My daughter was riding on her Razor Scooter down a big hill when she took a very bad spill. A neighbor carried her to the house, and when I came downstairs (because of the crying), she was a bloody mess (literally).
I hate when my kids stub their toes let alone are bleeding in multiple places! When my kids are injured, I go in an extreme panic mode and always want to fly off to the hospital. I’m not quite as bad as I was when my son was a toddler, but it’s still there to some degree.
Luckily, my wife is a little more calm than I am (although she said she felt sick to her stomach too, seeing my daughter so badly hurt). My daughter had very bad scrapes from hitting the concrete with her knees (her left one looked more like half of a red ball replaced her knee… it was so bad), elbow, fingers, lip and forehead.
Her left front tooth socket was even bleeding! I got a flashlight and checked to make sure her jaw and gums weren’t damaged, then relaxed a bit more once I determined it wasn’t that bad. I then check her knee and elbow, the elbow was fine, and she was able to walk, so we chalked it up to just bad scraps.
So the problem in these scenarios is that we shouldn’t overreact! Even though your child may be screaming bloody murder, they might be better than they appear and sound!
Just a quick check on your injured child could save you from an expensive hospital visit. I have a friends wife who runs the kids to the emergency room even for colds with a moderately high fever. This is why health insurance is so high!
-MR
I agree, it is so scary when you see blood.
I actually had the opposite happen to me. My son was sledding in the backyard and someone knocked him over. He had braces at the time and he stumbled up the hill to our house. There was blood all over his face because his lip smashed into the braces. I focused on all the blood and thought he was ok once I cleaned up his face. However, he then started talking and it was obvious his mental status was off. He kept repeating the same thing, and it was obvious he had a concussion. I then did run to the ER when I didn’t plan to when I first saw the injury!
Sometimes it can just be so hard to know what to do. Blood is a horrible thing to see on your child for sure!
I am glad your daughter is ok.
@Everyday Tips
Wow, that would be incredible scary! If my kids would keep repeating themselves after an injury, I would have flipped out.
I’m sure my wife thinks I’m a nut for examining the kids as closely as I do… For this accident, I got a flashlight and used it to examine the inside of my daughter’s mouth and lips. I was afraid she might have split her jaw or something. It took me over 1/2 an hour before I felt comfortable enough to go do something else. My wife comforted daughter by holding her while they watch “Funniest Home Videos”.
@Bucksome Boomer
Ironically, I have a small (hard to see) scar under my chin too, so that hit at home 🙂
In my family, I’m the one that goes overboard with the examination after an accident. My wife usually is cooler headed one about it. But I know better 😉 It’s better to error on the cautious side, then to let it go and something horrible happen later…
I’m mixed…I remember examining my little sisters really close when they were hurt, but on the assumption that they were fine and I was just doing my due diligence. Luckily, they were overall fine the times I checked. I also remember bringing out a flashlight a couple of times to check the mouth…it just seems necessary after a fall…
My immediately younger sister was in a major sledding accident a year after I moved out and was in a back brace for almost a year. To this day she has to do special exercises so her back doesn’t hurt all the time (she had 3 majorly compacted discs).
So I understand when parents freak out about kids when they’re hurt. My parents felt helpless…
I’m glad to hear she wasn;t hurt too badly. Just a couple months ago my 4 year old was playing in her grandmother’s driveway when she fell and smashed her mouth on the pavement.
Two of her baby teeth were bent back and had to be removed, and she had an awful cut on her gums. She’s all good now (and she can still whistle which she’s happy about!) but even with insurance it cost me almost $600. ouch.
oh my gosh, i totally remember being like 5 and riding my skateboard down a huge hill and absolutely wiping out. my parents didn’t take me to the hospital either but man oh man i will never forget that fall.
@Budgeting in the Fun Stuff
Back injuries are weird! Sometimes they don’t start hurting bad until the next day…
Sorry to hear that about your sister! Back injurys are a tough one!
@Saving Money Today
It’s amazing how expensive medical bills are anymore! They must have taken xrays?…
Glad to hear she was okay, your daughter’s accident sounded much worse than my daughters!
@James
Yep, that’s every parent’s nightmare! I remember bike riding and a younger friend had an accident. His chin looked horrible, and I think he lost a tooth.
I know they took him to the hospital for it, I’m sure it cost a pretty penny.
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Glad she’s OK mate! Only been to the ER once, and it was when my ankle got crushed, and it was the weekend.
Stay safe!
@Financial Samurai
Thanks Sam! It’s really rough seeing your kids get hurt, especially bleeding…
Personally, I’ve been to the ER at least three times, mostly from broken bones.
my folks never took me to emergency room or a doctor. once when i was in grade school, my older brother broke my finger and it was twisted everywhere. it was CLEARLY broken. no doctor, no hospital, until one of my teachers saw how badly bent my finger was and sent me to nurses office. they called my parents and told them i need to go see a doctor. LOL, after over 1 week of being broken, i finally received a cast on my hand.
@Money Green Life
There was a girl that fell off a swing in my neighborhood and she hurt her wrist but didn’t make much of a fuss. After a week of complaining, and it still being swelled up, they finally took her in and it turned out that she broke both wrist when she fell.
I think they didn’t think it was a big deal because the girl didn’t cry and her wrist still moved.
Yours sounds like it was a bit more obvious. I’m glad to hear your parents finally got it fix! I couldn’t imagine the pain that you had to go through!!!
I’m glad that she was not hurt badly. I have an almost three year old and it is my biggest fear.
@Share and Find Refer Rewards
When my kids were young (close to toddler age), I was constantly talking risk management talk about them… They didn’t have the motor skills to really avoid even the simplest of accidents.
But now that they are both over 6, I’m not as worried overall. My son is fairly agile and quick when he want to be. My daughter isn’t so much, but she’s clever and cautious. I’m surprised that she even had this accident…