*****WARNING: if you don't do well with talk of blood and gore----skip this post*****
Having a boy that literally never stops---
Those of you that know him---know what I'm talking about.
He jumps, climbs, runs, jumps and spins ALL day long.
Really, ALL day long.
He often gets hurt--but RARELY cries (even when it seems like a pretty bad injury to me).
So, I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later.
January 25, 2010 (yesterday)...
Our boy decided to jump off the couch with a plastic baseball bat in his mouth.
The rest of our night included instacare---then Primary Children's Hospital.
Oh, and a very sad---very distraught---very defiant child.
The damage done to his mouth was actually horrible.
When he first jumped off the couch he just started yelling/screaming---
Freaked me right out since he NEVER cries.
Blood immediately started pooling in his mouth and going everywhere.
My husband saw the whole thing and knew that it was bad.
He kept saying he thought something happened to his tongue.
We started to look in his mouth to see the damage.
(He surprisingly let us look.)
The top of his tongue was fine.
We looked under his tongue and I about passed out!
It was completely ripped away from his mouth.
Not just the little thing that connects the tongue to the bottom was ripped---I'm talking a MAJOR injury!
Pretty much looked like a huge hole---like the end of the bat ripped a huge hole under his tongue.
I called the E.R.
Pushed my hubby out the door with our poor boy.
Then I called him and told him to go to instacare instead.
(Didn't really wanna pay a $75 dollar co-pay.)
Bad idea---seeing as how when he got there he wouldn't even open his mouth.
He instantly was saying he 'felt better' and 'wanted to go home'.
Then we were sent to the E.R. anyway.
During the time the boys were at the instacare I was having a panic attack back home---not knowing what was going on.
So, when the instacare referred them to Primary Children's---I told my husband to come home first so I could take him.
Luckily, the instacare is 1 minute away---so it wasn't too much of a waste of time.
(Baby girl was just going down for bed...or we would have all gone.)
During the car ride he finally started to settle a little.
The bleeding was slowing and he had to spit less often.
(We had to keep a towel handy to let him spit all the blood into it.)
I talked to him lots and we sang songs...
He said, "Mama, I'm happy..."
I cried (sweetest boy ever) I wasn't very happy (actually I was super, super sad) but I said, "I'm happy too bud."
And I really was happier after he said he was!
(What a sweet little guy... just gets his mouth torn way up---but recognizes that he feels happy talking with me. I LOVE HIM!)
We got to the hospital and he started freaking out again.
Didn't wanna go in---I had to hold him (all 38 # of him) the entire time.
He worked himself up so much.
He never stopped crying/screaming/kicking (the entire 2 hours we were there).
A nice lady came with toys and books and movies (in between doctors and nurses) and he wanted nothing to do with her.
He just kicked and screamed and said, "I'm all better now. I not want toys!"
Finally the doctor came in...
Luckily we didn't have to sedate him---although that was going to be our very next option.
We held him down long enough to look in his mouth.
The back of his throat where the 'hangy thing' is had 2 huge (about 3/4 inch) cuts on each side.
His teeth were fine.
His top lip a little cut up but not bad.
Then we looked at the tongue (I was so glad to be able to help hold him down cause I wanted to see).
Just like I saw when it happened---a HUGE tear---looks like a huge hole under his tongue.
Super red and fleshy looking---not to mention PAINFUL looking.
The doc said it, 'is quite damaged'-'a pretty large hole we're dealing with here'-'definitely lots of trauma'.
OK---'get to the point', I kept thinking.
(So rude of me to think that of a doc who is helping us but I was stressed to the max.)
He finally talked about options:
1: sew it up... higher risk of infection (if saliva is stagnate---(not free flowing) infection risk goes up.)
2: don't sew it up...slight decrease in risk of infection (kept saying, "But, it IS a big, big hole.")
I kept thinking.
OK, "So WHAT is going to be best? Sew it up or not!? Make up your mind please...."
He decided that stitches would probably bother him more and he'd play with them a lot AND the risk of infection was higher.
So, he decided to leave it.
Put him on an antibiotic.
Schedule a follow up in 2 days.
We left, the nice staff gave him a stuffed dog--that he named "Purdy" from 101 Dalmatians.
We came home and he watch 101 Dalmatians in his bed with Dada (using our portable DVD player) until 11:15pm.
(I ran to the 24 hour pharmacy...didn't get back 'til 11:00pm---that place is crazy busy late at night.)
He slept ok---got up at 8.
Didn't eat or drink a thing (freaked me out) for about 4 hours.
Then he ate---THANK goodness!
I think he's on the mend already.
I know this because he was jumping off the couch pretending to be He-man---
Telling me to RUN with him around the house (the T-rex was coming)---
Putting his guys on the window sill---so he could 'take pictures of them' (he has to balance on the edge of the couch to do this)---
All within the last hour.
He's pretty much back to the same old crazy boy he always was before this all happened.
And it has not even been 24 hours yet.
A blessing for sure!
I'm so grateful he's doing fine---
Scariest night of my life...
So happy it wasn't worse and makes me feel for parents who deal with SO much worse every day.
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In bed with 'Purdy"... (right after we got home)
Taking pictures of his guys... (this morning)
