Being Sick when you are a Doula.

I was fighting off a cold all week long. I was still able to do all the mom things I had to do. I attended a Baby Shower Wed. night, Karate graduation Thursday night, Blue and Gold Dinner Friday night. I was exhausted, but did it all.

I fell into bed Friday night, thinking if I can just get a good night sleep tonight, then I will feel better. Well at midnight my 8 year old started throwing up. He threw up every 30 minutes all night long, until 5 am. I kept thinking, “What if my doula client calls me right now?” Thankfully she didn’t.

Then my 3 year old woke me up at 6:30. “The sun is up!”

So I put on a video and lay on the couch and tried to sleep more. 8 year old woke up and threw up again. Then I had to get the 11 year old to horseback riding lessons. By the time I was home at noon, I was SICK! My head was pounding, my nose was running, the kind where I went through 2 boxes of kleenex in one day.

I napped from 2-4 and I felt worse when I woke up and had a fever. I could only sit on the sofa and sit there and just exist. I thought, “What if my doula client calls me right now?” I knew I couldn’t go to a birth, I had a fever and could barely sit on the sofa.

Luckily I have a wonderful back up group. I called Cindy and she said she was available to be on call for this mom. So I called the mom and told her that I was out of commission until I called her on Sunday. She was fine with that.

I went to bed at 8 PM, with my ringer off and slept all night. I had totally bizarre dreams all night long and at some point my fever broke and I was all sweaty. But when my faithful alarm clock “The sun is up” went off at 6:30 I felt alive again.

By noon I was showered and functioning, I called my client back and let her know I was back on call.

That was not fun. I also am pretty low functioning today and the boys have pretty much been on the computer or watching TV today and I just don’t even care. Tomorrow I will be a better mom, today I am just happy to feel somewhat normal again!