Ring my bell

Resurfacing to whine: Influenza found us this week. Influenza B, to be specific.

Evidently, this year's flu shot did not meet the strain of flu that spread, so even if one were to get the vaccination, one was still not protected.

I've always thought the flu shot was silly. What could be so awful about a little flu virus? It's not like it's the Measles. We've always gotten the shot - but really only because Daughter D is born in November and at her annual physical, they give it to us. We're there, after all.

But now that I've lived through a week of a child with a full-blown case of the flu, I've changed my tune. It's awful! I've never seen anyone that sick. Daughter D did not move for 3 1/2 days. She couldn't eat, drink, watch TV, walk, or talk. It was really scary. She'd black-out if she even tried to sit up.

We had a few horrible incidents. Her throat was so sore she couldn't talk. She couldn't move on her own, due to the vertigo/black-out thing. I tried to stay right by her side, but that wasn't possible 24/7. Yet, she was vomiting regularly, whether I was there or not. So, I set her up with a bell. If she thought she was going to get sick, or thought she was going to faint, she would ring the bell.

The system worked very well. As soon as I heard the bell (usually at 2am) I'd jump up and be at her side in seconds flat.

This afternoon, she turned the corner. She started talking, walking, drinking and eating. It was delightful to get my child back. Life is slowly getting back to normal.

Except for the bell. Turns out she liked having an instant device that makes Mama drop everything and come running - at all hours of the night. She refuses to part with the bell. She is sleeping with it as I type.

Call me Pavlov, but I suspect the sound of a bell will make me run to her for the discernible future.