Dehyration

If nothing else just call his doc and tell them about the situation. Since he has a fever it might be something else. It's good that he still has wet diapers and tears. When they are young like that and get the stomach flu it's definitely harder on their systems and takes them a little longer to recover.

Just went through this with my daughter and, believe me, it's pretty obvious when they're dangerously dehydrated. My girl was completely listless, just a little ragdoll in my arms...which was VERY unusual for any 3 year old. Her eyes were sunken, her face was completely pale and so were her lips. Her mouth was terribly dry, and her teeth had a nasty coat on them that saliva normally takes care of. She had been throwing up non-stop for 36 hours by the time we got to the pediatrician's office, and the doc almost sent her right to the ER. She decided to try anti-nausea medicine first and see if I was able to keep fluids down her at home. Fortunately it worked and she was greatly improved in just a few hours, though she was still VERY sleepy for quite a long time.

So all of this to say that, while mild dehydration might be harder to diagnose (and we probably all suffer from it to some degree), you should definitely be able to tell when it gets bad. I think my biggest mistake was letting her sleep for a six hour stretch at night without pushing fluids (at the time, I thought sleep was more important for her). So just keep an eye on your little man. I'd say it's normal to be sluggish for a while after something so nasty. Taking him into the doc at this point will probably only expose him to more germs, but if you're still worried, giving them a call couldn't hurt.

Keep the fluids going in. They can get dehydrated quicker than you think. You may want to take you son in just to get checked out. But, either way, really push the water, gatorade, pedialyte, fruits with a lot of water content. Hope he's back to feeling like himself soon.

With a recent illness of ours, my doc said to check for capillary refill, as it is a better indicator of dehydration in little ones. She said that if you press on your baby's arm (gently) with your finger for a few seconds, you'll see that a white fingerprint remains when you lift your finger. Immediately start counting. If it takes longer than 4-5 seconds for the skin to return to normal color, your little one is dehydrated. Take him straight to the ER for IV fluids, as the doc's office can do nothing for you.

There were some really weird illnesses going around this year. We had one where my kids seemed back to normal, then got sick all over again 36 hours later. Be careful to watch for if his fever spikes, as he may have a secondary infection, such as an ear infection. I have heard of kids getting ear infections when they have had a stomach virus. A low grade fever (less than 100) could just be his body's way of continuing to fight the illness. I hope he gets better soon!

I read somewhere that white grape juice is supposed to be really good for dehydration, but I don't remember if the source was credible or not. Maybe you could google it. Hope your little one recovers soon!

K.

Definately dehydrated. When my child was sick and drank pedialyte she would soak her diapers to where it would pour out of her diaper....and no, I did not leave her in it for a while...I'm talkin 30 min- 1 hrs time.

Give your baby some water and more pedialyte.