How Iritis (eye-rye-tus) Ruined The Last Week Of Summer . . .

This is the story of big dreams being dashed, the last week of summer going down the tubes and how our life became a race against the timer on our microwave. Curious? Read on!

My boy Big C is a brave, brave man. What we thought was a mere case of pink eye last Friday has turned into a full blown case of "Iritis" with headaches, sensitivity to light and severe redness. On Friday, our intuitive pediatrician Dr. G recognized the symptoms of iritis and immediately set up an appointment for us to visit a pediatric opthamologist. The opthamologist dilated Big C's pupils and then used all sorts of funky lights to look at the inside of his eyeball - I didn't even know that could be done! (I guess blessed with good vision = idiot at the eye doctor.)

The op doc's diagnosis confirmed the iritis, which is an inflammation of the iris that can be caused by many things, including Lymes Disease. Are you kidding me? We JUST finished the 28 day antibiotic for Lymes even though Big C's tests came back negative. He was retested yesterday with more blood drawn. ARGHHHH!!! Twenty-eight days of antibiotics was cake compared to the new treatment for the iritis - Big C is on steroid eye drops EVERY HALF HOUR FOR TEN DAYS! Yes, you read that correctly. And now we are sitting in our house, waiting for the microwave timer to let us know when to instill the one drop in one eye, five billion times a day until forever. No pool, no sunlight, no fun for us!

The eye drops will most likely go on for four to six weeks, although at more spread apart increments as time goes on. I can't wait to tell his brand new teacher that he will be disrupting her class every hour to visit the nurse. Curse word, curse word, dumb school rules about administering medicine!

Through it all though, I have learned a few things this week. First, I've learned that Big C is a trooper. He has not complained once about the eye drops or about being my constant buddy. Second, I've learned to really trust my pediatrician who's instinct was correct and who went to bat for my boy. And lastly I've learned that many of the words describing the anatomy of the human eye are icky sounding. Words like sclera, fovea centralis and superior rectus muscle leave just a little throw up in the back of my throat!

Wouldn't you please leave a little get well note for my boy who thought he was cooler than cool because he had to wear sunglasses to Church on Sunday? Thanks so much!