to have to ask you again to take some medicine so you can get better”
Immediately her face goes pale and she slaps her hand over her mouth.
“I was wrong before, I don’t think you’re a baby. You’re not one. You’re just too big for flavored little kid medicine. So, daddy bought you something better. Medicine, for big girls like you.”
I place the tiny pills in her hand and she looked at me hopefully, seeing nothing threatening about the tiny white pills she held.
“They are just like the ones that mommy and daddy take only tiny just for you and your little throat. They aren’t for chewing you just swallow them. No taste at all. I promise.”
Totally trusting she pops the first one in her mouth and takes a sip of water. Wide eyed she pops the second one.
“Wow!” She says, “I like that so much better.”
So thanks babe for calming me down (even though it royally pissed me off at the time), getting our little girl a medicine she will take, and saving my sanity!
My baby girl is stubborn as a bull. Now picture this…..
The girl hates taking medicine!!
How frustrating is that? Not only does she hate medicine and gag at even the thought of taking it, but she is prone to very high fevers. Has been her whole life! Once when she was 5 she caught strep and her fever was 103!! She was even hospitalized for it as a baby. At that age we would just hold her down or give her suppositories. (Gross I know, but you do what you have to.) What the hell do you do when she is 8!!
I can’t hold her down now because she just runs from me or screams and cries at the top of her lungs. That was the scenario 2 days ago after a night of no sleep and her saying “I don’t care, I am not taking it” to every threat we gave her.
That morning, I ended up crying because I felt the worst sort of tyrannical-mean-mom frustration come over me and had to leave her crying in her room where I had cornered her armed with 2 small chewable Tylenol tablets and a cup of water. It was even worse because my husband was the one to walk in and stop me from trying to force her. He said that we couldn't’t so we would have to find another way. Nothing like having yourself dressed down for being a meanie in front of your daughter. I felt like one too, and after about only 4 hours of sleep because she had been up all night tossing and turning with a fever, I looked into those eyes glassy with fever and tears, the lips chapped and bleeding from hours of high fever, and that pale face from nausea at the mere thought of taking medicine, and something in me snapped. So, like the meanie I felt, I told her how disappointed I was that she was being such a baby, sent her to bed, and shut the door to her room so I could calm down. Then I sat on the couch crying for being so mean when she felt so sick, and asking myself “What do I do?”
The answer was, there was nothing I could do. After taking some time to calm down I went into her room, sat on her bed, and apologized for getting angry with her. I told her that some day when she was a mom she would understand the helplessness of watching your baby girl get sick and not being able to do much to help, and not being able to convince your girl to do it for herself.
After that I sent daddy to the store for whatever he could find that she might take. He could have brought me home diamonds and I would not have been happier. He brought me the savior of every mom who has to go through this with their child. He brought me tiny junior-strength ibuprofen tablets that you swallow.
No nasty taste and they are the perfect size. I have never seen them at the store, and had no clue that they even made them. I was excited. Armed with a cup of water and clinging to the pills like a life-line I approached my daughter.
“Honey, I am going to have to ask you again to take some medicine so you can get better”
Immediately her face goes pale and she slaps her hand over her mouth.
“I was wrong before, I don’t think you’re a baby. You’re not one. You’re just too big for flavored little kid medicine. So, daddy bought you something better. Medicine, for big girls like you.”
I place the tiny pills in her hand and she looked at me hopefully, seeing nothing threatening about the tiny white pills she held.
“They are just like the ones that mommy and daddy take only tiny just for you and your little throat. They aren’t for chewing you just swallow them. No taste at all. I promise.”
Totally trusting she pops the first one in her mouth and takes a sip of water. Wide eyed she pops the second one.
“Wow!” She says, “I like that so much better.”
So thanks babe for calming me down (even though it royally pissed me off at the time), getting our little girl a medicine she will take, and saving my sanity!
Daddy to the Rescue! And I don't think you are a Mean Mom! A Mean Mom would have ignored the fact that her kid was sick.
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