Monday, June 1, 2009

School Holidays with.... Coxsackie

(Updated : pictures of spots on hands and feet as I've been asked to show how HFM disease looks like...)

Last week on Monday, my Hasya came to me and showed a blister on her tongue.
“Sakitlah Ibu”, she complained.

“Maybe Hasya tergigit kot. It’s ok, it will go away in 2-3 days”, I said. So Oral Aid came to the rescue that night.

Then my Haifa showed me some red dots on the soles of her feet.
“Ibu, sakit sangatlah. Haifa tak boleh pijak. Haifa rasa Haifa pijak batu masa swimming semalam. Boleh tak Haifa pakai sandal pergi sekolah esok?”

“You might as well wear your Nike, it will hurt less I think”, that was my reply. And I put some ointment on her feet before she went to sleep that night.

When I came home the next day, Haifa showed me the palms of her hands. There were around ten red dots on her palms. Right there and then I knew that this was something serious.

Dear Hubby brought them to their pediatrician and after paying RM250, it was confirmed that they were infected with a mild Coxsackie disease. And they were to be house-quarantined until the rashes disappear.

I wasn’t completely satisfied with that, so I called Sime Darby Medical Center (f.k.a SJMC) and told the doctor of my worries. She confirmed with the first pediatrician’s advice. “Only come to the ER if they didn’t eat or drink, since it will be soreness in the throat or mouth.”

Thursday came, and my Hanis got it too. Her rashes were more - on her hands, legs and in the mouth. Went to the pediatrician again. And Hanis was to be house-quarantined like her two sisters.

So there goes our plan of watching Night at the Museum 2. (Lucky I’d watched Angels and Demons on the weekend when it was first shown).

I tried to find the source of the disease, like who and where actually it all started. Later I found out that :
1) Hasya’s tuition-mate just came back from 2-week absence due to Coxsackie
2) Haifa’s Sekolah Agama classmate had it last two weeks
3) Hanis’s kindy has reported a few cases prior to this
So, it’s actually everywhere. It’s easily spread especially to children below ten. The younger the child is, the worse it will become.

We brought Hanis and Haifa to the ER when they started having high fever and Hanis refusing to drink. And they were admitted to the wards.

So here I am, typing away in a double-bedded room in SDMC where my two girls are sleeping soundly at the moment. The girls are getting better, Alhamdulillah. The fever’s gone, and Hanis’s beginning to eat and drink. She lost a few pounds, I can see by the look of it. And my Haifa? She doesn’t look like she’s ill. Hah, that chubby girl, all excited with the hospital gadgets!

Pity them, school holidays and they gotta spend it in a hospital!

32 comments:

mamasita said...

Hai DDI..kesian your girls. I am so glad to hear they're recovering well..

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

TQ Mamasita. Alhamdulillah. Hope to be home today.

Only the mom can't sleep now.
Mata tak nak pejam pulak... ishh!

Salt N Turmeric said...

ala kesiannya your girls. Kenalak time school holiday. Hope they will get well soon and you can take them to watch night at the museum. I pun tak tengok lagi movie tu.

yus said...

Ja,
that must be awful for the girls..Anyway, tentu ada sebab musabab yg hanya Allah yg tahu. Syukur penyakit tu tak begitu merbahaya. Wish them all the best and enjoy the holidays, whatever remaining days that's left. My kids sorang kelas tambahan sekolah, sorang masuk Kem Ibadat, sorang goes to kindy. Looks like a normal schoolweek to me :(

ummisara said...

Kak Ja DDI,

my girl pun demam jugak last saturday. Chek travelled to penang then Sp, demam still. Malam tak tidur sbb berjaga lap kan badan etc. Dah jumpa doktor kat penang jugak. Today i nak bawak jumpa paedetrician dia...lepaih Chek baca entry u tadik...cepat-cepat chek checked tangan n kaki...alhamdulillah tapi still have to go hospital later..

Semoga anak-2 u cepat sembuh ya

wanshana said...

Alahai...kesiannya your girls :( Hope they're recovering well.

You have to take care of yourself, too! Try to get some sleep at every opportunity you get, okay? Nak jaga anak sakit memang mencabar, and you have to take care of 3!

((((HUGS)))) for Hasya, Haifa and Hanis (and their Ibu, too!)

cekmekzue said...

Salam Ja,
sorry to hear about this, just got the chance to read this. Hope they are recovering well. Macam yus cakap lah, must be ada hikmah di sebalik. I know the feeling of looking after warded kids, been there....anyway, glad to know that they are recovering. You take care too, okay....

tireless mom said...

Hi DDI

I thought the Coxsackie is over, but looks like it is here to say. Th saddest part is it infected your girls. My speedy recovery wishes to all of them And the mommy too, better take care of yourself. Nanti you pulak sakit, siapa nak jaga you.

Waterlily said...

DDI

I wish your daughters speedy recovery. Nasib baik its just a mild coxsackie, but us moms, mild ke serious ke, tahap concern nyer sama jer. So, take care dear..get some rest too ya!

p/s When I delivered my first son in Kuching in 1997, it was the height of the coxsackie epidemic in Sarawak. Time tu I had to tell my mom to inform her friends and our relatives not to visit us (me and son) yet..

yus said...

Dear waterlily,
You reminded me of my first born era too. She was born in August 1997. Imagine, I was in Kedah, but still terrified of the epidemic which was hotly talked about in Sarawak at that time. It was also the time when our currency plummeted, and thick jerubu was in the air. And Princess Diana passed away suddenly, and Anwar Ibrahim vs Tun Mahathir hit the news daily. I was crying and feeling depressed, like the sky is falling on me. Our kids are already in Year Six now, right?

Mum and Roses said...

kesian lah Ibu dan anak2 when I read this. But this thing is so unexpected. Kesian budak2 who have to suffer the pain. Imagine how we feel when we only have one blister in the mouth. Take care Ibu.

AA said...

la kesiannya.... jangan ibu depa pulak demam lepaih ni.

creme caramel tu bisa diatur, provided hang mai... ladies tak sapa pon nak mai ni, jangan bagi aku terkonteng-konteng sorang2 sudah la. Aku siap mintak excuse dari meeting persatuan (ada acara mengundi ni)dengan pelbagai alasan sebab tak mau miss hi-tea, hampa semua pulak macam2 hal.

Syaliza Abdul Rahman said...

Kak Ja,

kesiannya your girls. kesian juga Kak Ja. you must have been worried sick. but alhamdulillah your girls are getting better.

hope everyone will be ok soon. take care kak ja :o)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Farina,
The girls still have the spots, but they've been discharged from the hospital.

Yeap, we're gonna watch it this Friday!

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Yus,
Yes, there's a reason behind every happening.

Luckily, my Hanna pun ada kelas tambahan from Monday to Thursday for UPSR. So memang tak pi mana lah this week.

My parents and Kak Anim's family comin' this weekend. Next week barulah kami cuti2.. tu pun around KL saja :)

Bila nak mai sini?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Edelweiss,
Your girl dah kebah dah demam? Memang musim la now... especially now the haze is back.

My girls dah ok... cuma dok kat rumah saja. Yg penting, the ulcers and fever dah gone.

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Shana dear,
They're ok now. Melompat kat rumah dah sebab mulut dah ok, meaning that no problem to eat and drink.

The last time I checked during lunch just now, they were painting some boiled eggs using the poster colors and markers. Kononnya nak buat easter eggs lah tu.. hahaha...

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Zue,
Memang pening nak jaga anak kat ward. Alhamdulillah now we seldom have to 'sleep' there. SJMC used to be like our second home when the kids were younger.

The problem with this time was Haifa was so curious looking at the IV kat tangan Hanis tu. I takut lah pulak nanti dia experiment ke apa. So kena paksa one maid stay dengan I jugak. Juz to keep an eye on things.

Tak balik Klate ke?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear TM,
Alhamdulillah the girls are OK now. The mom pun ok, except for the urge to go shopping yg banyak sangat sekarang ni.

Happy shopping in Singapore :)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Waterlily,
I remember the 1997 coxsackie. Memang menakutkan especially when there were casualties.

The thing with HFM ni is maybe parents tak sedar that their children have it. The spots are less on the older ones. When it attacks the mouth and when the ulcers spread, then maybe it will be too painful by then. Imagine kalau babies mcmana... kesian kan?

I'd do the same thing kalau I jadi you masa tu. Tak visit pun tak pa, tak kecik hati pun, kan?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

OMG, was that the year? The year Hanna was born. Malaysia in turmoil. So much craziness!

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Mum and Roses,
Itu yang kesian tu.. satu ulcer pun dah sakit, inikan pulak banyak camtu. My girls tak sebanyak I saw in the internet... I think sebab cepat2 cari ubat. Kalau biar without treatment, I bet the ulcers mesti penuh satu mulut... ngeri...

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Aziah,
Lagu mana ni? Aku next week baru nak pi bercuti-cuti. Minggu ni dok rumah saja, so next week nak kena bawak depa jalan.

Sapa yg confirm mai? Satgi aku call hang lah.

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Syana,
I was really worried when their fever was at 39. Itu yg terus ke ER tu. Alhamdulillah now dah ok. Cuma kena stay rumah lah lagi...

Lee said...

Hello Ibu, regret to read of your kids health problems.
Here's wishing they are much better now.
You keep well and have a pleasant weekend, best regards, Lee.

anom said...

salam k. ja, kesian your kids.. please do take care kak and send them my hugs and kisses..

yus said...

Bukti kukuh ni Ja...a picture paints a thousand words...

Ida Hariati Hashim said...

Alahai Kak Ja kesiannya kat ur girls..:(.

I hope by now they are recuperating, risau la bila our kids tak sihat ni..u take care too, ok..

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear U.Lee,
TQ U.Lee for your concern. They're now well and have gone to school.

You keep well too, ok?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Anom,
TQ, I'll do that :) Wah, puas makan nasik kenduri ya?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Yus,
Just to let other parents know how it looks like, just in case...

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Hi Ida,
Lama tak dengar khabar! I hope you're well. Kena keep in touch via FB la mcm ni :)

My kids dah sihat, alhamdulillah. memang risau kalau anak2 sakit ni...

You take care too, ok?