It started out as a low fever. I originally thought it was from teething, since her two front teeth are trying to poke through. When I came home from work on Friday, I found Mike in the recliner underneath a cranky, pink baby. Her fever spiked up to 104 (as determined by our somewhat inaccurate ear thermometer) Friday night. We didn't sleep well. She was up every two hours at least, hot and irritable.
Saturday morning we were supposed to drive down to Corvallis to visit Meemoo. We decided to push our travels back to Sunday due to baby illness. That turned out to be a good decision since her fever went up in the evening and ended up topping 104 again Saturday night. Another unrestful night for everyone involved.
Sunday morning her fever was lower and she seemed to feel somewhat better. She was really cranky, but not screaming in pain so it's unlikely she has an ear infection. After her bath, Mike noticed that she had a rash that had suddenly sprang up in her diaper area and spread up her chest and back. I called the advice nurse, who said that unless her behavior changed substantially, she was probably fine. I decided to hold off on making her a doctor's appointment on the grounds that I think he was going to tell us that it's viral and there's nothing he can do and that we should take her home and make sure she stays hydrated.
Sunday night was not my favorite, though. She took forever to get to sleep, then was up again from 10-11 and refused to be put down so I could get ready for bed (teeth brushing while holding a baby, anyone?). Then, she was up at 1. I gave her to Mike for a couple hours, until she woke me up at 3 screaming bloody murder. He went to bed and I nursed her quiet. We dozed in the recliner for the rest of the night.
Today, she's very cranky and has only been willing to be put down for a few minutes at a time. Most everything sets her off and she's crying real tears and most affronts, so she's serious about it. The rash is worse and has spread up the back of her neck. It doesn't seem to bother her.
My mother suggested that she has roseola (which I had when I was a baby - apparently I spiked a high fever while my parents were camping and they ended up spending some quality time in the ER). I looked up the symptoms and they seem like a very good match (from here):
The first symptoms include:
- Eye redness
- Irritability
- Runny nose
- Sore throat
- High fever, that comes on quickly and may be as high as 105° Fahrenheit and can last 3 to 7 days
About 2 - 4 days after becoming sick, the child's fever lowers and a rash appears. This rash usually:
- Starts on the middle of the body and spreads to the arms, legs, neck, and face.
- Pink or rose-colored,
- Has small sores that are slightly raised
The rash lasts from a few hours to 2 - 3 days. It usually does not itch.
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