Lit tle Boywoke up at 5am hungry. I nursed him and put him back to bed around 5:30. He woke up pretty quickly -- maybe 5:45am-- which is really unusual for him. I went in and quickly got him out of the bedroom so he wouldn't wake up his siblings as I could tell he was getting more and more upset. At first I thought he was still hungry, but he was just thrashing around, and within minutes he was screaming and shaking. At this point, I noticed his eye was getting puffy. I laid him on the couch and started pulling off his pajamas to see how his breathing was and try to figure out what was causing him such pain. I thought first of his heart, then of possible seizure or stroke, but I quickly discovered that he was covered with red welts.
Fortunately, he started settling down soon after I discovered the welts and gave him Benadryl. If he had gotten any worse or cried for any longer, I would have called an ambulance.
He had a huge swelling on his left eye, left ear, and behind his neck, in addition to the welts everywhere.I spent the next half hour watching him, wracking my brain for something out of the ordinary that could have caused such a rapid, severe reaction, and trying to decide who and when to call. The only thing I could think of was a large, rich, chocolately brownie consumed late last night. I was very sad to think my son might be allergic to chocolate! Little Boy remained stable, so I let him sleep and called the pediatrician's office as soon as they opened. When we arrived, the welts were quite red, and the rest of his skin was pale and yellowish, making them stand out even worse.
The doctor quickly reassured me that both Little Boy and I could still eat chocolate. He explained that this was a penicillin allergy. Apparently you can develop this after multiple exposures to any penicillin derivative, even as an adult -- it doesn't necessarily occur on the first exposure. We discontinued the antibiotics he was taking for his ears (which are clear now, thank the Lord) and started a round of prednisolone to help his body recover. He will have the rash for a few days, I'm told, but he just woke up from his long Benadryl-induced nap and is back to his normal cheery self.
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In another close shave, last night we finally convinced Big Boy to let us take the clippers to his head. He's been resisting them for months. Here's the (much better) "after" shot:
(Enjoying hot chocolate after a morning of sledding)
