Well, we did end up in the ER after all, but it was kind of a “better safe than sorry” trip—Eric’s ketones and BG had been all over the map, a real rollercoaster, but at 5 am I found him with a 219 BG and 3.3 ketones. His endo was 95% sure the basic problem was the inability to keep carbs down, but given multiple factors—Eric’s age, my inexperience with diabetic sick day regimen, the fact he’d been vomiting, and the high ketones—we agreed that a trip to the ER was probably safest. They took blood for chemistry, which was horrid—I will be very glad when Eric’s little veins are big enough for a painless draw—and then we waited for the results. And waited, and waited. I all but emptied out my purse to keep him amused. We played Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Clap Clap Hands, and Peek-a-Boo, and any other little game I could think of to occupy him and keep him away from all the fascinating buttons, lights, switches, cords, and plugs. I’m sure it was fairly entertaining for the other patients as well—it’s a pity my singing voice got sacrificed to infection and hypothyroidism, because I did an AWFUL lot of semi-public warbling this morning. Of course, the fever broke during the drive over—and after a lengthy wait, the ER doc came in to see what appeared to be a healthy, if bored, 19-month-old! When the blood work results finally came back at 9:30–we’d been there 3 1/2 hours!—it was with the news that the trip was NOT for nothing—his blood work showed cause for concern, albeit minor concern—and they gave me some instructions and set me up with a follow-up appointment with the pediatrician before sending us on our way. Eric was pretty chipper throughout the whole thing, except the blood draw. His fever returned this evening but he ate dinner just fine, no signs of vomiting, so we’ll just keep on doing what we’re doing.
These childhood fevers and viral infections were not much fun even BEFORE diabetes. Now, even when the trip to the ER is a formality and a nuisance, the not-fun level has risen by about a thousand percent.