Friday, February 27, 2004

Can it really be as simple as a gas bubble?

Nicholas is having a problem, maybe someone can give us suggestions.

2/27/04: He's been saying for a while that he has a persistent tummy ache. I figured it was an offshoot of the Mono and the inflamed spleen and what he was describing as a tummy ahce was actually a general ache affecting his abdomen. Yesterday though made me wonder. He starting crying hard and saying it hurt. He said it hurt to cough, it hurt to talk and it hurt to breathe. I had him sit on the toilet since that often eases Rebecca's similar complaints. Instead he cried all the harder. Thoughts of heart problems, lung problems and all sorts of issues sprang to mind, but when he showed me specifically it was the area between his belly button and his rib cage. That seems to nix the heart and lungs concern, so what gives? It's too high to be his intestines and not centered over his appendix. Did he do damage to his spleen when he fell off the bed last week and it's only now developing into a problem? That seemed a stretch. It left the stomach and Ian guessed he's having gas issues. It's plausible, but what's causing it, why are the pain triggers so varied and what can I do for it?
After sitting on the toilet and not having much luck, he layed down on the couch and the pain eased. Enough so, he jaunted off to the playground with his sisters. Not 10 minutes later he was bawling back at home in great pain again and laying down eased it after several minutes.
Today, all morning he was fine while riding his bike, eating breakfast and then lunch. Naptime came with no issues. Near the end of naptime he woke up crying and pain. This meant that playing at the playground caused pain, and laying asleep caused pain. What gives? Could it really be gas? Neither of us are heartburn/gas bubble prone so we don't really know what he's experiencing and with that, don't know how to help.
From his nap he moved to the couch, propped up and began to feel better. He decided he didn't need to go to the doctor and that he was thirsty. Down to the kitchen he went and the crying began again. He barely made it back up the stairs. This had me thinking again that there was an issue with his lungs and breathing. Stairs seem to be a significant trigger. Even getting into and out of the car brings on the tears. Does this ring any bells with anyone?
This afternoon after the water incident, we went to the clinic. The nurse said his abdomen was very noisy and concurred that it was probably gas even though his stomach went from distended and painful to soft with no pain, in a matter of minutes with no gas released as far as we could tell. He received a dose of Maalox but a couple hours later back at home he was in pain again. I'm just not convinced.
We'll try the Maalox a few more times over the weekend. The next time he hurts I'll put a warm rice sock on his tummy. I guess I can also try to keep him from getting too physically active.
Yeah, right.
But if this pain keeps coming back, mommy's spider sense tells me something else is up.

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