How to Help Your Sick Child Feel Better

by Mom It Forward on February 22nd, 2014 | 1 Comment »

When my only daughter was only 7 years old, we started noticing that she was getting sick more often than not. When she would get a fever or a cold, it would last longer than our other kids. When she got a scratch or a bruise, it would take a long to heal. I accepted the idea that my daughter had a compromised immune system. Looking for ways to help our sick child feel better became the mantra I lived by.

When my daughter turned 8 years old things went from bad to worse. One morning she woke up with nodules on her legs. They looked like big bruises and welts. They were so painful that she couldn't walk. She was bed ridden for over a week. I remember both us crying, because we felt hopeless with our unanswered questions. Our doctor was stumped and only knew how to treat the pain.

Each year, her symptoms changed which continued to make getting a diagnosis impossible. She had joint pain, migraines, ulcerations, and fatigue. I can't even tell you how many doctors we had to visit in order to get the help we needed. Finally on her 14th birthday, we finally got some answers. My daughter had Behcets disease. She would have it the rest of her life.

How to Help Your Sick Child Feel Better

Here are some of the ways we have helped our daughter with her illness:

Get Proper Rest - My daughter has learned to listen to her body. When she starts feeling fatigued, she immediately goes to bed and get proper rest and sleep. This is hard with her busy school and sport schedules, but we know it really helps her to keep from having flareups.
Exercise Regular Exercise - This is a tricky balance for my daughter. She plays on the high school basketball team. She feels good when she is getting regular exercise. When she over works her body and gets exhausted, she immediately starts getting sick. She has learned how much exercise she needs and when to pull back.
Improve Diet - One of the best ways to keep from having joint pain is to reduce sugar and carbohydrates. My daughter has also had to avoid fried foods. Eating healthy as a teen is not always easy, but we have found that when we focus on it, eating healthy helps keep her well.
Positive Attitude - The most important piece of helping your sick child get well is to keep a positive attitude. We have taught our daughter that when she is experiencing poor health, she has to maintain a positive attitude and have faith that she will get better soon.