Ellie's Fever

It is now 11:00 a.m. and Ellie's fever has been up above 103 for over 15 hours. It has been horrible to watch, and in the midst of it all she threw up three different forms of Tylenol. Before she threw up the third one this morning, and still with a fever over 103, we had to go downstairs for radiation. I wanted to cry. But Ellie was still brave and went through it. Once we came back to the room she threw up. So she was given a medicine to help her stomach and she had to take the Tylenol for a FOURTH time! This time the drug put her to sleep before she could throw up, so she is in a very deep sleep at the moment. The nurse just took her temperature and it was 101.8 - I never thought those numbers would look so good! The nurse also said that the blood culture is growing something - that she has an infection in her Broviac line. That sounds awful, but it is treatable with antibiotics...the same ones she was put on last night. And so, she is on three antiobiotics, one anti-viral, three anti-nausea meds, Tylenol, and something to make her white count rise... and she may be getting platelets today. Oh yes, then there's the afternoon radiation treatment. I know... my head's still spinning too. This, combined with loss of sleep has me feeling dazed and slightly dis-oriented, but I'll live. Mom stayed the night here as well, and she has already been out and about running errands and going back to the house for more stuff. I think that we're finally settling in for a quiet afternoon. I keep looking over at Ellie and she has lost that scary dusky red color on her head and face - it's kind of sad when it's a relief to see her pale. I'm just so proud of her. She has obediently taken and re-taken the Tylenol and everytime I tell her how well she's doing or tell her how sorry I am that she's sick, she says "thank you" in the smallest voice. Every single time - "thank you"!

It has taken me hours just to write the above - in between all of the mayhem. Her fever went up again, and is still just hovering in that 102-103 range. I just don't know what's goig to happen. With line infections, there can be a number of complications. One of the ways of handling this would be to take her Broviac out. Please pray that whatever is best for Ellie would happen. Thank you so much.