There was nothing to break her fall; she fell headfirst and it was a loud and hard hit. Her pupils weren't dilating like they should, so even though she didn't loose consciousness and wasn't throwing up I decided to take her to the E.R.
Because of the treasure hunt date she hadn't taken her usual afternoon nap. Thus, after she had screamed for a few minutes, she fell asleep, which was alarming. Once I arrived at the E.R. I was dismayed to find it packed. Ash was out in the car with Drek so I had hoped it would be a quick process.
The two women at the front desk were very kind. They were very concerned that I was holding a sleeping baby, instead of an awake baby. I told them I had another child in the car and they said they would get me back to triage as soon as they could. I got back in about 10 minutes, so it's wasn't bad. There was a doctor and a nurse in triage and both seemed very concerned about the fall, assuring me They needed to do an MRI and I could not just take her home.
They ordered the MRI and while I waited Drek took Ash to Anna's house. While he was gone they called us back for the MRI. They got her tiny little body onto the huge machine, covered her in a heated blanket, and then said because I was pregnant I could absoluetly NOT be in the room while the machine was on. They shooed me out and I paced the hallway for the five minutes it took them to take the picture.
An hour and and a half later Alexa had her MRI. Drek, Alexa and I were finally called back into a room. We were in there for about twenty minutes when a nurse came in to ask insurance questions. On her way out she asked if the doctor had told us the results. We explained we hadn't heard anything since the MRI. She causally announced the MRI showed no bleeding, Alexa was fine, and we could leave now. It was a actually quite anti-climactic for being such a relief.
Fast forward almost a month and a day later. Ash is sitting at the kitchen table with an unusual amount of energy. She moves from sitting on the seat of the chair to the arm of the chair, then loses her balances and smacks the side of her head on the tile floor. Once again there was nothing to break her fall; she fell headfirst and it was a loud and hard hit. She didn't lose consciousness, and her pupils dilated like normal, so I left with Sera to go to a previous engagement while Drek tried to calm Ash down by reading to her. She calmed down for a bit, then started crying again because her head hurt. Drek put her in the bath, which calmed her down for a while but then she again started crying because her head hurt. Drek was about to make her a snack when she threw up.
So Drek called me and I rushed home with our family's only car. I gave Alexa to Drek and I took Ash to the E.R. On the way there she threw up.
This time the E.R. was empty. besides the two people checking in before us, there wasn't anyone at all in the waiting room. When it was out turn to check in I recognized one of the women at the front t desk from when I checked Alexa in, but luckily she didn't recognize me (or I'm afraid there would have been some awkward questions).
Ash threw up for a third time while I was checking her in, which I assume would make them put us at the front of the line, but since there was no line I'm not sure it made any difference. We went straight into the triage nurse, who called over a doctor. He didn't seem very worries, explaining that "Sometimes kids just throw up." He said he wanted to observe her, and we were taken back to a room where Ash happily lay on a bed and watched a movie on the tablet. After an hour another doctor came in and examined her, checking her head and her eyes. He was just getting ready to say something when she threw up again. Apparently throwing up three times could be normal, but four is crossing a line. He immediately ordered and MRI and less than ten minutes later I was once again pacing the hall outside the MRI room, because I am still pregnant.
Fifteen minutes later the same doctor came in with the results: no bleeding. She had a concussion, but should make a full recovery.
I come away from both experienced feeling very grateful that my kids haven't been permanently damaged and that I have access to technology that can reassure me when they get hurt. I also feel like I should give both my kids sitting lessons. Seriously, how hard is it to sit at a table?
