So there was Ethan, going to school for three whole days a week and coming on lovely. He was interacting more and understanding, he certainly knew what no meant, and "shut that door". His favorite game being to take all of my books off the bookshelf one by one.
Then at the end of May Ethan came home from school with a note to say a number of children had conjunctivitus and that we were to to still send the children to school and bathe their eyes with cool water. "Uh oh" I thought, knowing Ethan would be the child to contract this and myself having got over a bad case of eye infection in January,
As predicated Ethans eyes looked sore on the Friday, and I took Ethan to the Dr on the Wednesday following as his eyes had not cleared up and when I checked his SATS they were low so I had put him on oxygen. The Dr prescribed eye drops for his eyes and as Ethan did not have a snotty nose just a cough in the morning he did not want to give antibiotics but I asked for some just in case.
Ethan had already been waing me during the night up to 5 times a night as he was snoring and had sleep apnoea's. He was waiting to be referred to Addenbrookes hospital for ENT to see if he needed his tonsils removing.
By the end of that week Ethan needed more and more oxygen although he was still running around playing. On the Friday I had checked his SATS and they were high 97, then just half an hour later I looked at Ethan and realised he was dusky pink, so checked and they were low 80's despite me turning up the oxygen. So I called for an ambulance and got his bags ready for what I knew would be an admission.
As predicted Ethan was admitted into Southend hospital all this and on no sleep for me as the previous night he had not slept well at all. I did ask Ethan's father to come and sit and with Ethan while I had a rest however he doesnt like hospitals and said he had a panic attack and left.
Ethan got worse over the next few days, still playing and singing but needing higher and higher oxygen to keep his SATS up. His SATS would sit at low 90's and then dive down to low 80's all the time. By the following Wednesday Ethan was irritable and it was decided to move Ethan via the CATS team to a hospital with a PICU unit. At this point as my family and support are either in Cambridge or close to I asked for them to try Addenbrookes hospital for a bed first and thankfully they had a bed.
Being a single mother I had to take Ben with me and as only one person can travel in the ambulance Ben and I had to go to Cambridge by train.
Ethan was settled in the PICU and the thinking was he may well be moved to a ward. However that evening Ethan was ventilated.
Ethan spent 3 weeks on the Ventilator needing high pressures and he was on the Oscillator high frequency ventilator. Despite this he was hard to ventilate and twice he dropped both his SATS and blood pressure and heart rate, needing adrealine to kick start his heart. My heart was in mouth, my knees wobbly and I was just pacing up and down all night long not knowing if my little boy would make it to morning.
I called my family who came down in the middle of the night to sit with me and then just as my Father came Ethan picked up almost as if he had heard his Grandad was there so he had better behave.
He did that again but picked up quickly (with in a few hours) however it was then I was asked if I wanted Ethan resusitated.
It was very hard conversation and I decided that in Ethans best interest he would still get a shot of Adrealine but that he would not have any chest compressions should his heart stop.
Ethan did have an attempt to take him off the ventilator after 2 weeks but ths failed. I was warned that Ethan may not survive the second attempt.
Then at the end of May Ethan came home from school with a note to say a number of children had conjunctivitus and that we were to to still send the children to school and bathe their eyes with cool water. "Uh oh" I thought, knowing Ethan would be the child to contract this and myself having got over a bad case of eye infection in January,
As predicated Ethans eyes looked sore on the Friday, and I took Ethan to the Dr on the Wednesday following as his eyes had not cleared up and when I checked his SATS they were low so I had put him on oxygen. The Dr prescribed eye drops for his eyes and as Ethan did not have a snotty nose just a cough in the morning he did not want to give antibiotics but I asked for some just in case.
Ethan had already been waing me during the night up to 5 times a night as he was snoring and had sleep apnoea's. He was waiting to be referred to Addenbrookes hospital for ENT to see if he needed his tonsils removing.
By the end of that week Ethan needed more and more oxygen although he was still running around playing. On the Friday I had checked his SATS and they were high 97, then just half an hour later I looked at Ethan and realised he was dusky pink, so checked and they were low 80's despite me turning up the oxygen. So I called for an ambulance and got his bags ready for what I knew would be an admission.
As predicted Ethan was admitted into Southend hospital all this and on no sleep for me as the previous night he had not slept well at all. I did ask Ethan's father to come and sit and with Ethan while I had a rest however he doesnt like hospitals and said he had a panic attack and left.
Ethan got worse over the next few days, still playing and singing but needing higher and higher oxygen to keep his SATS up. His SATS would sit at low 90's and then dive down to low 80's all the time. By the following Wednesday Ethan was irritable and it was decided to move Ethan via the CATS team to a hospital with a PICU unit. At this point as my family and support are either in Cambridge or close to I asked for them to try Addenbrookes hospital for a bed first and thankfully they had a bed.
Being a single mother I had to take Ben with me and as only one person can travel in the ambulance Ben and I had to go to Cambridge by train.
Ethan was settled in the PICU and the thinking was he may well be moved to a ward. However that evening Ethan was ventilated.
Ethan spent 3 weeks on the Ventilator needing high pressures and he was on the Oscillator high frequency ventilator. Despite this he was hard to ventilate and twice he dropped both his SATS and blood pressure and heart rate, needing adrealine to kick start his heart. My heart was in mouth, my knees wobbly and I was just pacing up and down all night long not knowing if my little boy would make it to morning.
I called my family who came down in the middle of the night to sit with me and then just as my Father came Ethan picked up almost as if he had heard his Grandad was there so he had better behave.
He did that again but picked up quickly (with in a few hours) however it was then I was asked if I wanted Ethan resusitated.
It was very hard conversation and I decided that in Ethans best interest he would still get a shot of Adrealine but that he would not have any chest compressions should his heart stop.
Ethan did have an attempt to take him off the ventilator after 2 weeks but ths failed. I was warned that Ethan may not survive the second attempt.