he's among the 1-2 % of kids with head injuries, who actually have a skull fracture. it happened when jude tumbled off his changing table while Kara turned to grab a shirt for him.
Jude stopped crying in like 3 minutes and acted normally, other than a little sensitivity on his right side. Kara thought at the time that jude landed more on his back and butt than his head. The doctor-on-call had Kara wake him up two hours after bedtime to check for signs of neurological problems (vomiting, unable to rouse him, pupils uneven). Jude showed none.
Baby 411--- which is an amazing book if you don't have one--- has a section on head injuries. The authors added 'extreme fussiness' to the signs jude's doctor said to watch for. apparently it can be a sign of a headache baby can't tell you about. This was important for kara to know later on.
Day 1 after the fall-- the back right side of Jude's head had a definite bump and swelling. The nurse Kara called at the pediatrician's office said they would expect a bump in that type of fall and to continue to monitor for any neurological symptoms.
Day 2 after the fall-- Jude was Mr. Whiny. Kara even snapped a picture on her cellphone and texted it to Greg to show him how jude was doing.
unhappy boy
For the first few hours jude was awake, Kara hesitated about whether to call the doctor. You don't want to be one of those mothers who assumes every woe with little johnny is a huge deal. But Jude just didn't seem like himself. Kara thought it was either a recent ear infection reoccurring, teething, or maybe he was sore from the fall.
Greg, aka Super Dad, came home and took jude to the doctor's appointment so kara could get ready for work. but kara sent the poor man with a full sheet of information: medicines jude takes, his symptoms of last several days, history of phone calls.
Doctor noticed a boggy spot- apparently that is an official medical term- on back right side of jude's noggin. she thought it was probably fine, but ordered a head x-ray.
our little guy has a small fracture in his right parietal bone! that afternoon and evening we spent 5 hours at the children's hospital ER so jude could see a neurologist and get a ct scan. we are glad to report he has no internal bleeding and no internal damage.
this has been a scary and stressful ordeal. as jude's mom i've just felt horrible about the whole thing. I actually went into the nursery later to just stare at the spot where he hit the floor, to just cry and pray. the guilt is overwhelming when you believe you could have prevented your child's injury. but i know god's grace is also overwhelming...and true. jesus offers me forgiveness, not because i deserve it, but because he loves me way more than i can imagine. and its a time like this when i really need a reminder of that.
Oh you guys....I feel for you. The first time Will was hurt was when he and I were playing on the bed. (like every parent does with a 18 month old). I remember saying to Greg, becareful....well Will and I were being careful but he arched his back, slipped and right off into the side if the bed side table. Split his head open...what a scarry sight! Off the the hospital and three staples later. I felt awful....just awful...I feel that pain and when I read what you went through I feel it all over. There is nothing that can explain that hurt when the one you love the most is hurt. The good news in all of this.......he will never remember....I know that seems silly but it is true and someday you can tell him the story and he will say....."Geesh Mom Thanks...:)" This too shall pass but if you are like me you won't believe this for a while.
ReplyDeleteDon't beat yourself up too much...You are a great mom and accidents happen....part of life....it is ok. :)
Thinking about you.
Glad to hear Jude's okay. I'm sure it was a scary experience for you.
ReplyDeleteIf it's any consolation, you've now joined the not-so-elite 99.9% of parents whose kids have gotten hurt on their watch. When Andrew was 6 m.o., he rolled off the bed while I was trying to take a picture of him. A couple of months later, he fell off a tall jungle gym. In the past 6 months, William has tumbled down the stairs three times when the gate at the bottom of the stairs was left open. So, please go easy on yourself!