However, around last year, he became picky with his food. Meat is something he doesn't like to eat unless it's buffalo chicken wings. He doesn't like rice unless it's drowning in sauce or soup. He loves pasta but only if it's prepared with cheese sauce or white sauce. Sandwiches are something he enjoys, too, and that's where we try to sneak in some meat. Eggs are okay but he prefers quail over chicken. Mealtimes are always tricky because we never know if he'll eat or not but, since he's stayed healthy, I've tried not to fret about it too much.
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Then last week, he caught a cold and had a slight cough and a stuffy nose. He became very irritable and restless at bedtime because he couldn't breathe properly despite the saline solution I would administer to his nose. So, I applied a bit of Vicks vapor rub to his chest which helped decongest his nose and allowed him to sleep. Problem was, after throwing up a few times whenever he coughed, his little brain came to the conclusion that the Vicks would keep him from vomiting and he began to ask us to apply it continuously. His cold resolved in less than a week but he still kept asking for the vapor rub because he was so scared of vomiting. It came to the point that he would refuse to eat anything and would make himself disgorge whatever he ingested including milk. He even did it every time I brushed his teeth. I'd ask him to open his mouth and he'd immediately gag and heave. I can't tell you how frustrated it made me.
Aside from that, I also worried because he quickly lost weight. The only thing that stopped me from bringing him to the doctor ASAP was because I knew it was all in his mind. Out of desperation, I decided to Google his behavior and prepared myself to either find nothing or to find something that would scare me even more. I was so relieved when the results showed so many forums on mother-and-baby sites with moms asking for help about the same problem. It was apparently a more common behavior among toddlers than I'd thought. I pored over as many threads as I could and was glad to know that it would eventually stop.
Yesterday, he started eating bread again and managed to drink milk three times. He ate and drank even more today and there was a lot less fuss when I brushed his teeth. He still asked for Vicks but I repeated that he didn't need it anymore. I'm hoping that he's finally getting past his vomiting drama and I can go back to worrying about what he eats instead.
Mood Music: No More Drama by Mary J. Blige