Last Friday, Christian fell down the stairs while he was playing. He said that he missed the step, rolled down the stairs, and tried to catch himself at the bottom.
That is when the screaming started.
He immediately started gasping, "I broke my am! I broke my arm!" I calmed him down, looked at his arm, and told him that I thought it was just fine. I gave him a drink and let him watch cartoons for a little while.
That is when the screaming started.
He immediately started gasping, "I broke my am! I broke my arm!" I calmed him down, looked at his arm, and told him that I thought it was just fine. I gave him a drink and let him watch cartoons for a little while.
He kept saying, "Mom, now I can't clean up my toys." This was rather convenient since I told him he couldn't have his after-school snack until the toys were cleaned up.
3 hours later, he was still crying intermittently and not moving his hurt arm. Jonathon thought we should probably take him in to the doctor. I was still skeptical because his arm was still not swollen and looked fine. He also kept talking about not being able to clean up until his arm was better. It all seemed a bit fishy to me. I am notorious for being overly concerned about injuries, so this was highly unusual for me.
Luckily, Jonathon took control of the situation and took him to the urgent care. I got a call about 45 minutes later that the arm was indeed broken. He has a hairline fracture of the humerus near the elbow. He handled it all really well and didn't complain much about the pain after the first few hours.
I might not have realized it was broken at first, but the next day there was no doubt. That little boy's elbow was as big as mine because it was so swollen. In fact, at his appointment to get a cast on Monday, it was still too swollen to cast it. The Doctor said it would probably take another week before it would be able to be cast. So until then, he is wearing a splint and trying to be careful.
I might not have realized it was broken at first, but the next day there was no doubt. That little boy's elbow was as big as mine because it was so swollen. In fact, at his appointment to get a cast on Monday, it was still too swollen to cast it. The Doctor said it would probably take another week before it would be able to be cast. So until then, he is wearing a splint and trying to be careful.
Christian has really had a good attitude about everything so far. He told me today that kids at school were calling him "Broken Arm Boy." Worried about his feelings, I asked him if he was okay. He said, "Mom, it's fine. I do have a broken arm."
I have always known that broken bones were probable with two little boys. I just figured it would be the wild and crazy boy (Andrew), not the reserved and calm one (Christian) to have one. As far as broken bones go, this experience hasn't been too bad.
My fingers are crossed that we won't have another one for a long, long time!
2 comments:
Not to take away from his pain, but that pic of him sitting so serenely on the steps with his little sling totally cracked me up. Good old Christian. I love that he calmly informed you he really DID break his arm. We shall have to get together soon...we miss you guys!
Kathryn says: Same thing happened with Ambyr's wrist. She fell on it at the playground and it looked fine, no swelling or anything. But she kept complaining about using it. Luckily her fracture was so minimal that she only needed a brace and we could take it off for baths and such. I was really happy about that because casts are stinky and gross. Good luck! :)
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