The Scariest Day of Our Lives

Friday was the scariest day of our lives. Around 11:00am Brighton felt hot so I took her temperature. She had a fever so I gave her some Tylenol and put her down for a nap. She still had a little bit of a temperature when I got her up from her nap about an hour and a half later, but it was going down. She was acting a little tired, but was playing and in a good mood. She wanted to cuddle up on the couch and watch Seseme Street. After about ten minutes she started to breathe really fast, her eyes rolled back in her head, she passed out, and turned blue. She was totally non-responsive and limp. She wasn't breathing and her jaw was locked shut. I get emotional every time I think about her little body going through that. It was more horrible than I have words to describe. I yelled for Don, who ran in and grabbed Bri while I called 911. I couldn't even remember our address when I called. I just had about a million what if's going through my mind and was praying more desperately than I have ever prayed that Brighton would be ok. Don tried to get Bri's jaw open hoping that it would open her airway and she would start breathing. We have never felt so totally helpless. The ambulance took about 3 or 4 minutes to get here and, although it seemed like an eternity at the time, I am so grateful to live so close to help. Bri started breathing before the ambulance got here and her jaw finally relaxed. She was pretty non-responsive and out of it when she woke up. I rode in the ambulance with Brighton and Don followed behind us. I was trying so hard to stay calm for Brighton's sake, but I couldn't stop the tears from streaming down my face and I was completely freaking out inside. She was so non-responsive to anything I said or did. It was so scary. I was wondering about brain damage, etc... They did a couple of tests in the ambulance and a bunch more once we got to the hospital. I felt so bad for little Brighton getting poked at by all of these strange people. She did so, so well though. Everyone was amazed that she remained so calm during everything. For the first couple of hours at the hospital she was just whimpering and kept getting these little tremors. So, so sad. Her fever finally went down and she was, all of the sudden, our happy little Brighton again. Waving at all of the doctors and nurses, asking for snacks, climbing all over the hospital bed, and wanting to get down so she could "pay" (play). It was such a relief to have her acting like Brighton again. We got home around 7:00 that night and Brighton was running around like nothing had happened. She hadn't eaten much that day, but made up for it by gobbling up 3 pieces of pizza. Don gave her a blessing before we put her to bed. She was running around like a little monkey, but as soon as he put his hands on her head she knelt down, folded her arms, and was still. The spirit was overwhelming and I was so grateful to have the priesthood in my home. What a gift.

Brighton had what is called a Febrile Seizure. 1 in 25 kids has at least one between the ages of 6 months and 6 years of age. They are usually caused by a rapid spike in temperature, but can be caused by other things related to fever. They are almost always harmless to the child, although I think Don and I are permantely scarred from seeing our little Brighton go through one. She now has a one in three chance of having another one. So from now on we are probably going to be in freak out mode whenever she has a fever. If she does have another one, at least we know what to do now and that she will be ok. Febrile Seizures can run in families and it turns out that Don had them when he was little. He had one episode almost identical to the one Bri had and had a few other really minor ones from 18 months to 2 1/2 years old. If anyone wants to read more about Febrile Seizures, the Mayo Clinic gives a good explanation: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/febrile-seizure/DS00346

As scary as it all was, we are so, so grateful that it wasn't anything worse. I feel so emotional about everything. Don and I are just soaking her sweet, sunshiney soul in more than we ever have. We are so, so grateful for out little Brighton angel. She is so special and brings us more joy than we can say. Love seems like too common a word to describe the way we feel about her, but for lack of a better word, we love you Brighton!