Does this sound normal? Am vaguely worried about dd.

[Boco]

DD2 (age 3) had pneumonia a couple of weeks ago and was pretty ill. Her chest is better now, but she just doesn't seem to be getting better in herself. In fact today she's worse. She's just very pale and tired, not eating, and sleeping a lot. Today she slept for half an hour this morning, and has now been sleeping since just before 3pm. She never sleeps in the day usually. She won't eat breakfast, she's not interested in food at all. She wakes up a lot in the night as she's suddenly scared of the dark. She keeps saying she has tummy ache behind her belly button - it comes and goes though -sometimes she'll be doubled up with it.

She had a check up with GP on thursday who said she was ok - chest better, it's just generally she's getting so skinny and pale.

She's been referred for an assessment at the hospital where GP says they may want to do lung scan to see if there's underlying prob.

Is it normal for pneumonia to take this long to recover from? How can I get her to eat again?

if you are worried take her back to gp and tell him/her your instinct is something is still wrong. do not worry about making a fuss. go with your instinct

it does take different times for different people. lots of love and cuddles but try to get back into a routine if you can good luck

poor you and dd. pneumonia is pretty horrible (as you know!) so no wonder she's still feeling wobbly.

can you tempt her with her favourite foods (even if it's choc or crisps)?
what about milkshakes?

sorry don't know much about pneumonia, but know what it's like to have poorly kids.!
to you and dd

I'm finding it quite hard to be patient with the food thing as I'm so desperate for her to just eat something. I keep letting her choose whatever she wants for dinner or lunch, she'll come up with something - last night it was tuna fish pie - cooked it and she wouldn't touch it - gags and cries and wont open her mouth.

I did say to GP on thurs that she wasn't herself but he seemed unconcerned. I just have a feeling all is not right - but don't know if this is just normal post viral slump or if i should be getting her checked over again. Luckily this hospital appointment is for 16th oct so not too long to wait.

Oh Boco poor dd. I am not sure, but I seem to recall that pneumonia can take considerable time to recover from. But yes the not eating can't be helping.

Can you try soups and smoothies and so on?

Now might be the time for Metatone/Haliborange, just to help her to pick up ? What do you think?

Ooh yes that's a good idea - what's metatone? Which is the best one do you think? Will try that.

The other day she asked for soup and I hurriedly made home made leek and potato and she wouldn't even taste it and ended with her crying and me getting really cross. Is driving me nuts.

Am giving lots of cuddles but also struggling with patience as the not eating is so wrong. Hate turning into a nagging bribing person. Sure it's not helping.

She's so pale and her eyes are droopy and she just doesn't look right at all. She has nursery tomorrow so I can have a driving lesson but I don't see how she can go.

Oh thank you herbie - sorry about your ds having had it, but it's reassuring to know this is normal.

Floradix is also good.

Dd had flu and was ill for 2-3 weeks and barely ate a thing for days on end. She's skinny enough as it is but the Floradix seemed to kick start her appetite.

If she does show any interest in food, giver her little and often.

Hope she starts to feel better soon, poor wee thing.

Boco - I always used to give dd Minadex through the winter.

Has she had a clear chest x-ray since the pneumonia? A pnuemonia very low down can give abdo pain in children.

You are also prone to secondary problems such as pleurasy so go back to the drs tomorrow and ask for another double check in the meantime.

I had pneumonia a few times as a child and it always put me off food for ages. I would lose loads of weight and everyone would comment on it. I remember the last time I got it I was eleven and I lost 1.5 stone in a month! My mum resorted to letting me have pavlova for every meal.

Its still worth getting her checked really properly at the hospital. Tell them all her symptoms and your concerns when you go there.

No she's having x-ray on 16th oct. I wonder if that could be the abdo pain then. She had it again in the night but i'm never sure if it's just because she wants a cuddle. She had it badly on Thursday and went very pale and couldn't stand - then half an hour later it had gone again.

Will get some kind of tonic definitely.

I suppose any old tonic/vitamin pill will do, Boco. Have a word with pharmacist to find the one most suitable for dd.

HTH

My DS2 had pneumonia, and although he was a baby and just weaned he didn't eat for ages.

With regard to the tummy ache his paed told me once that when children have been very poorly the glands in their tummy can also be very sore. Another leftover sign of the virus iyswim.

I would second herbietea about her drinking lots, try her with warm drinks like hot chocolate just to get a bit of sugar into her and liven her up a bit.

IME however a mothers instinct counts for alot and if you feel there is more to it then it will do no harm to take her back to the hospital.

Thank you. Am reassured that the eating thing is normal now which is good. Will wait to see what they say at the hospital as it's only a week and a half away. This is her second pneumonia since the end of May so at least they're looking into it properly now.

poor dd, poor mum. Sounds very nasty. I hope she begins to eat something soion, but if you are still concerned i would take her back, if only to ask the questions on here, like 'is this normal' to be like this.

what was she like after the last bout?

She sounds like she might be a little bit dehydrated - that feeling of wanting to eat but then you just can't, is often a lack of fluids - is she drinking ok?

Milkshake can be an easy one to try - particularly with ice - it gets some energy into her and might provoke a bit more of an appetite.

It can also make you veyr pale and tired and droopy iyswim.

Don't worry about the eating but do concentrate on the fluids. When I wasn't eating from anxiety, as soon as I started to take more fluids I looked and felt much better.

She definitely bounced back quicker last time - the actual breathing problems the same but this time she's so much more lethargic now.

She is drinking - likes hot apple juice and nothing else. Have tried milk shake and smoothies and she likes the idea of it but then has one sip and says yuck. I guess she was a bit shaken by being ill so some of it is a bit of regression - only having familiar things and wanting to be cuddled and not wanting to feed herself or sleep in her own bed etc. Hope she gets past this phase soon.

Hi - is it possible that her sense of taste has been affected and thus everything tastes horrible?? A friend of mines little girl had some some of chesty virus (I know its different from pneumonia) but everything tasted very strange to her for some time afterwards - just a thought? probably a strange one!!

That would make sense actually because she keeps asking for things she usually likes and then saying it's yuck and refusing it.

Just to echo rydercup - I had pneumonia fairly mildly last December and it was still a good 8 weeks before anything tasted right again. It was like when you have a septic throat and the poison makes everything taste metallic-y.

It was also about 8 weeks before I even got back to feeling vaguely normal - and as I said, I had it mildly.

Poor DD - hope you get to the bottom of the problem with the recurrent bouts soon

Yesssss, they are very good points about things tasting horrible, I remember my little sis complaining of that after she had it.

Sounds like a worrying time for you all, hope she gets much better very soon.