OK, so my body is failing me, and my spinal cord is swollen. The anti-inflammatories are not working and the doc has ordered me not to lift anything over 20 lbs and we start steroids next week to try to alleviate the swelling and hopefully help with the pressure. This is all fine and good in theory except....

I have a 4 yr old who likes to swing from me like a monkey. I made the mistake of trying to carry her out to the car the other day (she was half asleep) when my legs decided to stop working and I almost dropped the poor kid. She doesn't get that I can't really pick her up any more and the hop on mom game just isn't as much fun as it used to be.

So now I am to the point that I have to tell her why because her feelings are hurt that I won't play with her like I used to. I don't want to tell her that I am sick, because really, I'm not sick I'm just in excruciating pain. And she is a very sensitive child who at 4 yrs old does not need to know every detail, but I am not sure what to tell her right now.

I know there are a lot of parents on here so any advice would be welcome.