Hi Ladies!
My little 2 y/o man has had a fever for almost two days. If he wakes up with a fever in the morning Im going to take him to the doctor, but it just seems like everytime I take him they just say its a virus and there is nothing they can do. I usually take them when they have a fever just to get the ears and throats checked. He just has a fever, no real symptoms of anything else, that he can tell me anyways, he either says yes to everything or no to everything within minutes so I dont get the real story of how hes feeling. After he gets motrin hes up playing like a champ. So, do you take them everytime or do you wait it out?
A $20 copay is cheap!?!? I think thats high! Ours was $5 up until this year, then jumped to $20, I almost had a heart attack!
nope I don't take them in for every fever.
I take them in when they are really lethargic, have a really bad cough , breathing problems , won't drink, things like that.
No. I don't take my kids to the doctor for a fever at all. Unless it is over a certain temp and we can't bring it down with medication. My kids can get febrile seizures with high fevers etc. So we watch for that, but no. The doctor won't say or do anything that I am not already doing at home for a fever--we ride it out and i use homeopathic tablets to help with any discomfort/pain or symptoms. It all depends on you if your comfortable waiting it out or not- if I were you, i would just call and speak with the nurse and ask if he should be seen. They can help you and tell you if you really do need to bring him in or not.
M
I almost never ever take them to Dr. with fevers. Exeptions for newborns of course. I'd condider it if it was particularly high (103,104). Anything 100-102, no way.
Only when they're infants.
When I am unsure about older babies, I call my ped office and tell them I want one of the doctors to call me back. It usually takes a few hours, but it's saved me from unnecessary trips, gotten me appointments for real illnesses, and sent me to the ER for big stuff.
I don't take them in every time, but I had to laugh Lisa W's response, b/c sometimes I do worry! I think if he's acting fine then he probably is. If the fever persists for 3 or more days, then yes, probably at least call the office. Does your doctor have a triage line? Ours does and it's honestly a life saver. You can just call up and the nurse answers and you go from there. They can tell you whether or not they recommend an appointment. Even if your office doesn't have this set up you can call and ask to talk to your pediatrician's nurse if you are unsure about whether or not you need and appointment. Good luck, it's always hard to know what the right thing to do is!!
No I don't not at that age. Once over 2 the ped likes to see them if they've had a fever for 3 days of course we go in sooner if there are other worrisome symptoms.
By the time I got to the 4th baby I was able to wait for multiple symptoms. It's harder when you are young and unsure. We all hear stories of kids that get sick and die in less than 24 hours. So really it depends on how high the fever is. If they have a runny nose or cough to go with it, then yes I would. My youngest is 10 now and she hardly ever gets sick. My grandson does and my daughter waits longer than I did. But whenever I've talked her into taking him, it's been a virus.
Wait it out! A fever is a signal that the body is fighting something. Unless the child is dehydrated or lethargic you're not supposed to do anything but let the fever do it's job. If you bring the fever down you increase the infections ability to take over, because heat kills the infection. When they have a fever they're contagious and their immune system is suppressed, so by taking them to the doctor you're exposing them to what other patients have, or exposing the other patients to what they have.
If it's a high fever or more than a day or two I call the doctor first, they're good about assessing what's wrong based on all the symptoms. They've always told me what I just told you..if they get worse, dehydrated, or they just aren't themselves, something more may be wrong. Just keep them comfortable with lukewarm baths, juice, water, ice cubes, Popsicles, and watch for seizures, lethargy, Vomiting, or dehydration symptoms. I only use Motrin if they can't sleep or just a teensy bit to see if it comes down at all, they say there's only a problem if you can't get the temp to come down with motrin.
No, you wait it out. Unless there are other symptoms or the fever gets over 101, it is probably his body fighting off a virus. They say if they are playing like normal and are not lethargic, you should leave them alone. keep temp low but don't try to get rid of it b/c the fever is what is fighting off the virus. If you are not sure, call the doc first and give symptoms, don't just take him to the doc and waste your money and time. You can always call the doc office and talk to a nurse. I used to do that often.
My peds Dr. told my 11 years ago when my first son was born that the general rule of thumb is: if they run a fever of 101 or higher for 3 days or more...it is an infection of some sort. I have followed that rule since my oldest was born and it seems to work for us! Once they hear they have been running a fever for 3 days or more...they want to get to the bottom of it and won't just dismiss it as a virus. I didn't want to be one of those parents who ran to the Dr. everytime their child was cranky and feverish and this little rule helped me determine when it was time to go. Hope this helps! ;)
yes-but day three days is a good time to do it, too.
I take my 13 month old to the dr for EVERYTHING!! Lol. If he has certain symtoms that persist for mor than 2 days, I normally take him as a walk in. I feel that its better to be safe than sorry. I'm not a dr, and my son is too young to tell me what's wrong. If you are not comfortable with his fever, than I would take him. Even if its for your reassaurance.
I give a fever 5-7 days, because that's how long a virus can run and a doctor can't do a thing about a virus. There's been times he's been up all night coughing, he can't breathe, he may or may not be running a fever, and my husband is saying "you HAVE to take him to the doctor tomorrow!" I tell my husband, "5-7 days for a fever, and after 10 days of a bad cough I'll take him."
I have four kids, the youngest being nine, I have never taken them to the doctor other than the check ups. If I need anti bios I call, tell the doc why, and he calls in the prescription.
I have learned those little buggers are pretty durable.
I still have a hard time deciding whether to take my kids in. The Thursday before last my son woke up with fever 102.5' (now my kids don't normally run fevers) so I knew something was up. He was cranky moaning on my lap etc, and just seemed exhausted. I also don't like dosing with meds unless their horrible cranky or higher than 103. I went ahead and dosed him anyway he was a champ and fine. I was debating whether to take him into Urgent care and decided I'd go ahead put him to bed if wakes with fever in the am and same demeanor I'll for sure take him. He was fine of course in the am...put him down for his nap woke up same thing as the previous morning, Of course now its too late for office hours! Ugg do take him in or not?
Well I chose not too, but come Wed the following week I was just tired of the constant crying and took him in after my oldest went to preschool. Yup, an ear infection. I felt horrible thinking can't believe I made the kid wait a whole week...but I was just unsure (we also saw one of his 2 year molars pop through and he does have a tendency to run fevers for teeth).
The pediatrician tried to make me feel better saying..."Who knows you could have brought him in yesterday and he would have been fine"! I'd like to think they were right, but my gut tells me probably not. Funny thing was he didn't have any of the other signs expect fever, and and then the intermittent irritability--no night wakings, picking at the ears, inconsolable crying. I hate this stage where they can't tell you what hurts..
So to answer your question, no I don't, but I probably should! I just hate to be sent home especially when I have to bring both kids with me every time...
I keep a flashlight handy to look at my boys ears and throat. If they don't seem irritated then I don't take him in. He always had fevers and sometimes ear infections with teething - but that's just him. He also gets ear infections this time of year with his allergies - so I call the doctor and she hooks him up with amoxicillian (which he is on now). But if it just fever then no.
i think if all of us had lisa's $20 copay we'd probably take them a lot more often! lol! i would like to ask lisa where she works, i want her insurance!
i think you got the gist of it from most of the previous responses - mine is 4 now and hasn't been to a dr at all in the last 12 months. he will get his well child, but that's it. if the fever is coming down easily with meds and he's acting totally normal on them, he's fine. if he's on the meds, still has a fever, still acts listless and miserable...then i'd consider it. it all depends on how they're acting, how persistent and high the fever is.
**hey molly - 20 is super cheap - ours went from 25, to 35, and now we have NO copay - $1500 deductible. it's ALL on us until we hit $1500. SUUUUUCKS!! oh and our premiums doubled. we now no longer carry my work insurance.
yes I do...I always think to myself "is my $20 copay worth my sanity?" YES...so I take her in...however in my case 98% of the time she has had an ear infection and has needed antibiotics
EDIT...wanted to add... that I work full time so I cant mess with daycare sending her home for 3 days in a row because she has a fever...I would be fired (or at the very least out of PTO) so I take her in at the first fever.
Hi Molly,
I do the same as Shelley. I No, I don't take my kids to the doctor every time they have fever unless they have fever for more than 3 days and it is higher than 102F. Sometimes I call the doctor's office if I notice something else different besides fever, and they will tell me to take the kid to the office or not. Fever is basically a good sign that the body is having or fighting something.
Always remember that a kid who doesn't feel well shows it immediately and when there is something really wrong your mother instincts will tell you right away. However, I mention it to the doctor in the following visit or check up.
we have a $25 co-pay and no I do not think that is "cheap" but it is far more reasonable than the last Urgent Care bill I got that made me have a heart attack because the doctor's office could not see her for two days and I did not want her to miss anymore school.
My rule of thumb is if we hit day 3 they go...sometimes it is still just a viral bug, but more often than not if it has hit the 3 day mark it is something that requires an antibiotic. I have broke this rule when the temp was excessively high.
I am very fortunate, my Ped's office has AWESOME nurses, and they answer questions and give suggestions and never seem judgemental. They are also really good about if they feel they need to consult the Doctor about calling back in a very timely manner. Sometimes I have called with questions and they have said it sounded like one of the kids needed to be seen that day.
I wait 24 hours because most of the time whatever they have doesn't show up on tests for at least 24 hours anyway especially an ear infection or the flu. If it's a virus or some other minor thing it usually passes in 24 hours and they are fine. I would take them to the dr if it lasted 2 days or more.
