First ER Trip

Emma woke us up last Saturday night with a terrible cough. She couldn't get comfortable and had some wheezing. I was afraid she was coming down with croup but wasn't sure she was bad enough for the ER. I told Mike to get the humidifier going and I started the shower and shut us in the bathroom hoping the steam would help open her airway a little. That seemed to help for a little while. Then about an hour later she woke up again and this time it was worse. She couldn't catch her breath and we could see in her little eyes that she was scared.
When we got to the ER they said yep she sounds croupy. She had fever, decreased oxygen saturation, and tachycardia. They took her straight back and started her on some breathing treatments and gave her a steroid. Fortunately, the meds kicked in quick and her breathing improved. Unfortunately, for Mike and I the steroid made her crazy hyper. We were so tired and she was going strong. We were discharged about 3:30 am and I told Mike I didn't know the last time I saw 3 am and the toddler in the back seat is bouncing off the walls. Luckily, when we got home she settled down pretty quickly and we were able to get a little sleep.
Praise God the croup was gone within a few days and we didn't have anymore labored breathing episodes. I will say this has been my scariest experience as a mother. It was so hard watching her be so miserable knowing that nothing I did was making her feel better. I love this little girl so much and being her mother has made me such a better person.