First Illness

Hey all.  I thought I would update you a little.  Allison and Mitch have both been sick.  Mitch was sick all last week with a terrible cold but suffered through and made it to school last week.  Over the weekend he ran a fever and a sore throat developed.  The sore throat has gotten increasingly worse and I took both of them to Urgent Care on Monday ( our doctor is out on Mondays) thinking they probably both had strep, but it came back negative.  So they both missed school again today.  We will wait to see what the week holds.  

Now, for Allison specifically, she became ill on Saturday ( first time since jra diagnosis)  and ran a low grade fever with congestion, runny nose, sore throat and the typical cold stuff. She had her methotrexate dose Friday night so her immune system was at its lowest. We became a little more concerned on Sunday when she started walking stiff legged on the stairs because it hurt to bend her knees.  Since then she is experiencing a lot of aches and pains. ( Yes, in her joints too)  Yesterday, it looked as though she had a rash for a while on her leg.  ( another of her jra symptoms.)  She has been back to taking 2 Aleve a day the last two days for the aches and pains.  She hasn't had to take an anti-inflammatory drug in months.  So.... we are a little concerned and are watching her closely.  This is very normal for her to have symptoms come back somewhat when she is ill.  Her immune system is trying to fight the virus in her so it becomes more active and that can result in it becoming over active.  We are just hoping not too overactive.  

It is very common for kids with jra to have a "flare up" when they get sick with a virus or something.  That confused immune system just isn't sure what to do. Good news is, her fever has not gone up over 100!! Joint aches are not too bad and come and go.  She is in good spirits and determined not to miss more school this week. ( we will see- Valentine's Day is approaching so she has to be there for the party Friday.)  

It is comforting to know this is all normal, but it could also be a signal to us that she isn't done with jra yet.  That the remission she is having is from the medication and not because she has outgrown the disease.  So, we wait and see how things develop and keep our thoughts positive and keep the prayers strong.  I will keep you posted on how Allison is doing over the next few days.