The case of the MONSTER ear infection

Once upon a time, in a land that happens to be in the deep south, there lived a little baby boy named Camden. Camden was no ordinary little baby boy, he was chunky legged, and bright blue eyed, and he stole the heart of anyone he met.....

No seriously...Camden has yet ANOTHER ear infection. Well I say it's another ear infection, but here is the real LOWDOWN!...Ok from what the Dr. said Camden got his first ear infection at about 4 months old. It was a double ear infection which with an oral antibiotic cleared up on the left but not the right. Two weeks later we were BACK at the Dr. getting a stronger antibiotic that cleared the right up. About a month later an infection was built up in the right again which didn't respond well to the antibiotic they gave me, so again I had to go to a stronger one which cleared it up. Then came the third ear infection in the right ear right which took THREE rounds of antibiotics to clear up. Now, we have this ear infection which the Dr's are NOW assuming is the same ear infection he has had for over a month now which is NOT responding at all to antibiotics, again its in the RIGHT ear. I guess the reason I said he has had 8 ear infections is because technically he has, but some of them are just the SAME old infection that is terribly stubborn and won't go away.

My regular Ped. Dr. wasn't there, so I will see him next Friday when they recheck Cam's ear. The Dr. I did see was VERY helpful though and said that basically Camden's ear doesn't seem to respond well to antibiotics and if this continues he could have some temporary hearing problems(he said don't be alarmed they aren't permanent). He said babies that constantly have ear infections tend to hear things muffled and can have speech delays, but he said hopefully we won't even get to that with Camden. His(this Dr.'s son) got many ear infections, and he said he put off tubes until his son was 18 months old, So I think the man definantly KNOWS his ear problems. If Camden's ear doesn't' respond to this antibiotic he is on now(which is the strongest they can give him) then he will have to get some sort of shot, which I don't know the details of yet...and of course they are already talking tubes!

I am really having an issue with the tube thing, and I am not sure I am comfortable with it at all. I know plenty of babies get them, but the fact that Camden would have to be put to sleep freaks me out. I want to do whats best for him, and knowing he is in pain and uncomfortable is not fair, but at the same time is tubes really the answer.In the end I am going to do what I think is best for Camden because that is who this will be effecting, not me! I guess I will cross that bridge when it comes..but for now I am just going to pray this antibiotic works and that this MONSTER of an ear infection will go away and leave my sweet baby alone!