I am NOT your Doctor.
You've seen these women on a variety of social media sites, public parenting sites, and forums. They are the ones who post on a group page (or their personal one) a graphic image of an awkwardly located rash on their child. They ask things like "Does anyone know what this is?", "Has anyone seen this before?” Or "I want to take her to the ER but I thought I'd check here first, see what you guys thought."
Why? Just why?
You know what I do if my daughter has had a persistent cough? I keep her home, because I’d hate for other children to catch it (that’s a whole other matter, we’ll touch on that subject on another occasion), then I schedule an appointment with her regular physician. You know, the one that has some knowledge of her medical history; The one who can make an educated guess on what ails her and give her adequate treatment.
You know what I don’t do?… Parade my sick kid on the internet. I mean seriously.
You've seen these women on a variety of social media sites, public parenting sites, and forums. They are the ones who post on a group page (or their personal one) a graphic image of an awkwardly located rash on their child. They ask things like "Does anyone know what this is?", "Has anyone seen this before?” Or "I want to take her to the ER but I thought I'd check here first, see what you guys thought."
Why? Just why?
You know what I do if my daughter has had a persistent cough? I keep her home, because I’d hate for other children to catch it (that’s a whole other matter, we’ll touch on that subject on another occasion), then I schedule an appointment with her regular physician. You know, the one that has some knowledge of her medical history; The one who can make an educated guess on what ails her and give her adequate treatment.
You know what I don’t do?… Parade my sick kid on the internet. I mean seriously.
Is it just me?
It can’t be just me. I don’t go to work, stumble on a challenge, then tweet to complete strangers on how to overcome it. I talk to my boss- who knows exactly what needs to be done- and we sort it out together. Wouldn’t it be much more sensitive when it involves our kids? Shouldn't it then be a private matter?
I think if your child has a fever of 102, vomiting and a weird rash; or a large birthmark that is forming a scab and bothering him or her, you should visit your doctor! I don't know about you but I don't have a doctorate. I don't know many people who are nurses, let alone doctors. I can point you in the direction of a dental tech but that's about it. Still, It doesn’t mean I’d take a photo of my child’s aching tooth and ask “Is this a cavity?” Uhm, NO. So WHY then do some women do this? You obviously know something is amiss; you’re inquiring about it on a public forum. Your gut instinct tells you that there's something wrong, why are you not at the ER!?
I've seen multitude of posts in a few groups where women do the same thing over and over. Are they competing? Is that what this is? Let's see who's child is sickest. Who's symptoms are the worst. I simply don't understand! Of course not all women are so desperate for attention or validation of some sort, that they resort to public demonstrations of an illness. Regardless, the number of those who do is still appalling.
Could it be that they're looking for some form of sympathy? Call me a cynic; I may very well be. In any case you have to admit you’ve seen it too. Even just a time or two. So do us all (and your children) a huge favor the next time your kiddo is ill and visit a doctor.
Then, you won’t have to deal with people like me, the highly offensive mom, telling you how absurd this all is. But also because, yes, it could be a common cold, it might also be nothing. On the other hand, it could be the current epidemic of enterovirus. No matter what, your child deserves proper care... And I am NOT a doctor.
original photo credit: Flickr
It can’t be just me. I don’t go to work, stumble on a challenge, then tweet to complete strangers on how to overcome it. I talk to my boss- who knows exactly what needs to be done- and we sort it out together. Wouldn’t it be much more sensitive when it involves our kids? Shouldn't it then be a private matter?
I think if your child has a fever of 102, vomiting and a weird rash; or a large birthmark that is forming a scab and bothering him or her, you should visit your doctor! I don't know about you but I don't have a doctorate. I don't know many people who are nurses, let alone doctors. I can point you in the direction of a dental tech but that's about it. Still, It doesn’t mean I’d take a photo of my child’s aching tooth and ask “Is this a cavity?” Uhm, NO. So WHY then do some women do this? You obviously know something is amiss; you’re inquiring about it on a public forum. Your gut instinct tells you that there's something wrong, why are you not at the ER!?
I've seen multitude of posts in a few groups where women do the same thing over and over. Are they competing? Is that what this is? Let's see who's child is sickest. Who's symptoms are the worst. I simply don't understand! Of course not all women are so desperate for attention or validation of some sort, that they resort to public demonstrations of an illness. Regardless, the number of those who do is still appalling.
Could it be that they're looking for some form of sympathy? Call me a cynic; I may very well be. In any case you have to admit you’ve seen it too. Even just a time or two. So do us all (and your children) a huge favor the next time your kiddo is ill and visit a doctor.
Then, you won’t have to deal with people like me, the highly offensive mom, telling you how absurd this all is. But also because, yes, it could be a common cold, it might also be nothing. On the other hand, it could be the current epidemic of enterovirus. No matter what, your child deserves proper care... And I am NOT a doctor.
original photo credit: Flickr
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