If you're following BR's blog, you already know that BR broke her arm a month ago. She's doing much better now, and is on her way to recovery, so we've been able to breath a sigh of relief. But I still feel the need to document the whole story from the parent's perspective, so I've decided to dust off this old blog and do some posting here. I suspect this will take more than one entry, as it's been a long journey. So grab a chair and join me as I recall the unfolding of the events.
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That Wednesday I was trying to finish working on a document at work, so to minimize all distractions I took my laptop to someone else's desk (they were on vacation), so I could focus quietly. All of a sudden I received an email from DH simply saying: "BR fell down at school, unless I hear from you I'm leaving to pick her up in 5 minutes". I picked up all my stuff, sent a quick email to my coworkers (saying "I'm picking up my daughter and will be back online within the hour" - how optimistic of me), and headed to the school.
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When I got to the school, BR was sitting propped up on some blankets and pillows, calm but very pale, and her left arm was sticking out on a very odd angle. She looked scared and very freaked out, and didn't want anyone to come near, worried about being hurt more. There wasn't much I could do to make her more comfortable, but I tried to distract her a bit from the pain. She wasn't talking much, so I couldn't get much information about what happened, other than the fact that she fell on the bouncy castle that all the kids were playing on to celebrate the end of the school year.
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I was a little a lot over my head trying to figure out what to do. BR was refusing to move and did not want to be touched. The vice principal asked me whether I was ok with them calling an ambulance, and I was quite glad for the suggestion. We called an ambulance and waited. In an odd coincidence, earlier that day there was an accident in our neighbourhood where first responders were hurt in a training exercise, so there were fewer ambulances available, but we didn't have to wait very long.
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The paramedics were amazing. There was a young man who has little children, and it certainly showed in his interactions with BR. He quickly assessed her, asked a few questions and even made her smile once or twice. He created a quick splint and wrapped her arm and effortlessly lifted her onto the gurney without jostling her or causing her any pain. Once in the ambulance, BR visibly relaxed, she wasn't in so much pain anymore and she was able to talk a little and interact. In fact, about halfway to the hospital, she looked like she might even fall asleep, I guess as the adrenaline was wearing off.
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| Hooked up to the monitors, ready to go |
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We got to the hospital, and DH was already there waiting for us (I'd called him once we'd called for the ambulance). We got admitted, BR was put in a wheelchair and given a dose of ibuprofen. Then we headed to the waiting room, joining many other families with sick and injured kids. We still didn't know what was wrong with BRs arm. The paramedic was not able to detect anything when he felt her arm, and with the splint on you couldn't really see the crazy angle of her upper arm.
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To be continued...
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