My youngest son got the flu. He had no appetite one day, and a mild cough the next day. Day 3, a high fever in the morning. I called the pediatrician, but the doctor was unavailable. So off to urgent care we went.

It turned out to be a good idea. The last time my youngest, who has adhd and sensory issues, needed a swab test, two nurses had to hold him down to get the swab.

At urgent care (Jefferson Express) they had him in a seated position. The nurse didn’t make a production of it. She just walked over, stuck the swab in his nose. He fussed a little, but by then she had already swabbed the second nostril. Perfect!

I still wasn’t expecting a flu diagnosis. He had his flu shot. So did I. But when the swab was positive for Influenza B, the doctor explained they had been seeing a lot of it.

It seems the flu shot was not effective again this flu this year. Because he was on the third day of symptoms, he could not get Tamiflu.

He missed 4.5 days of school. We went back the following Monday, and we’re given prescription cough medicine and an antibiotic.

Oops, I forgot to tell the urgent care doctor about my son’s pill aversion. So the next day, his pediatrician prescribed liquid for him. The pharmacist actually asked about it, so I explained his pill aversion.

Several days later, he was back to school. I was happy he hadn’t missed much school. I was also glad his older brother was home for some of the time that I was at work.

It’s funny that both my boys are neurodivergent, but with differences. When my older son was 4, his over the counter meds changed formula. I had to pay over $200 for prescription liquid. So I offered him a trip to Build a Bear in exchanged for trying to swallow a tiny otc pill.

He managed it.

Sixty dollars at Build a Bear was better than another $220.

His younger brother cannot be bribed. His sensory issues overwhelm bribery.

Bummer.

t least the antibiotics were cheap.

I was also glad it was flu B and not A. Flu A is more severe, and that one seems to be south of us this year.