Panic Attack

Hooray, we got through our first emergency experience today. Right before I planned on getting in the shower, Reese got a hold of a catalog and must have gotten some paper stuck in her throat. When she started coughing and gaging, I thought that she would throw it up, cry a little and be done. I figured I would sit with her until it was over and then get us both ready for the day.

When she was still crying and coughing and gaging ten minutes later, and I was scrambling around to find my phone, which didn't turn up. I decided that I had to go to a neighbor's house to borrow the phone. Since Reese was still breathing I figured I had time to look up the Urgent Care's phone number to see if they take our new insurance, for which I didn't have my insurance card in my wallet, and frankly had no idea where the insurance card was. I got the phone number, threw on some clothes and ran outside, thinking I would go straight to my downstairs neighbor's apartment. Unfortunately, when I got outside, I noticed that her car was gone, so I began running across our apartment complex, trying to think of who I knew that would be home. I was grateful to be greeted by a very friendly neighbor, Ricky, who let me use her phone. I called the Urgent Care, who didn't pick up. Thinking I must have had the wrong number I called the office where Will works (which is in the same building as the urgent care and I have the number memorized) and got the correct phone number from the receptionist. Thankfully, the urgent care takes our insurance.

Meanwhile Reese is still crying, but hasn't gagged in a minute or two, so I start to calm down and decide to call the pediatrician to see if he can tell me if I actually need to bring her in for monitoring or not. I don't have his number, well I'm sure that I posted it on the calendar or refrigerator or put it in her diaper bag or something, but I'm too jacked up on panic right now to remember. So I run home with Reese to look up the number online, at which point Reese begins gagging again. I run back over to Ricky's to use her phone. The pediatrician doesn't pick up and I'm transferred to the voicemail. Leave a message? I don't think so.

I call Will's office again, just to see if he knows where our insurance cards are because by now Reese is Gagging even worse and I'm beginning to get hysterical and I've decided that I'm definitely going to the urgent care. When the receptionist picks up, I'm such a mess that I can't even get my words out right and it takes a minute for her to figure out that I'm asking for Will, not one of the doctors or nurses. She puts me on hold. Reese throws up on Ricky's carpet. I look at the vomit, but I don't see anything substantial in it so I'm still worried she has something stuck in her throat because she's still coughing and crying. When someone finally picks up, it's not Will, it's a different medical assistant. I know I was crying, but I think I told her, "No! Will! I need to talk to Will! My name is Anna and I am his wife and I need to speak to him PLEASE!" She said okay and tried to put me on hold but I got disconnected instead.

I thanked Ricky as I ran out the door. I buckle my poor teary, slobbery, upset baby into the car seat, and as I am running to the car, Ricky comes running over to me. Will is on the phone. I tell him I'm coming to the urgent care and I need to hang up because I have to give Ricky her phone back.

Reese was pretty good on the way to the urgent care office. She was pretty well behaved as the doctor and nurse checked her out, too. She must have gotten something out in that vomit after all, or swallowed whatever was there.

The Urgent Care Center
Will had met me in the parking lot and was there at the urgent care office. At that point, since it appeared that I was in worse shape than the baby, the doctor left us in the room and told us to take as much time as we needed, at which point Reese started crying again. This time I think it was just because she was tired and probably confused at her mother's temperament.
As we left the VERY gracious doctor's office, I made Will promise to apologise for me to anyone I had yelled at on the phone. Reese fell asleep on the way home. I put her in her crib and keep checking to make sure she's still breathing. I think now I'll go post the doctor's number on the fridge and the calender and put it in her diaper bag, just in case.