When I think back on all the things I was nervous about when it came to motherhood, I would like to respectfully laugh at myself. The things I was afraid of like diaper changing, bathing and feeding are so routine now I can do them while living on 3 hours of sleep. It's the things I didn't know about or think about that scare me the most now.
We never could have known Owen would be born a full month early. And while I did try to read up on preemies, it always brought me to a sad place as it reminded me of Jack. So I will admit, I didn't read as much as I probably should have. Now we are coming upon some of the concerns a parent faces when you child is born early and has made it out of the NICU. Things like developmental milestones and whether or not he's reaching them, and what to do about when to start solids because technically, he's just turning 3 months old. One thing I had not considered until more recently was the gauntlet of the cold and flu season.
Our pediatricians office called us the other day to inform us that Owen qualified for a special shot to help protect him from the RSV virus. The injection, called Synagis, provides a baby with the antibodies they didn't get from their mother when they are born too soon. It's not an immunization, as it wears off and you have to have repeat shots done every 28 days. I had never even heard of this nor did I know to be concerned about RSV until now. I knew he was sensitive to illness due to the severity of his lung disease when he was born, but I didn't know he could contract a cold virus that could turn fatal. That FREAKED me out.
So like the good germophobe I am, I am now on full alert. We are trying to figure out if the insurance will cover Owen's injections. If they do, he will get them at Children's Hospital. Meanwhile, I plan to plaster signs on our door warning people not to come in the house if they are sick. And heaven help the sick person who sneezes next to him if we go to the store or something. YOU WILL BE HAND SANITIZERED by me.
I may be being a bit dramatic but you know what, I have a right to be. Owen can't tell people not to sneeze by him. He also can't walk away from someone or wash his own hands. That's up to us as his parents. And by golly I'm gonna do the very best I can to keep him from getting sick. So much for worrying about diaper changing......
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