I have been through hell and back in only a week.

My daughter had her pre school vaccinations on Friday morning. The nurse gave me a leaflet with possible reactions and informed me that Ruby might develop a Rubella looking rash or her throat might swallow in which case we should go do see a doctor straight away. Also developing a high temperature was on the books. I left feeling confident as she never developed any sort of side effects with any other vaccinations before.  Ruby even said she loved the “pinch” as she got a plaster on her arm and a superhero sticker. Everything was perfectly fine and she had such a good time with her best friend until late afternoon when we headed back home.

She slept well but in the morning I noticed her arm was proper red and swollen. Being a Saturday I had to go A&E as the GP was closed. I gave Ruby breakfast and we went to see a doctor at the emergency room in Watford Hospital.

We were seen by a doctor in a relative good time (last time we waited for six hours) and she was prescribed oral antibiotics and antihistamine and off we went back home. It was a bit hectic as she was supposed to have antibiotic every eight hours and antihistamine every six hours. I can’t say I slept much as I had to wake up at midnight and give her medicine and again at four am and six am.

On Sunday we had to attend two birthday parties and Ruby was in her best behaviour. She had such a lovely time playing with her friends and jumping up and down in bouncy castles and winning amazing prices at pass the parcel games.

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Before leaving from the last party she hurt her arm and started crying. I went to check how she is and her arm was twice the size it was on the previous day and very hot as well. I took her home and gave her cuddles and stayed overnight with her. The doctor told me that antibiotics will kick in around forty eight hours so I shouldn’t be worried if the reaction won’t disappear straight away.

However, on Monday morning she had blisters around her arm and I had to take her back to A&E. She was checked almost immediately by a doctor and they decided that an antibiotic drip would be the best choice for her.

They took blood off her and administered a first dose while monitoring her closely. Seeing her blood and holding her close while she went through such pain was absolutely heartbreaking. I had to be calm and comfort her and I can tell you she is the bravest little girl ever.

The nurse put a teddy bear sticker around the needle and we showed her how cute they were. She was smiling instantly and told us that she is feeding them while the antibiotic was working through the machine. It was absolutely incredible seeing her like that. She was also trying to comfort a little girl who was scared and I realised that I done a good job teaching her how to be compassionate and also fearless.

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We went back to the hospital for another three days to feed the teddy bears and thank God the antibiotic did it’s job. She made friends every single time and enjoyed playing in the children’s ward, never forgetting to smile.

Although she asked to sleep in her own bed every night I took her with me. She had her hand bandaged around the needle and I felt so paranoid about it. I didn’t wanted her to get hurt in any way so I preferred to just skip my sleep. Also, I felt so sick I couldn’t have slept anyways.

This past week was hell and vaccines always have different reactions but from this to developing an infection under the skin is a long way and I can only blame the nurse for not doing her job properly. My daughter suffered so much and it broke my heart in million pieces. No parent or child should go through such pain.

Have you had any issues with vaccinations?