I never thought I’d spend my daughter’s second week of life in the hospital, but that’s exactly what happened when she caught RSV.
Little BunBun was born with a pretty stuffy nose, but every nurse and doctor we saw before we were discharged said that was pretty normal for newborns. I also caught a cold the day after I delivered her, and I brought it up every chance I could to make sure that the baby would be okay, and again, every nurse and doctor said she’d be fine since I was breastfeeding and the baby was getting all the good stuff from that. Of course, I did my best to sneeze and cough away from her, and I washed my hands as often as possible, but when you’re breastfeeding constantly and doing skin to skin, it’s inevitable that germs spread.
So with a clean bill of health for both of us, after my delivery we were sent on our merry way. The first week at home encompassed the normal newborn adventures, and except for her stuffy nose that we were constantly suctioning, everything was fine.
When BunBun was eight days old, though, I noticed that she looked like she was having a harder time breathing. It wasn’t something I was too concerned with, though, since her nose was still stuffy and I know babies are nose breathers, so it made sense that she was having a difficult time. But the next day (nine days old), she woke up and felt pretty warm. I chalked it up to the fact that she was wrapped up like a little burrito and wearing some fleece jammies. I took her auxiliary temperature and it was in the low 99s. I checked it throughout the day, and when it didn’t go back down (and when her breathing still appeared labored), my husband and I decided to take her into our pediatrician’s after hours clinic (this was on a Sunday). Better to be safe than sorry, right?
They got her in right away (benefit to going to the pediatrician after hours) and took her rectal temperature—it was 100.8. Before you leave the hospital after delivery, they give you a list of things to watch for, and one of them is that you should be concerned if your newborn’s temp is 100.4 or higher.
Worry set in, especially because after they got her temp, three doctors came in to asses her and put a little pulse oximeter on her tiny hand to check her oxygen level. It hovered between the mid 60s to high 90s. The 90s were good, but the 60s were really, really not good. That’s when they said they were calling the children’s hospital in the next town and getting her a room there: they wanted to admit her, and they were sending her by ambulance. This all happened in about 30 minutes.
I’ve never gone anywhere by ambulance and the second I heard that, tears started flowing. I felt like a horrible mother for getting her sick and letting it get this far. The pediatricians and the ambulance EMTs tossed around the virus called RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus), which is essentially a baby cold, but is a whole lot scarier than just a common cold when you’re dealing with a new human.
Once we arrived at the hospital, more nurses, techs, and a doctor assessed her and got her hooked up to an IV and put on oxygen. I stood in the corner of the small children’s hospital room and just watched, feeling utterly helpless, as my daughter wailed continuously while they tried over and over to stick her with an IV. Not being able to comfort her was beyond heartbreaking. They ran several tests, cultures, and even did a spinal tap to get to the bottom of her fever and rule out different causes for what was going on. They started her on antibiotics just in case it was bacterial, but it ended up being a virus: RSV.
Since she was so young, her little body was still working on building her immune system and antibodies. The only way to fight RSV was with a lot of nose suctioning (they had a nose suctioner that was like a vacuum to get the snot out—it was actually pretty awesome), continuous oxygen, and monitoring. They also gave her breathing treatments (a nebulizer) over the course of our stay, but different doctors questioned whether it actually helped (I think it did).
The very first nurse she had that night told me that RSV is like a roller coaster. She told me, “Mama, it’s going to get better, then worse again, and then better; you just have to hang in there for a little while before you guys can go home.” And boy was she right.
We dealt with a lot of mixed emotions during our week stay in the hospital, because little BunBun did, in fact, get better and then worse again, and then better. I stayed with her the whole time since I was allowed to breastfeed her, and my husband and mom would switch off and would come stay with me during the day.
The children’s hospital where we were wanted her to be off oxygen for a full 24 hours before they’d send her home. It took her a few days to get to that point, but seven days after she was admitted, she got the all clear and we were allowed to take her home. She’s been back home for almost a month now and things are like night and day from our adventure with the hospital. They said it’s unlikely she’ll get RSV again, especially so soon since RSV “season” is almost over, but I’m still watching her like a hawk.
My heart truly goes out to any parent who’s had to spend any time in a hospital with their child. That was one of the most trying times I’ve every experienced. It breaks my heart that kids have to get sick.
Did your baby have a run-in with RSV in his/her early days?
guest
Yes! Our daughter got it in Dec, just shy of 3-months and it was scary. Probably got it from her older sister (daycare) & then me. I had never heard of it before then. I can’t imagine at 1-week!! Glad she is doing well now…poor little one and poor mama and daddy. No fun!
pomelo / 5298 posts
Yes, but not quite this young. LO2 started daycare at 8 weeks and at the end of her first week, we were in urgent care with RSV. Fortunately, our course was mild and she was able to be cared for at home with nebulizer treatments every 4 hours for a week. Scariest thing so far in my life as a mom, being discharged from urgent care with a map to the local children’s hospital – just in case!
guest
Yes, we did too withy daughter (baby # 2). It’s crazy that your story is almost exactly like ours…started around day 9, and went to the ped but they told us it was just a cold. Then, 2 days later we went back because she was coughing and breathing heavy and we were sent to the ER in an ambulence too! As you said, it’s a roller coaster for sure…we even ended up in the PiCU a few days of our (11 day) stay! Phew it was scary, but she’s 6 months now and toy healthy!
pea / 20 posts
This happened to us too! My son contracted RSV at 1 month but never got a fever so we thought it was just a cold. Eventually he became lethargic and we when took him to the doctor, he was diagnosed with pneumonia (we later discovered this was caused by RSV). After 3 days in the NICU and another 4 days in the pediatric wing of the hospital he came home healthy, but the experience was utterly terrifying. Glad to hear your little one is okay too.
hostess / wonderful persimmon / 25556 posts
So frightening. I’m so sorry she had to spend such a scary week in the hospital. I can’t imagine what that was like for you and your family. How did Bunny handle you being away for a week?
pomegranate / 3565 posts
DS1 caught RSV at 2 months old. I called the office line on a Sunday afternoon asking about his cough and congestion. I was told saline and suction. Well the next morning, the pediatrician called me after reviewing the weekend’s calls. They wanted to check him out. After he tested positive for RSV, they wanted him to come in every day to be examined. We were told the worst days were around day 5. On the second visit when he ran a low fever, they decided to admit him to the hospital in case his breathing became labored. We were only there a day, thankfully. I was worried about DS2 catching it at a young age too. But he didn’t get it until 9 months old. What a world of difference!
blogger / clementine / 750 posts
@amanda: I heard about it in passing from other moms, but never really took the time to find out more about it. Crazy how quickly you can get educated about something once you’re in the thick of it!
@MamaG: Scary, indeed! I think it all happened so quickly for us that I didn’t even have time to realize what was going on!
@Ashley: Oh, I feel for you guys having to go up to the PICU. They mentioned that at the beginning and thankfully she bypassed that part. Glad your little one is doing great now!
blogger / clementine / 750 posts
@laurel: Oh my goodness, I can’t imagine what that was like for you, with him becoming lethargic! Although, to be honest, my daughter may have been like that, but when they’re so little and new, all they do is sleep so I figured it was just normal.
@mediagirl: Thanks for asking about her! She actually did fantastic, all things considered. Luckily, my parents were in town, so she had a LOT of time with her grandparents. My husband also made sure that he was home when she woke up in the mornings so she wouldn’t be too confused, and he’d bring her up for lunch a couple times (he’d stay with the baby while we went to the cafeteria). I’m thankful she was young enough to not really know what was going on.
@Mamasig: Oh scary and frustrating for you to deal with it then, especially to have to go to the hospital. RSV is a crazy thing—that dreaded day five was rough. What was it like when your other son got it at a little bit older age? I’m sure I’ll be watching little BunBun like a hawk next RSV season.
pomegranate / 3565 posts
@Mrs. Rabbit: Around day 5 was still the worst part. But because he was older, his breathing wasn’t as big a concern. It really did look like a normal cold with a little bit of wheezing. Plus, from DS1’s hospital stay I knew what to look for in terms of his breathing being labored. We tried breathing treatments too but they really didn’t help. No one likes seeing their baby sick, but RSV at a young age is no joke!
blogger / coconut / 8306 posts
@Mrs. Rabbit: so glad she’s ok now! Our youngest caught in February, and was sick for six weeks straight. We had one trip to children’s hospital but several rounds of antibiotics. Seeing her struggle to breathe and have chest retractions was pretty terrifying!
guest
E had it right before he was 6 months old, and we spent 5 days in the hospital. It’s so awful! Glad BunBun is ok.
blogger / cherry / 247 posts
how scary!
guest
YIKES! My son was a premie, so the told us he would have to get the RSV shot starting in Nov (he was a July baby). He had to get the shots once a month until RSV season was over, so total of 4 shots. It was really sucky to see him get the shot
But so glad he never got RSV.
pomelo / 5628 posts
My son was a preemie also do he got the Synagis shot for his first RSV season. They don’t give it to all babies because it’s really expensive, but RSV is the primary thing they were worried about. Luckily we’ve made it two years without it. I’m glad your Lo is ok!