Austin's Symptoms: A Case Study

Imagine your child becoming seriously ill. You have no clue what’s causing his symptoms: hacking cough, red rash on his chest, a fever, and swollen lymph nodes. Four months later you find out the devastating news. I’ll never forget that day, Wednesday, July 10, 2013, one of the most frightening days of my life. Austin, my youngest son, at the age of 13, began to develop a hacking cough in March of 2013. Normally he was a physically healthy young man. So, to find out the cause we went to the doctor. Austin’s pediatrician diagnosed him with bronchitis, put him on antibiotics and sent us on our way. Two weeks later Austin was tested for allergies and asthma and prescribed inhalers and Singulair. After a long, two months of trying the prescribed treatment and numerous, unnerving, useless doctor’s appointments, we still …show more content…
Austin’s fever would go down and then suddenly spike back up. The horrid looking red blotchy rash would start to dissipate, then return. Why, if it was some infection, why were the antibiotics not keeping it away? We were playing the waiting game for blood test results to return with possible answers. On July 7th Austin’s lymph node on the left side of his neck was very, very swollen. A biopsy was ordered. My emotions did not compare to the sadness and fear I knew my son was feeling. His tired, sore body not wanting anymore tests done and doctors poking. How I wished we were outside enjoying the warm Summer days instead of cooped up in a sterile, depressing hospital room. Finally, on July 10th, we were told the biopsy results were back. My ex-husband and I were told that a doctor would talk to Austin while we went into a different room to talk to a different doctor. When we were told to do this, I knew something was terribly wrong. Why couldn’t they just tell us all together? I sat down on a soft, cushioned couch across from the doctor. The news I had been anticipating, quite frankly, for months, was now about to