On the 13th August, as we were getting ready for the trip to KL for the many
Malaysian Babywearers event lined up over the weekend, something shocking happened... my little Arthur had a fit due to high fever and was rushed to the ER of Hospital Seberang Jaya.
Briefly, the fever started the morning of the day itself and as what I'd normally do (as there was nothing else but just the fever), I'd given him Paracetamol to bring the temperature down. After giving him the medication twice, it was still no better. As we were already packed for KL the night before, DH and I have agreed that we will first bring him to the Paed before we start our trip. Just as we were leaving our place, my little one was throwing a tantrum and asking for the jossticks for prayers. He knelt beside DH who had just finished praying and was eyeing me rudely... when DH was ready to pass him the jossticks, he did not answer or move but his eyes were still eyeing me rudely... after a few attempts of calling him to get his prayers done and no response (we thought he's still acting angry and just being rude not responding), DH put the jossticks down and pick him up... only to find him vomiting and urinating (he was already toilet trained at 2), lips turning purplis, only showing the whites of his eyes.... with no response.
I don't know if there is any word that can explain that moment better than shock. It might last a few minutes but to me, it seemed like eternity. We (or, was it just me??) were so shocked and frightened of losing him that we kept calling his name out loud and shook gently... things you see from TV on reviving someone who's passed out and he came to. As I rushed down the steps, cradling my little one, I can still feel that tremendous fear like it is happening now... I kept talking to him and made sure I ask him lots of questions se he doesn't pass out again.
Is it H1N1? Is he going to suffer? Will he stay with us long enough before we can reach the hospital??? It is something you would not even want to wish on your worst enemy.
Later, we learned that he had what is called a fit and the Dr informed us that it is quite normal for children between 5months old to 6 years old to experience it. As 'normal' as it is, it can still result in brain damage and things that you might not want to imagine... So, my little Arthur was warded. After checks and blood samples, the Dr confirmed it's just a viral fever... The word 'viral' got me worried as it was playgroup day and he was out playing with his mates...
Two nights in the hospital and the fever still didn't seem to go away. I was advised to keep wiping him down with cold water etc. etc. but nothing really worked. The fever went away with medication but when it has worn out, it returned...
My Sis called and gave me a remedy to bring the temperature down - FAST. Later, I learned it is something my grandma used to use on her children and us... RAW EGG WHITES.
How it works?? Mom said my grandma used to just spread the egg whites over the forehead and chest as how you'd brush pastry with them... Sis improvised it and advised me to "soak some facial cotton in egg whites and leave them on Arthur's forehead and chest (i.e. where it is most hot)... you can see the cotton dry up slowly and the egg whites cooked". So, DH brought a couple of eggs and we tried it out... it worked... within MINUTES! While medication is still necessary to fight the virus, the egg whites sure brought the temperature and our worries down. I have tried Bye-Bye fever and that sort and it didn't work.
My father-in-law brought other 'remedies' but I was not sure if I wanted to feed Arthur those... Admittedly, I am quite sceptical with 'remedies' that goes in the mouth. So, the eggs whites is a good recommendation I'd follow as it does not require swallowing.
Who would have thought something cheap and readily available works MIRACULOUSLY. Arthur didn't like me wiping him so much and I didn't really feel like disturbing his sleep by wiping him so it is a really good remedy that WORKS! Even the Doctors were afraid of the sudden change and would not discharge us until the next routine check. I still remember the Dr saying... "he looks and acts so active but it's hard to discharge him cos he's had high fever for 2 days... let's wait til later in the evening".
Still unbelieving, I did a search on the WWW and well... not only we use this but lots of people (but me :( ) has been using this for a long time. Some would put the whites on the sole of one's feet, too. Reading on further, it seems like a good cure for burns, too...
One of the better ones I've got from searching (
http://www.myhomeremedies.com/topic.cgi?topicid=84)...
"I know of an exceptionally effective natural remedy for healing burns and lowering a fever: egg whites.
Egg whites are by far the best method to lower a high temperature within MINUTES! When I was about 4 or 5 years old, I had acquired a fever so high that I started to hallucinate. My mother was in a panic, she feared brain damage if something didn't lower the fever and FAST. My grandma told her to soak 2 cloths or hankerchiefs in egg whites and put on the soles of the feet (cover with socks). The egg whites instantaneously start to draw the temperature DOWN from the brain (where it is dangerous) to the feet (where it can do no damage). After that incident my mom used this method successfully every time I had high temp.
The egg whites are also a miracle cure for burns, even severe ones. Soak or coat affected area in egg white. While the egg white is still wet you will feel no pain from the burn. As soon as it dries up the pain comes back so reapplication is necessary. This method not only aleviates the pain it actually heals and prevents scarring from the burn.
I submited this remedy to earthclinic.com and there has been a lot of positive feed back:
http://www.earthclinic.com/CURES/fever.htmlI would like to let more people know about the miraculous effectiveness of treating fevers and burns with egg whites so please post this on your site if you deem fit.
Best regards, Ani from Ontario, Canada"
