Mum anxiety

[Bella0831]

Hello,
I posted on here last week regarding my son’s meningitis diagnosis and I found all the responses from fellow mums so reassuring so am returning…

around a week and a half ago we were admitted to hospital when my then-three week old had a mild temperature which turned out to be viral meningitis. He’s completed a course of antibiotics and we’ve been discharged from hospital treatment and have been back at home for around a week.

However - the whole experience has completely rocked my nervous system and I feel completely anxious and paranoid about everything and him getting poorly again. I find myself checking his temperature every ten minutes and getting a real mix of readings (we have both an underarm and forehead thermometer which both produce wildly varying results).

he swallowed a little bath water from the tap on another occasion and earlier today, was licked on the top of the head by a friends dog.

if any of these things were to happen pre-hospital stay I probably wouldn’t bat an eyelid but I now find myself pouring over old mumsnet threads looking for reassurance.

my little boy is only four weeks and I feel completely on edge. He’s been especially fussy and crying more than normal today but I wonder if I’m over reacting? I’m a second time mum so hoped I would feel super confident as I’ve been through it all before!

I guess my point here is a). Will any of the above make him poorly again (the bath water, dog lick etc) and b). Any advice or tips for helping to calm my nerves? My partner thinks I’m being completely ridiculous and over reacting to everything but I can’t help it!

thanks in advance. X

This is bound to be stressful and traumatic. Do consider some counseling if you think you might need it.

Stay off the internet. Turn phone off or give it to DP if you think you won’t resist. The good thing is you recognize it so you can stop yourself before this goes out of control. Get out the house as much as possible and keep distracted.

He's so young, you're hormonal as hell and youve had traumatic episode. I think be kind to yourself, give yourself time to settle in. At 4 weeks he's probably going through huge growth sports so wants lots of milk and might be fussy.

The water and dog lick are fine, if anything theyll help his gut form a good microbiome

oh poor you! I think what you’re experiencing is pretty normal, I would probably be the same.
I agree with previous comments, try to relax as much as you can. And yes, GET OFF THE PHONE! lol. Ask your partner to take it off you in the evening and night and during the day just go out for looong walks with your baby. I didn’t have bad experiences but it saved my sanity while my daughter was colicky. Open air and nature do wonders. It will do good to your baby as well. I’d say don’t worry about the tap water but maybe avoid contact with animals? Overall just try to enjoy your baby as much as you can, and if you need to go talk to somebody.
take care!