The Scorpion Story ...

So... I think you know now that Jared was stung by a scorpion last Thursday night/Friday morning. Most of you have probably heard the story. I do want to take the time to post it, though, in detail. I know it is super long, but I don't want to forget any of it ... what a night.

Sleep for the Barretts got off to a rough start on Thursday. I stayed up later than I should have, and before heading to bed around 11pm, Will woke up screaming. He is cutting his back molars. A dose of Tylenol and some kisses and prayers later, he was back to sleep.

Around 2am, Jared then woke up screaming. I dragged myself out of bed and went to go check on him. He was complaining about his leg and his arm hurting. Because of our proximity to Lookout Mountain, we are on constant alert for scorpions. We try not to be paranoid or fearful and I claim Luke 10:19 all the time. That said, we do see them on occasion in our home so whenever we hear a particularly alarming cry from one of the boys, the fear of a scorpion sting is always in the back of our minds. This night was no different.

When Jared told me his leg hurt, I pressed on it and he screamed. I asked him to walk himself to the bathroom to check it out because I wanted to see if he would put pressure on it. He wouldn't, so I had to carry him. Once in the light of the bathroom, I carefully checked him over for any sign of bug bites or stings. I did see a mark on his leg that might have been suspect, but I couldn't be sure. Looking back, I'm not sure what I was thinking (if at all), but I put him back to bed and went back to sleep.

A half hour later, he woke up crying again and rubbing his ears. I gave him a little Ibuprofen (thinking it was an ear infection coming on) and put him back to sleep. About 3am, he came in to use the bathroom - at this point I am starting to lose patience - I ordered him back to bed.

At 3:30am, I hear him again in the hallway. When I went to check on him, he was in the hallway, wide awake and talking to Daisy (our dog). His bedroom light was on and his Legos were out - so weird.

When I put him back in bed (again) his leg was wet. I asked him why it was wet and inquired if it was pee. He told me that, "it came from my mouth." He is now starting to shiver like he's cold.

OK ... now I am alarmed.

I did what all moms would do at this point ... got on the computer and Googled "symptoms of a scorpion bite."

Certain symptoms jumped out ...
* immediate pain at the site - check,
* hyperactivity - check, drooling - check,
* muscle spasms/shaking - check...

It was pretty much a blur at this point, but I pulled him out of bed and turned all the lights on in our room. I handed him to Tim and stated that I think we needed to head immediately to the Emergency Room. Jared is totally sweating and convulsing by now, his eyes are fluttering and rolling around.

So scary.

I got dressed as quickly as I could and we started heading downstairs. As Tim is putting Jared in the car, I remembered that I had a John C. Lincoln hospital magnet on my fridge. This is weird in and of itself ... those of you that know me know that I don't even go to the hospital to have babies. Anyway... I remembered this magnet and since this is the hospital to where I was headed, I called to give them the heads up.

The phone operator at John C. Lincoln directed me to call Poison Control (not sure why I didn't think of this first, but whatever). The lady at Poison Control was awesome. I am already driving at this point and we are running through his symptoms. She came to the conclusion that I already suspected - scorpion bite - get to the E.R. ASAP.

She called ahead to let them know I was coming.

As we are driving, I am trying my best to check for more symptoms - specifically blurred vision. When we turned on to 7th St, I asked Jared what number was on the sign. Despite staring right at it, he couldn't tell me. I asked him if it was a number "4" and he said yes. Oh man ...

During the drive, he is growing increasingly agitated and hysterical. I asked him if he wanted me to sing to him and he said he did.

I tried my best to sing Psalm 56:3-4,

³When I am afraid,
I will put my trust in You.
⁴In God, whose word I praise

I have to admit, I was so scared. As I am singing and praying, I am thinking to myself, "How can I tell him not to be scared, when I am terrified?" and asking myself and asking the Lord, how it could even be possible not to be afraid in this situation ...

I arrived at the ER at around 4am. I walked in holding my very sick son and they were ready for us. The nurse had a wheelchair waiting and took us back immediately. Once we were back in the actual ER, several nurses greeted us and started hooking him up to monitors and checking his symptoms. Meanwhile, he is slipping further into delerium. He is crying, scared, in pain, drooling, frothing, jerking, shaking ... it was awful.

The doctor came in and checked him out and pulled me aside to explain to me my two options. While she is talking to me, the nurses were trying to get an IV in Jared. It took 4-5 adult nurses, men and women, to hold my poor boy now. He was fighting them so bad. It took them a total of 4 pokes to accomplish it ... the first vein blew out ... the second fell out, and so on.

While Jared is hysterically crying for me and the nurses are trying to get this IV in, the doctor is explaining to me that Option 1 involved the use of an antivenin that is not currently FDA approved and is still in trials in the United States, but that they have been using it for a long time with great success in Mexico. She explained that if I didn't use it (Option 2 - do nothing), his respiratory distress and would likely increase, they would have to intubate him (insert a breathing tube down his throat) to prevent him from suffocating, sedate him with ativan and basically put him out. Option 2 involved being transported to Phoenix Children's Hospital where they would check us in to the Pediatric ICU and do what was previously described while we waited for the symptoms to pass. Option 1 would supposedly take care of the symptoms within a few hours, but there might be possible side effects and I would have to sign an informed consent.

Hmmm... while I am trying to focus on the doctor, Jared is screaming for me, and all I can hear is "Mexico" ... "trial drug" ... and my three year old in the same sentence. Not being familiar with the biotec development happening in Mexico, this particular combination of words is not producing any warm fuzzies to say the least. My mind is racing and I am trying to determine who I should call with some medical background that I can trust (why I don't immediately trust doctors, I don't know) ... I called Tim and had her explain it all to him and then I had to make a decision. I asked her if it were her three year old, what would she do? She said, without question, give him the medicine. I signed consent.

So... they start the IV. 4:50am.

The protocol is a slow drip to administer the first dose of the antivenin, Anascorp. If symptoms to not completely disappear, they administer and second dose thirty minutes after the start of the first. And again, if needed, up to three doses.

I crawl into the hospital bed with Jared and do my best to hold him. He is complaining of nausea and tries to throw up in a bucket ... nothing but saliva and foam. He is rotating and twitching and jerking on my lap - he can't sit still. We are all trying our best not to let the IV fall out again as he is wrapping the cords in circles around him. The nurse made him a "mitten" of sorts to keep it securely attached to his little hand.

We wait.

I sent out messages to pray. I am praying. I am singing over him. I am doing anything I can think of to try to keep him as calm as possible. His symptoms start lessoning within 20 minutes of the start of the first dose - 5 minutes after I sent out the message to pray.

Within 30 minutes of the start of the first dose, Jared is asleep. It was absolutely amazing. I brought in this very sick boy without any control of his muscles ... jerking, crying, foaming, having a hard time breathing ... And soon after the start of this miracle medicine, he is calm enough to sleep.

The doctor checked on him again and decided to start another dose because, even though he was asleep, his eyes were still going wild under his eyelids and his muscles were still twitching. After the second dose, he was out like a light.

The entire time, I was praying and so scared about allergic reactions. Jared does have a history of allergies to medicines and I am always afraid of the cure causing more problems than the cause. I have to take a rest on this fear and try to trust the Lord with it - being thankful that the worst of the reaction to the scorpion venom was over.

The staff continued to monitor Jared and he continued to sleep. I am trying to sleep, but trying also to communicate with concerned friends and family.

By 8am, Jared's symptoms were completely gone and they unhooked him and took out the needles so we could go home. He was so tired from the ordeal, even removing the IV didn't wake him up. This is what he looked like asleep in that big bed:



























We woke him up and the first thing he says to me (which I couldn't understand initially because his little voice was so hoarse) was, "Mommy, I think I did a really great job."

I think I cried. Even though, he was so out of it at this time, Jared remembered the nurses trying to reassure him that he was doing a good job receiving their treatment throughout the ordeal.

He wanted me to know that "he did a really great job." So precious, so Jared.

By 8:30am ... after just 4 hours in the Emergency Room, we were home. I am tired, but praising the Lord. Tim is getting ready for work and I am not sure how I am supposed to get through the entire day. Both Jared and I needed some serious sleep.

Here is Jared is my bed after getting him, showing off his hospital bracelet and the remains of the "mitten" the nurse made for his IV:





















His little eyes were so heavy, but man, how cute is he?

Mercifully, my sweet friend Susan (with whom we were supposed to go swimming at the Pointe with later) came over and took Will for me at 9:30am instead. Before she came, I made my best attempt at making breakfast.

During breakfast, Jared was asking about scorpions. He tells me that if he sees another scorpion he is going to kick it. I tell him that we never try to step on scorpions without our shoes on.

Jared turns to his brother and explains, "Baby, if you see a scorpion, you yell out, 'Bubba (Jared)! Mommy! Daddy! Scorpion! and we will come kill him with our shoes on."

Will listens carefully and replies, "Oh."

So precious ... Jared was thinking about how to protect Will from danger.

Being the sweetheart that she is, Susan kept him all morning so Jared and I could sleep. Between her help and Will's afternoon nap, Jared slept straight from 9:30am to 2:30am, when I had to wake him to take him to the pediatricians for a follow-up.

All clear.

It wasn't until the evening, when Tim came home that I actually took a moment to process the seriousness of what we had been through. I think I cried all night thinking about it.

Unbelievable.

I am so grateful to God for how he saw us through it. He absolutely sent his angels before us ... reminding me to call ... sending us to the right hospital where Jared could receive immediate treatment ... even getting us there safely in my car.

At the pediatrician's, the NP admonished me. She said I should have called 911. "What would I have done if he had stopped breathing while we were in the car?" she asked.

Oh my goodness ... that is scenario I couldn't have even imagined.

I am so thankful. God is so good. Jared is back to 100% ... Praise the Lord for it all.

Later on in prayer, I asked the Lord why the scorpions had harmed us ... I have prayed his promises of Luke 10:19 so frequently. Almost immediately, I felt his response as I remembered that they had not.

"Behold, I have given you authority to tread on
serpents and scorpions,
and over all the power of the enemy,
and nothing will injure you."
Luke 10:19