I hate it when Rupert is poorly.
He’s had plenty of colds, what we think are sore throats and a cough that won’t seem to bugger off, as well as a sickness bug or two.
Every time I absolutely hate it, mainly because there’s nothing we can do. All we can do is give him some Nurofen (if that’s what he needs) and plenty of love and cuddles.
We’ve had a couple of hilarious moments where we’ve taken his nappy off as he’s had a sore bum after having a ‘dodgy belly’ and he’s pooed on the floor, and a couple of times where he’s projectile vomited all over either us or the floor.
However, recently we got a call that stopped our hearts. Nursery called us to tell us that Rupert had a rash over his back and chest. Jess came over to tell me and I could tell she was just as upset as she told me.
So, we made the decision to go and get him so we could get him checked out properly so we could at least put our minds at rest. Luckily, our place of work was extremely understanding and let us go straight away.
When we walked into the baby room to get him our fears were eased a little as he looked up at us from his lunch and gave us a big smile (which made me a bit emotional.) Emotion because you always fear the worst when you hear the word rash, plus it’s the first time we’ve ever experienced this, so it was such a mini relief to see him so happy.
So we took him home and did what we could do. We did the tumbler test (pushing a glass over the rash) and it came back clear – tick, we called the non-emergency NHS number 111 (and waited agonisingly long for a call back from the clinician). It was probably quicker than we thought but still it seemed like time had stopped.
All this time though, Rupert was happily running around, cuddling us and having a play. He drank water and ate a bit of food and even had a two-hour nap.
When we answered all the questions it was decided that he more than likely had a viral rash, which was a complete weight off our minds.
It’s in those moments I think where you realise what real fear is. When it has to do with someone you love it’s bad, but someone so tiny and vulnerable you feel a new level of scared.
This wasn’t the first time we’ve panicked about his wellbeing, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. All I can promise him is that Mummy and Daddy will always be there, right by his side.
