Since lockdown began, Isla, Daddy and Noah have all ended up in A&E. Isla had a concussion, Daddy had chest pains that turned out to be torn cartilage, and over the weekend Noah was the latest. He came down with sharp stomach pains to the right of his belly button and was in a lot of distress. I’m writing this up in case it helps someone else.
Noah had been complaining for a couple of hours and by 8pm the pain had worsened. He was crying, curling his toes and said the pain came in waves. It sounded to me like contractions — short but intense. We called 111 and were told to go straight to A&E for assessment.
At our local hospital the triage doctor saw him quickly and he was wheeled into the ward. A doctor examined him and ordered bloods, a urine sample and an ECG. Within minutes the doctor said he feared it might be Noah’s appendix and that a surgeon should assess him. Until then I had been on my own because of COVID rules, but the doctor allowed Noah’s dad to come in when he saw how upset I was.
The surgeon arrived in about 20 minutes, checked Noah’s stomach and groin, and after a visual exam was convinced it wasn’t appendicitis — though they couldn’t be sure until the bloods came back. A nurse put a cannula in Noah’s inner elbow (which made both of us feel faint), they took blood and a urine sample. Noah was given Calpol before he went to the toilet, but on the way back he vomited. The Calpol had come up, so they gave paracetamol through the cannula while we waited for results.
By around midnight the bloods, urine and ECG were all normal. The doctor said it could still be very early appendicitis, so he wanted to admit Noah overnight for observation. The paediatrician also checked him and said she couldn’t assess him properly while he was out of it and would need to see him when he woke.
At 2am Noah was wheeled to the children’s ward. We had a room with its own toilet and I had a pull-out bed. The paediatrician and a nurse checked his vitals and comfort levels. I didn’t sleep much — I kept watching him sleep and worrying that he’d dislodge the cannula. I kept waking every half hour to make sure he was breathing and the cannula was still in place.
I was up at 5:45am. The nurse brought me a cup of coffee and I waited for Noah to wake. I ordered him toast with blackcurrant jam and a cup of tea. He woke just after 7am and was back to his usual self — chatting, joking and smiling. The worst of it was over.
He ate his breakfast and we spent the morning watching CBBC on the ceiling TV. At 10am the doctor examined him again, moved his legs and arms and pressed on his stomach. She said she didn’t think it was his appendix. She felt a bubbling of trapped gas where the pain had been; sometimes a bug or virus can cause gas to build up and cause severe pain. I joked that a big “blow off” would sort it, but she explained the gas was stuck higher up, not where you’d expect.
For now we’re waiting for the gas to pass and for Noah to fully recover. He says he feels much better. We’re making sure he rests, avoids heavy activity and sticks to plain foods — no fizzy sweets or sugary drinks. He even refused chocolate and coke, which shows he wasn’t himself.
Being a mum in moments like this is terrifying — everything else disappears and their health becomes the only thing that matters. Our overnight stay was scary, but I’m so grateful he’s on the mend and hugely thankful to the NHS for the care we received. Thank you for all the kind messages — they meant a lot to both me and Noah.
