Could this be an ear infection?

O....M....G.....I swear I am getting less sleep now than when I was rooming in for 18 days in the NICU and doing every 'round the clock feeding! Wednesday afternoon Nick hit the wall just before his afternoon nap. He was zonked. When he woke up he had a 101.4 fever. His top two teeth are coming in and since he hadn't been cranky or had any other symptoms, I assumed it was teething.

Wednesday night sucked...he was up about every 15-20 minutes.
Thursday he didn't sleep more than a 15 minute stretch from 1AM until 9PM (no, that is not a typo).
He crashed Thursday at 9PM and slept until 1AM, then woke up screaming and I got him back to sleep until 5:30AM.
Friday he actually took naps, but was up every hour or so SCREAMING at night.
Last night he slept from 8 PM until 12:30AM, but was then up and screaming every 30-minutes or so until 6AM.

We called the pedi Thursday afternoon. He said it sounded like teething and to keep on the tylenol/motrin every 4 hours and if the fever didn't break by Saturday morning, to come in. Well, the fever did break, and then would magically reappear in the late afternoon/evening. He has been REALLY whiny during the day, but then suddenly happy and playing.

I don't know what to do I can't get him to sleep when he wakes up. I've tried a bottle, rocking him, bringing him to bed with us, laying down with him out on the couch...nothing's working and I'm running out of stamina (and patience) :unsure: [SIZE=14pt]Does this sound like it could be an ear infection?[/SIZE] If tonight is a repeat of the last 4 nights I'm taking him to the ped Monday morning.

Thanks if you made it this far...appreciate any advice.

 

If he will lie down, it probably isn't an ear infection. When Marcus had one, it was excruciating for him to lay flat--he actually slept upright on top of me. Teething can be like that for a number of days--how close are the teeth from popping through? I would give the ped a call tomorrow morning just to be sure, though.

 

Hannah was teething AND she had an ear infection. She was doing all the things you just described. She would lie down in her crib, but only for a little while. She got most of her sleep on one of us on the couch for about a week. We just figured it was the teething, but then we saw something coming out of her ear. We took her to the doctor and sure enough, she had a very bad ear infection. Actually, her eardrum had ruptured. The doctor then explained to me that a ruptured eardrum isn't as terrible as is sounds. She gave us some antibiotics and all was better in a few days.

I would call your doctor and see if you can get in for an appointment.

 

Whenever our twins have had ear infections, they were diagnosed pretty quickly because they had pretty bad colds at the time.
Our oldest came home from Preschool Wednesday afternoon with a fever, but he wasn't all that cranky. The Pedi said to bring him in if he has a fever for more than 2 days. Wednesday night wasn't so bad but Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights were horrible. He would wake up every 15minutes whining and crying. You would think that at age 4, he would be able to tell us better that his ear hurt. But, every day he just said his belly hurt. Anyway, Saturday morning the Pedi saw him and gave him Antibiotics for his first ear infection. Last night was still bad and he still has really cranky moments today, but I think he is getting better.

So, with that said, it sounds like Nick may have an ear infection. Has he had a cold recently or a runny nose? Because they can't blow their noses, the mucus can often go backward and start an ear infection. I would definitely go to Pedi as soon as you can get in.
Hope he feels and sleeps better soon! :hug99:

 

We have had bad nights like that with Steven. His is teething. He goes in a cycle of 4-5 bad nights whenever he is cutting a tooth! It really stinks! twice during these times I have taken him in to get his ears checked just to be sure!! I would rather know for sure if his ears are OK! It helps me treat the right problem! I have not figured out how to get sleep those night either. Just know you are not alone!

CIndy

 

I would take him in.

When Trevor had an ear infection back in Sept. he had a fever and he wouldn't stay asleep, and he always sleeps through the night, that was our one clue.

 

We're at the point where we're almost HOPING it's an ear infection. That seems like an easy, doable fix. The boys have both recently had colds...but it's been a good 10days-2weeks since their symptoms have subsided.

I'm definately taking him in because when I was changing his diaper this morning he was screaming (what else is new) and his testicle was swollen & popping out like an eyeball. At his 6m wcc they sent us to Childrens with concerns about a hernia, but after an u/s we were told it was simply a hydroseal (sp?). This afternoon when I went to change him it had moved and was nowhere near his testicles and was in the skin of his lower abdomen/leg area. I haven't noticed any problem in months...but to be honest changing diapers is such a wiggly experience that I do it as quickly as possible; so maybe I've just been less than attentive.

 

Sorry Nick is feeling so bad and you aren't getting any sleep. If it makes you feel any better, I am right there with you. Both girls have been cutting their top teeth, but Allison is taking it alot harder than Lindsey. There was one night that she did like Nick and woke up crying every 15 to 30 minutes. The other nights she will have a rough few hours and then sleep through a few hours. You are so right about the sleep deprivation being worse than when they were newborns. I think it is just that the 'honeymoon' is so way over that it hurts ten times more now. Well, I hope all goes well at the drs. - and get that ear infection you are hoping for (I took Allison in a couple of months ago hoping the same thing because I wanted a 'quick fix' to her terrible sleeping. There was no problem with her ears though Let me know how it goes!