Daughter Sarah, 23, called from up the street earlier this afternoon. She’d eaten lunch at noon in Old Greenwich and was showing all the signs of food poisoning. Her mom was gone but there’s a good reason I live two-doors down and up I went. But boy, try to get medical advice on a weekend. I called Greenwich Hospital and was put through to the Emergency Room but was told, on legal advice, they couldn’t offer any opinion over the phone. I don’t blame the hospital – they say the wrong thing, someone’s going to sue. I could have, and probably should have called my doctor Jeff Weinberger and disturbed his weekend but I didn’t. Sarah didn’t want to go to the hospital (she gets that from her parents – it took two days of me falling over and passing out before I went two weeks ago and five years ago, I finally persuaded Nancy to let me take her in just a couple of hours before her collapsed lung would have permanently stopped her heart).
But Sarah and I are both NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) grads and have both gone through bouts of bad water/bad food sickness. We talked it through and I finally made the executive decision, with her approval, that the main danger was dehydration and we could wait until tomorrow morning before heading to the hospital. Sarah knows I would carry her in my arms to that place, at any time, day or night, and she promised she’d call if she got worse.
In fact, she’s okay, and her mom is home now, so all is well, or at least under control and under Pal Nancy’s watchful eye. But it’s awful trying to make a non-trained medical decision about your child no matter how old she is. Obviously, I remain awake and alert and ready to take her to trained care if she needs it but I think all is okay. But it’s tough.
That’s my essay on parenthood for the night.
Relax, in future just bring her right up to the emergency room – why go through all the wrangling?
Been there done that. That’s what Corvina (?) is paid the mucha dinero for???
Now if she doesn’t have the insurance, that’s a different matter.
Although, on that topic I’ve been there with others I know had no coverage and again NO problemo ….
My attitude….when in doubt…emergency room…get it sorted..worry about dinero later…
Could have been Tom Ward’s son’s night off..
Send the bill to Tom Ward…just kidding
Best wishes to Sarah. For what it’s worth (ahem), I once used the “doc in a box” on the post road in riverside, in one of the strip centers on the other side of the road from (and before you get to) McDonald’s. They stitched up a wound which, in my view, didn’t warrant ER treatment, and did so effectively. Don’t know if they’re still there, but an option to keep in mind, especially for you eastern Greenwich types.
For the record, it was NOT the Beach House Cafe that brought this on. A little farther north. But Sarah is also lactose intolerant, so I don’t want to name a particular restaurant when it may have had nothing to do with the incident.
Oriental Gourmet? She probably wouldn’t have ingested lactose there.
I seem to recall that Applausi is closed for revovations?
Oriental Gourmet is my guess.
But then it’s been so hot lately. Maybe something got growing in one of the schmeers at the Upper Crust. Hmmm.
Anyway, I’m just glad to hear she’s OK.
Sadly my 18 yr old daughter was ill after a meal at Asiana. We have basically given up on chinese in this town. My father ended up in the hospital after orange beef at Hunan Gourmet. So we think it is the same cooks making the rounds. Italian, french, mexican or New York.
Twice I’ve had food poisoning; deep sympathies to Sarah! And, despite all the pain and agony, the real danger does seem to be dehydration. Ask me some time about my visit to the Kansas City ER room during a national bridge tournament after a night of battling FP. Ugh!
In any case – glad to hear she is doing better. She’s a fortunate girl to have such a doting papa.
Fortunately, Peg, she has two adoring parents – we just happen to live a couple of houses apart. But thanks for your good wishes – I think she’ll be fine by tomorrow. Oh to be 23 again!
Sarah is made of stainless steel….the good stuff, just like her Dad.
and, as someone who has earned every grey hair on her hoary head…I attest, it all came from parenting…
Well – with the exception of the dreaded food poisoning, sounds as if Sarah is a lucky young woman indeed. (And how nice for her that her folks, despite “living a few houses apart” seem to get along. Well done!)
But 23? No thanks; not for me. If I could “go back” – it would probably be to the mid 30′s to 40′s. Old enough to have developed a bit more wisdom and humility … and young enough to not have to face all that comes with really starting to get old!
My whole family has had a bout of sickness in the past fortnight. First it was our 8 year old daughter. We were convinced it was food poisoning. But, then all six of us came down with the same bug in the ensuing week and a half. 12/14 hrs. and it’s gone as quick as it arrived..
For the record, I have had very good treatment for myself and other family members at the Greenwich Hosp ER. Better than inpatient. The perils of jumping big horses are things like banged heads (ah that explains it) and broken arms. They can take a while but are very good. I have heard that the Stamford Hosp ER is excellent.
Chris – I have a newfound respect for you upon learning that you participated in NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School). As a multiple trip Outward Bound participant, I know from experience the limits these programs put you through, both physically and emotionally.
Best experience I ever had. I learned some leadership skills, but most important, how to be part of a team. The last five days, i walked out out of the mountains (40 miles? Who remembers these days?) with four other people, without food but with 50 lbs of climbing and camping gear on our backs, and I finally figured out, at age 20, that a sarcastic, put-down eastern “sense-of humor” destroyed the moral of the people around me. I’m still a sarcastic son of a bitch, but I’ve tried like hell since 1973 to be aware of that fault and not employ it when working with others. In fact, to the best of my ability, I’ve reserved that crap for politicians and myself. We both deserve it.
Duff, when I went down two weeks ago, I had a number of theories, but then brother Gideon told me he’d been laid up in bed for three days himself during the same period. Weird things just do seem to get around, don’t they?
Hi Chris – great to hear sarah feels better. Did you try webmd.com? It certainly does not repllace a doctor, but if you go to ‘diagnose me’ (or somehting like that) you upload your symptoms and it throws a pretty accurate diagnosis. At least to discard any major issue…
I have used Convenient Medical Care in Riverside many times. I LOVE Dr. Gabriel and wish he had a regular practice! And I have never been dissatisfied with any of the physicians there . . . several have been very attentive and helpful.
My sister recently went to CVS’s Minute Clinic (farther upstate in CT). I notice the one in Riverside has a Minute Clinic sign outside. (I have had some extremely negative experiences with the pharmacy there and have sworn never to return, but who knows.)
My sympathies and hope your daughter is feeling 100% better. Just had a kid return from an Outward Bound trip and apparently he was very dehydrated – immobilized by a headache and down almost 10 lbs. Had to take him to the ER up in Hanover NH where we were visiting family. However, after a 2 hr wait and no clear indication that we would be seen for the next several hours (new rotations due start in July), I made the executive decision to take him home for observation/ibuprofen/fluids. Thankfully, he recovered. Very alarming!
Riveres – thanks for your kind wishes. in fact, Sarah and her mom joined us for a steak cook out this evening and she eat heartily and seems just fine – If I didn’t poison her with my own cooking, she should be just swell. I’m sorry to hear about your own son – it’s funny – by the time I was 18, I felt fully capable of looking after myself but as a parent, well – I don’t think we ever get over being the protector of our children. Which is probably as it should be, so long as we let them make their own lives. Still, it’s odd how our perspective changes, depending on whether we’re the young adult growing up or the parent who spent decades doting on our beloved children. It’s all kind of interesting, eh?