Sensitive skin

Oh my goodness

It's 3.30am....
my boy has been awake and itching and scratching, his body a rash, red.

I have learnt to wait....
I have rushed to the all night Doctor before....
I remind myself..
This is what happens...
he has allergies.
He has eczema.
He has sensitive skin along with his sensitive nature.
This is what can happen to him and I must not panic.
(I have learnt my lesson with the meningitus glass trick, never could remember which way it went - "Reg, Reg... check on the internet... the spots disappear is that meningitus?!")

I have been up for the last three hours dispensing calpol, more piriton than I dare count, two stories about the stone owl in Staithes... then half an hour of baby TV - I got desperate... we closed our eyes cos they play classical music....

He's in our bed... Reg has left and got into Cole's bed... Cole and I both fell asleep...

then he woke again scratching and speaking and thrashing around...

He Said... "Ouch, it hurts... I itch mummy, I itch... I love you... ouch... cuddle me... I'm hot"

Who covers this in the books?
Who is supposed to warn me about nights like this?

I know the drill now...
I don't panic...
Remind myself, don't panic... Cole has allergic skin sometimes.

I would like to share with you the first time Cole's sensitive skin happened...

He was about 8 months old...
He could sit, crawl but not quite walk...

He woke agitated... covered in a rash... hot, restless...
I tried for a couple of hours to settle him, then took him downstairs while I rang NHS direct for advice...

I remember sitting him on the floor in his white terry towelling baby gro...
I rang the nurse on the end of the help-line...
she asked me 4 million questions...
He had been uncomfortable for so long I needed to know I was doing it right...

She went through the questions...
he had stopped wailing with the change of scene:
being downstairs...
the phone was next to a box of toys...

He was sat while I answered the questions...
How old...?
Where was the rash?
Was he hot?
Does he have eczema?
What is he doing right now?

Right now?
I turn to look at him... first time in at least 3 minutes since being on the phone...

I turn to look at him - he turns to look at me..
oh my god, he has had his hand in the toy box...
he has pulled out of the box - and put on his face - a plastic nose, moustache and black rimmed glasses...

He is a baby boy, 8 months old... it's 2am and I am panicking...
five minutes on the phone to the nurse and the little git has a disguise on.....

He has a plastic nose, moustache and glasses on.
It's all in one piece... he has it placed perfectly on his chubby red cheeks...

Ha ha bloody ha...

So, I not falling for his drama ever again...
never mind that I can't quite sleep now...
I don't ring the professionals, ever reminding myself of the "night with the plastic glasses"...
So I will lay here while he mumbles and scratches til he peaceful again...

Tum tum ti tum...
Get better baby and sleep - motherhood digs deep and I wouldn't be anywhere else but right next to him but will so get him back one day with a false moustache....

To all you carers doing the night-shift - We Rock x x