Natalie

Natalie on a strawberry picking field trip w/ our homeschool group. Her lips are blue from an icee she had.

Update: It was touch-and-go throughout the day yesterday but Natalie slept through the night and the fever never returned. She's eating normal today and is still sick, but no fever (which is key to her condition). Thanks for all of your comments, prayers and well-wishes! You all rock! I am drained and will be replying to comments on this post and the previous one as soon as possible.

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Those of you who've known me for awhile (I seem to be saying that a lot lately) know the drill with this. Natalie has come down with my virus, which includes a fever. She has a rare, non-genetic, non-diabetic form of ketoacidosis and gets deathly ill with fevers, especially if they're high. She almost always has to be hospitalized when this happens and has been near-comatose in the past.

Right now her temp is at 99.8 and she's already started vomiting (the first sign of going downhill). BUT, she is actually sitting up playing as I keep vigil with her right now and is having her dolls talk to each other, so that is a very, very good sign. Usually, she is listless and zombie-like once the vomiting starts.

So for now, I'm trying my best to treat this at home (with sugar, fluids and fever reducers). It's been about an hour and a half since she vomited, so that's a good sign that maybe the at-home treatments are working. My husband is at a doctor's appointment and will be bringing me ketone strips to test her ketone levels when he gets back...the ones we have on hand have expired.

Her specialist at Children's Hospital in DC told us that her condition is the kind she will most likely grow out of (though not everyone does). As her body grows and she has more fat stores to burn when she becomes ill, her body will be better able to fight these viruses.

I'm praying so hard that that is what's happening. The last two times she had a fever, she fought it herself, but one was very short-lived (it was oddly only a few hours or so) and the other was very low-grade, but it's still an improvement.

I asked her if she feels like she usually does when we have to go to the hospital and she said, "No, I don't have that feeling in my head or stomach like I do when I have fevers." Words cannot describe how happy I was to hear her say that.

Her coloring is the main thing that has me worried right now. It's very much like it is when her ketones are starting to rise (dark circles, grayish skin color). But I think if we can stop the vomiting with the treatments we might be able to beat this thing ourselves. Which means my baby is getting better overall and may actually be outgrowing her condition.

And that would make me just about the happiest mother on earth.