Toddler with virus bug, anyone else in the same boat?

[Lizbiz89]

My 2 year old son has caught a really nasty viral bug. He keeps spiking in fever and has been unwell since last Wednesday. After a scare yesterday I took him to a&e and got him seen there. The dr said he had a viral bug and said it should clear up on its own. I've kept his temperature low today but after making a mistake by giving a lukewarm bath tonight he started shivering again and his temp spiked. Just wondering if anyone else's lo have had something similar? Did it clear up on its own or did you require antibiotics? I find it so strange that he's gotten this ill in the middle of summer.

Antibiotics won’t help with a virus because they only work on bacteria. How does he seem? Drinking ok? Peeing ok?

@SwanShaped thanks for the reply. He's drinking a little and eating a little. Just seems to be extremely lethargic and has no energy. It's the fever that makes me panic, especially when he starts shaking. The a&e doctor said if he's still spiking a fever by Thursday then I need to ring my gp and ask them to prescribe some antibiotics. Just horrible seeing him like this. Like a rollercoaster of worry.

What are you giving him medication-wise? I didn't know with my first until he was about 7 months old that you can give paracetamol and Ibuprofen- was amazeballs!

Yeah it’s super stressful. My daughter often gets really high temps like that. Is he getting worse? Or the same? You can always ring again if you’re worried.

My 15 month old is just recovering from a horrible cold like virus, with fever, v & d. I think it's going around after lockdown has effectively lifted and everyone's sharing germs again. Took him 2 weeks of misery to recover, would only touch breastmilk and a few sips of water. Don't be shy about calling the Dr regularly, they are never annoyed if it's regarding young children.

@Angelik can you give them at the same time? I was told it was every 3 hours alternating between the two but his temp doesn't come down as well with the ibuprofen.

@SwanShaped he seemed better today. Slept loads as he didn't sleep last night but his temp was kept normal. Thought we were out of the woods then after bath it was back to spiking again and shivering. Wish I hadn't given him the bath now but I kept it lukewarm and his temp was fine. It's so hard because when we try and call 111 it takes 30 mins to get through which doesn't exactly help when you're panicked!

@Noorandapples thank you! So glad to hear others have had it too. He seemed fine last week, then I put him down for his nap on Wednesday and suddenly he woke up boiling hot and shivering. It's been up and down ever since. So horrible when they can't tell you either.

My poor 2 year old has had an awful cold/virus for the last week and a half ( we have all been ill with it).
Kept her off nursery last week to avoid spreading it around. She was back to her normal self at the weekend so sent her to nursery this morning and I got called to collect her after a few hours as she had spiked a temp again ( although she didn't have one by the time I got her home and she has been fine since) and nursery want a PCR test. It's not covid - she is recovering from a cold.

My GP said there are some awful winter like viruses and chest infections going around at the moment.

Mine have all had this bug. Spiking crazy temps for about a week. Two of them ended up with antibiotics for an ear and throat infection. It’s nasty!

Not at the same time - a break is needed in-between. Re-reading your post and seeing he has been poorly for almost a week I say go back to your GP tmw. I wldn't normally suggest this but I think a week is more than long enough to be experiencing fever spikes. It might not even need anti b's but doctos/hospitals can give higher doses of paracetamol etc which give children a chance to rest and fight the virus.

@Quail15 yes I know! The doctors wouldn't see him as they said it was Covid related symptoms but I know it isn't Covid. The a&e doctor said we're having winter in the summer when it comes to bugs.

@Lineeyesoverhere yeah the temperature spikes are frightening. I keep hoping each morning he's going to wake up feeling himself but it doesn't seem to be happening.

Lots of horrible things going around at the moment. Keep an eye on him (it seems like you already are). Keep the calpol / ibuprofen rotation going but if he takes a turn for the worse or you become more worried for whatever reason, don't be afraid to seek more professional advice.
Mine are complete fever / snot bags at the moment (and no, they don't have coronavirus).

@Lizbiz89 I could have written this about 3 year old DD who has had fevers on and off for nearly a week (tested negative for Covid on PCR). She also ended ill in A&E at the weekend, as 111 told me to count her breathing rate and it was too fast (as confirmed by the hospital). They said viral, but to ring the GP on Monday if she still had a fever. She had a temp of 39.5 yesterday and her chest sounded really wet when coughing, so the GP saw her (thankfully my GP surgery is brilliant and seeing patients if needed after phone triage) and prescribed amoxicillin. Definitely give the GP a ring of the fevers persist.

@Covidwoes yes this is why I don't understand. When my daughter had something similar a couple of years ago. I took her to the doctor after 4 days and she was seen straight away and prescribed antibiotics there and then. If he's still spiking tomorrow I think I'm going to give the doctors a ring to see if they can prescribe the antibiotics.

Hope he feels better soon. Remember that temperatures aren’t dangerous in themselves. Have a look at the NHS website and they don’t even recommend calpol to bring down a temp unless your child is feeling unwell with it. When my son had a febrile convulsion, the doc said that it’s a fast change in temp that causes it, not how high their temp is.