Ever since Iliya had his bout with pneumonia, I have been extra sensitive about his breathing - what it sounds like, if it is labored, if it is fast or slow, if there is any wheezing involved. So far so good, until yesterday.

He's been a bit congested lately, and has had a little cough. Nothing too big, though, till I realized yesterday afternoon that his breathing sounded funny. There wasn't a wheeze to it, but it definitely sounded similar to the way it sounded right before he got sick a few weeks ago.

Imagine my dread when the phone rang this afternoon, and Iliya's teacher was on the other end, telling me that they were outside, and that he was wheezing a bit.

He wasn't running a fever, so I decided to wait and let him stay at school. And then I changed my mind, because - as a co-worker mentioned to me - it probably wouldn't be a good idea to mess around with his lungs & let him get sick again.

Fortunately, we have a faculty/staff walk-in clinic right across the road - so I decided to take him there instead of trying to get an appointment with his pediatrician at such a late hour in the day. It would be a one-stop-shop, if he were to need a chest x-ray.

We walked in and he was seen almost immediately by the CRNP. She listened to his lungs and said she couldn't hear very well, because of the "junk" in his nose and sinuses. She wanted to do an irrigation & aspiration to clear out some of the congestion so she could hear better. By the time her assistant was back with the saline & aspirator (this was within a half-hour of being inside), Iliya's congestion was almost gone...and his breathing got much better. Fortunately, the irrigation & aspiration could wait till another time - she could hear his lungs & said they sounded fine.

As a side note, this was the first doctor's visit -in almost 8 months - that did not involve a meltdown. I was amazed! The CRNP was very good with him, and I just sat there, afraid to comment on how well Iliya was doing (there was no wood in sight to knock on!). Honestly, I was really thankful that we didn't have to do the irrigation/aspiration - because I'm quite sure that being held down and having saline shot up his nose, and then sucked back out, would not have made the best impression for him. I'm not really holding out too much hope, but I am hoping that today's experience will be a step in the right direction of not fearing the doctor's office.

Anyway, we came to the conclusion that my little guy probably suffers from seasonal allergies. We are right in the middle of pollen season - and since this is Iliya's first Alabama spring, that very well could be the reason he has had so much trouble lately. So we made it through winter with flying colors, but spring may, very well, end up being Iliya's least favorite season!

And my co-pay was $20...to learn nothing...but to have a peace of mind. It was worth every dime.