Doctor

I took Grace to the Pediatrician yesterday. She is finally feeling better, so it was time for her first "well baby" visit. These appointments aren't ever my favorite thing, but the intensity went up a notch this time.

Grace is right in the middle of the "stranger anxiety" phase. Developmentally, this is right on, but all of the new circumstances in her life intensify the effects. For one thing, other than her Daddy, she wants nothing to do with men. This makes sense when you consider the fact that all of her care givers at the orphanage were women. It does make it tougher when the doctor needs to check her out though. He hadn't even touched her with the stethoscope yet when she started screaming. Fortunately, the check-up part of the visit doesn't take very long. Once she had a couple minutes of Mommy cuddle time, she was back to her regular cheery self. She played happily on the table, tearing the heck out of the paper, while I talked with the doctor.

The things we needed to talk about at this visit went way beyond the typical well-baby check-up. We needed to discuss all of the medical history that we were aware of, and of course, what we weren't aware of. That is one of the hardest parts for me. I don't like not knowing. That is such a foreign feeling for this very involved, hands on Mom. We discussed the need to run all kinds of tests. There are some that really need to be done right away, and some that can wait. So, in the interest of not draining her dry, we will do some of the blood tests now, and some at her 1 year check-up. The part that is my least favorite, is the stool testing. Gross!! It is very common for kids that come from Ethiopia to have parasites though, so I'll get over it. I want my girl to grow and be healthy.

Grace's least favorite part of the visit was the shots. She had some in Ethiopia, but the quality is questionable, and the shot record was very vague. The doctor felt it was best to just start over. That meant four shots yesterday, as well as a TB test. She is not likely to decide she likes going to the doctor anytime soon. She has to get shots every two months, get more blood drawn & have at least one more TB test in the next few months. Poor thing!!

On a more positive note, in spite of the obvious discomfort from shots and the total melt down that followed, Grace was really happy to be in my arms. She quieted down almost immediately, and drifted off to sleep as we waited for the nurse to get the lab slips for us. It was hard to watch her scream, but it felt really good to know that she is comforted by me. How I love this baby girl!!!