I should’ve been more on my toes the day after I went ranting on Huffington Post Live about how so many parents go overboard babyproofing their house. (Sorry, some do. Safety Mom would definitely give me a schooling, God Bless that woman!) But I should’ve curbed the “I watch my kids like a hawk” attitude a bit, because the UNfabulous accident that happened the next day shook me for a loop.
Don't worry: picture taken WAAAY after I figured LadyP was ok.
It was lunchtime. And literally within 4 seconds – I KID YOU NOT, as I bent down to wipe drool hanging from LilMiss’ chin – LadyP managed to fall backwards to the floor while belted in her booster chair at our kitchen table. I didn’t see it (because I was bending down wiping drool), but I’m pretty sure she smacked the back of her head against our wall on the way down. She cried. I cried. She was freaked out. I was freaked out. She wailed “ice!” I wished and wished I could rewind to 5 seconds earlier.
There was no bleeding, no bump, no apparent damage and no indications about how the hell it happened so fast when I was literally about ONE FOOT away from her and she was being such a good girl just eating her lunch. As much as my mind was racing with worst-case possibilities and as big as the pit in my stomach was, I stayed relatively calm (afterall, I’d been through something similar to this before). And all I kept thinking was how Rhiana Maidenberg of Married With Toddler told me (on Huff Post Live) how both of her kids have fallen down the stairs and that they’re ok. Ok. Then we’re ok. I held it together. But the vision of my daughter hitting the back of her head on our wall on her way down (that I didn’t see, despite being ONE FOOT away from her!) burned in my head.
Lucky for me, my pediatric surgeon aka expert-in-child-trauma husband came home about 20 minutes later. I told him the story.
“Did she pass out?” he asked. No. “Is she bleeding?” No. “Is she walking normally?” Yes. “Is she playing normally?” (I looked at her singing songs with her princess castle.) Yes.
My new safety precaution: Using the tray on the booster instead of scooting her up to our kitchen table.
“She’s fine.”
“But what if she has a concussion? Bleeding in the brain?” I told him again that I was pretty sure she smacked her head against our wall. Maybe he didn’t hear me when he was changing his shoes.
“She doesn’t have a concussion,” he repeated.
“How do you know?”
He looked at me… now annoyed.
“Because I know. Just watch her and make sure she acts normal.”
Normal?!? I don’t even know what that is anymore. She’s 2. She does random stuff all the time. There is no normal. ?!?!?
So I watched her. I followed her. I kept asking her if anything hurt. (She pointed to her head and said it hurt, but my husband countered that with “Of course her head is going to hurt… she probably hit it.”) And even though LadyP is only 2, I could tell she even started getting annoyed with me and my constant questioning. BUT I’M A MOM. I’M ENTITLED.
3 days later now and we’re still walking, talking, playing and our head is still on our body. So that’s good, right? We were lucky. And I am THANKFUL. Along with my gratefulness, I’m interpreting this big UNfabulous fall as a FABULOUS reminder that things can change in a heartbeat. A HEARTBEAT. Reminder: Watch your kids. Reminder: Do your job as a parent. Reminder: Do it well. It’s hard, busy, and sometimes impossible to do everything all at once (especially with a few kids at home). Although they are preventable, accidents can and will still happen. But if there’s no blood involved and no lost consciousness, it can be tricky (not to mention, soul-wrenching) to know if your kid is ok for sure. Here are a few things to watch for – straight from my Hubby – for when no-blood/no-lost-consciousness accidents happen:
Does the kid calm down and return to normal activity within 10 minutes (playing, talking)? Is the kid standing/walking straight? Can the kid wiggle all parts of their body without crying in pain? Are their eyes dilated equally and normally? (One pupil dilated larger than the other can indicate a severe trauma.)
I know, this is all common sense that you can Google. But Hubby did about 12 years of medical school, residency and fellowships so I’ll take his word for it.
And if you just feel unsettled…. CALL YOUR DOC.
HAVE YOU HAD ANY CLOSE CALLS?
Disclaimer: TheFabMom does not strive to offer medical advice of any kind. Any and all content in this particular post – as well as within the entire site as a whole – is meant solely for storytelling, sharing and/or entertainment purposes only.
My oldest fell (now almost 6) off of the bed when she was 9 months. Onto a hardwood floor. Still have no idea if she fell on her back or front. Took her to the doctor and he assured me she was fine. At around at 2 1/2 she kept pushing her feet on the underside of the dining room table and WAM! she feel back …attached to the booster seat in the chair and hit the floor. The hard ! dining room floor. I still have no idea if she hit her head. Her head was against the floor but sometimes reflexes make you jerk your head forward. I was so upset just like you. Now I have a 3 year old who literally needs a mouth guard to keep from chipping teeth and a 9 month old boy who is observing it all. Pray for me :). I watch them like hawks but there have been moments when I am inches away and I can’t stop them from getting hurt. I’m glad you shared this story. Makes me feel like it’s completely normally to be a little on edge about these things.
Jessie