# Horrible pediatrician appointment- clammy, cold, rash after vax



## sillysapling (Mar 24, 2013)

I don't know where this goes, I'm sorry if this isn't right. The short version is this: Our getting-over-a-cold 1 yo was given mmr, hep a, and varicella vaccines. He's upset and has gotten cold, clammy, and has a bumpy rash all over. (he also got hep a and mmr) We're trying to figure out what's going on and if this warrants an ER visit or if he just needs TLC and do NOT trust the pediatrician to give the right answer.

Long version: We went for our 1yo well baby visit today. Kiddo is getting over a cold, and my partner couldn't come, so it was a miserable affair- he screamed every time I put him down. He got a finger prick to test for iron (which I have no problem with) but it bled badly and he screamed while they held the gauze on and screamed when they finally put the bandaid on. They gave me three forms that I had to fill out and no help on keeping him calm while I did, they didn't even give me a clipboard or something for it. I told every single person that he was getting over a cold.

By the time the pediatrician finally showed up, I was incredibly frazzled already and just wanting to get out as soon as possible- only to find out they were going to do a dental check-up and shots. I didn't think to say "not a chance, he's sick"- I know I should have, but I was too focused on trying to settle him to realize I could do that. Every time I asked for something (that the dentist be done first, that I hold him during the shots) I was rejected, they dismissed the pain he was in ("it's worse for you"- while he's screaming bloody murder, "oh, that didn't even hurt" when he screamed at the stethoscope) as well as my concerns about his growth (he hasn't grown in months). By the time they brought out the shots, I'd spent 40 minutes trying to soothe a nearly-constantly screaming baby and being dismissed at every turn. I desperately wanted to leave and was not up to fighting them. It wasn't until after I found out what shots they gave him- and one of them was for chickenpox. I'm livid. I did *not* want him getting that vaccine.

We should have rescheduled, but I thought the pediatrician had said that he didn't need shots again until he was 2 years old- and if it weren't for the shots, it would have been tolerable. I'm just... I'm really upset. I'm upset with myself for letting it happen, but mostly I'm livid that they put me in that position. We're moving at the end of this month, so we never have to see them again, but I deeply regret that we couldn't find a better pediatrician. And we honestly couldn't, everyone we know who has good insurance goes out of state because the pediatricians around here are so bad.

They never should have given shots to a sick baby. They didn't even check his temperature or ask about his symptoms, didn't check if it was an ear infection or not. I know I shouldn't have let it happen but it just shouldn't have happened.


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## rednightingale (Feb 3, 2014)

What I'm hearing in your post is a lot of love and concern for your little one, as well as an unhealthy dose of mommy guilt. Please be gentle with yourself - we all get frazzled, we all get intimidated at times, and things happen that we wish had not happened. This isn't all your fault, so please don't beat yourself up. My son was once scheduled for a very routine surgery and when the day came he happened to be just getting over a fairly minor cold. Even though it was minor, I felt very apprehensive about him going in for surgery when he wasn't quite well, and I really should have asked his doctors to postpone it - that was what my gut instinct was telling me to do - but I didn't. I did tell them that he had a little cold, and they reassured me that things would be okay and I went along, against my better judgment. He ended up having a reaction (flash pulmonary edema) to the induction anesthesia, and was on a ventilator for several days. It was a terrifying experience, and I felt horribly guilty about it. I'm sending you huge hugs, because I know what this feels like - these things do happen. We learn from them and move forward. It doesn't make you any less of a wonderful mother.

Have you taken your little guy's temperature? How is he behaving? What is his energy level like? All of those things are important in figuring out if an ER visit is the right choice. I will say, though, that is you are really concerned and feel like he isn't well, it's better to take him in to be seen than to worry and stew about it. I wish I could give better advice than that, but I'm not a doctor or nurse, so I'm really not qualified to say. You as his mother, however, are perfectly qualified to say whether this is too far outside of his normal behavior for your comfort level, so do what you feel is best for him. You're obviously a very caring and loving mother; you've got this.


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## sillysapling (Mar 24, 2013)

Thank you for your response. 

His temperature is 97.9- a little low, lower than his normal, but not hugely. His energy is generally lower, but has been up and down, he's gotten two naps since the 1 pm appointment and just went down, but also got playful for awhile. It's just really unnerving that he's gone from feverish to cold, clammy, rash-covered, and very unhappy. It seems like it's not an unheard of side-effect to the vaccines and it doesn't seem like a sign of super serious problem, it's just very unnerving for our baby's skin to be cold and sweaty. He's never had such a bad response to vaccines. It doesn't seem like it's worth the ER visit, which is probably going to be upsetting for him and stressful for us. He's asleep now, we'll see how he sleeps and how he's doing in the morning.


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