I always told Brian that any time one of our kids had an injury involving lots of blood I'd have to call him to come deal with it. I held out hope that I was wrong, that if such a crisis arose I would pull myself together and deal with it. NOPE. When I realized how much blood there was today the FIRST thing I did was call Brian. (Okay, right after I stuck a clean washcloth on it.) Then I sat on the floor with the washcloth pressed against the wound and tried not to pass out. I couldn't even look at it. In fact, I had leave the room at the pediatrician after all the talk about his finger, and how the tip was GONE. And then I almost passed out in the hallway on the way out. (Yes, for real. I tend to get a little lightheaded.)
I feel horrible about it all. I mean, I know there's nothing I could have done. It's not like he fell down stairs I left un-gated, or cut himself on scissors I left within reach. You pretty much can't avoid having doors in the house. And, as many times as I've lectured her, apparently I can't avoid Kalena slamming them. But still, I feel AWFUL. Seriously awful. And not just about the finger either (which, by the way, the doctor assured us will pretty much grow back. No, they didn't reattach the tip, even though Brian found it and brought it.) but about how I couldn't deal with it. Brian missed 4 hours of work because I can't handle blood. He's the one that looked at how bad it was, he found the finger tip and wrapped it up properly, he held Will while various doctors and nurses checked him out. I sat with Kalena in the waiting room, and then sat at home while she napped and Brian moved on to another doctor. I felt completely useless.
In short, it sucked. Now we have a prescription for antibiotics, a prescription for tylenol with codeine and this pathetically bandaged little guy.
Nothing like a finger getting chopped off to make me feel good about my parenting abilities.
OH.MY.GOSH.
ReplyDeleteI almost passed out just reading that.
First of all, you're not a bad mom in any way. There's nothing you could've done.
Second, I have also often wondered what I would do in a bad situation.. Could I handle it? Would I know the right steps to take under pressure? If there's lots of bleeding do you strap them in their car seat or call an ambulance? I think you did the right thing. I hope both your kids are ok. :(
Will looks pretty happy for having his finger cut off! )Which, by the way, yikes!)
ReplyDeleteThis does not make you a bad parent. This is why having kids with a husband is a good idea. So you have a partner to help during the difficult moments, right? And for what it's worth, I'll bet Brian really bad at breastfeeding.
YIKES! If it makes you feel any better, when Chase had his first "major" injury (he busted his chin open on the bleachers when I tugged on his pull up a bit too quickly after swimming lessons - totally my fault - it was awful) I was a mess. I thought I was going to pass out and I could barely help Chase. I felt like such a loser. But life moves on, more injuries happen and eventually we gain stronger constitutions as mothers. You are a great mom and it's good for us to let our husbands feel truly needed in these kind of situations. Think of it as boosting his manly ego. ;-) Way to be a stellar wife! xoxo
ReplyDeleteI know exactly how you feel. When Cailin was 2ish she cut her finger off below the nail in a church bathroom door when it shut. She had to have it sewn back on. I felt terrible about it, especially since I was with her when it happened. I went to the ER with her, and I too almost passed out from the amount of blood (David cannot handle blood so he dropped us off at the ER and took the other kids home).
ReplyDeleteSo sorry about poor little Will. If it helps, Cailin's finger grew back great, nail and all, and you can hardly tell she ever had a problem. I hope Will heals just as well.
I agree, this is why having a great husband is key! Mine is great, but our roles would be reversed! He would pass out and i would cope with it... I hope I never have to though :/ You did a good job, it isn't like you left him stuck in the door while you freaked out!
ReplyDeleteOf course Will doesn't have his bear when he gets his finger cut off! Two things that never happen, combining forces to make life miserable. The codein looks like it's kicked in pretty well. Funny (not funny haha), this happened to my friend Andrea's youngest not even 2 months ago! Older sibling slammed it and everything. And you're not a bad mom, someone had to take care of Kalena, and you couldn't have done that very well while passed out on the floor. You did what you had to do. Poor Will! Poor you! Hope everyone feels better soon!
ReplyDeleteOuch! Poor little guy! I usually call Bob with all blood injuries...I don't like blood either!
ReplyDeleteI have had two trips to the ER with my kids and I have consistently proven to be a crying mess...one nurse said "Mom, you need to pull it together." That was embarrassing. My husband also had to skip work and go with me so you are not alone! Hopefully you won't have to go through that again!
ReplyDeleteWow!!! I hate stuff like that. :)
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