I feel like i won the worst mother of the year award...

[Smidget]

Last night DH noticed when we were trying to get Alanna to go to sleep (she woke back up) that she wasn't using her right arm that much when she was flailing around crying. and she was extra fussy like she was in pain. so he thought maybe a shoulder or collar bone was bothering her. so he started feeling around in that area, and every time he touched her collar bone on that side she'd scream, but not when he did it on the left side. and he said it "felt different." he wanted to take her to the ER and i didn't want to, i said she probably just had gas and he was imagining the other stuff (she did have gas too).

well, DH was really concerned so at around 11:30 we packed up the girls and brought them to the ER. turns out Alanna's clavicle is fractured!!!!! and they said there's no way to tell how or when. it could have happened at birth. WTF!!!!!

so i feel like such a terrible mother first off because i didn't notice this before, or at all for that matter. and then because i didn't want to bring her to the hospital. what if we hadn't and she was still just suffering and in pain and we didn't know that it was broken so we couldn't be gentle with her or anything??? i just feel so awful, and i can't stop crying every time i hold her.

i'm on my way out the door to follow up with her ped because i didn't get all my questions answered really last night. but the er doc said there's really nothing we can do, she's too small for a sling...i just feel so damn terrible!!!! i'll update you when i get home...

[Spuds]

:hugs Awww, that is awful. What is a clavicle? It sucks to not know when or how it happened, that would drive me crazy. I hope it heals fast. Let us know what the ped says!
BTW: You are NOT a bad mommy!! I probably would have been the same way as you. :hugs It sucks learning all this stuff, huh?

[Supercalafragilistic]

Smidget, parenting is basically a learning process. I'm so sorry that she has to go through that, but at least it should heal fast for her. :hug

[Free Bird]

OMG Smidge. I am so sorry. That stinks that they can't do anything about it. Maybe that is the reason why she wasn't sleeping well. Baby you are far from a bad mom. You are a wonderful mom. We've all had the same reaction you did last night. Well, at least I have. Last year Shawn jumped off of Maddy's bunk bed landing hands first. He tends to be quite the drama king so when he was screaming I didn't think anything of it and told him to "Knock it off! next time don't do that." An hour later he is still crying so I take a closer look at. Lets say he had an extra elbow. I took him to the ER and it turned out that broke so bad it required surgery. So you see, you are not the only mommy that didn't initially listen to your child's cries. :hug :kiss

Keep us posted. I will have Alanna in my thoughts for a speedy recovery.

[Iggy]

The clavicle is the collarbone, Stacy.

Smidge, it's okay :hugs It happens to everyone. Don't worry about it. She'll be fine.

[Lilac]

Smidge :hugs We have all made the wrong decision before and will likely all do it again. Things happen, you didn't know.

You are NOT a bad mommy.

[UnFun]

:hugs That's actually a very common type of birth injury. Instead of beating yourself up, you should start asking her doctors why they didn't find it earlier!?!?! They are the medical professionals, not you! The peditrician should have checked her clavicals at her very first appt at one month!

[zak frost]

Um...yeah...what she said!!

Oh yeah....I am up for the "bad mother" award!! My kids have gone to the ER, urgent care trips or emergency trips to their pedi about 30 times. Yes....30!!!! Usually for just stitches, but still....

[Mingle Bells]

:hugs Smidget. You are so not a bad mother. Please update us when you get back.

[Iggy]

Um...yeah...what she said!!

Oh yeah....I am up for the "bad mother" award!! My kids have gone to the ER, urgent care trips or emergency trips to their pedi about 30 times. Yes....30!!!! Usually for just stitches, but still....
Dude, my brother was in the ER so often as a kid that they all knew him on sight :lol His medical records by the time he turned 15 were like two inches thick. One week he was in three different times. First he played soccer barefoot and sprained his ankle. Then he went rollerblading on the sprained ankle and fell and broke his thumb so badly he had to have surgery, pins put in it. Then the evening he got released from that, he went to play volleyball and broke his nose. Testosterone poisoning :roll

Anyway. :para Not to hijack your thread or anything.

[Duck]

Oh Smidge, I know how you feel. The problem is at this age the only way they have to tell ya anything is cry, and crying means everything so it's so hard to figure out what is wrong or that anything more than the usual is wrong. And I know that feeling of not wanting to go to the ER for everything only to hear...there's nothing really wrong. You aren't the worst mother in the world. It not our mistakes that define whether we are good or bad parents, it's what we do when we find out we messed up that counts.

:hugs to you and your sweetie Alanna :hugs

[Chaser]

You're SO not a bad mother. I would've figured she was colicky and wrote it off at that, too. And like was said- the doctor should've figured it out. I go over my kids with a fine tooth comb before they go for a check up, since I don't think walking in with them, taking their height and weight and answering a bunch of yes/no questions about their development contitutes an exam.

[Wasabañero]

Smidget, parenting is basically a learning process. I'm so sorry that she has to go through that, but at least it should heal fast for her. :hug

i agree... it's been a crazy learning process over here... you are NOT a bad mommy!!! I hope she heals fast!!!

[Pop Tart]

Smidgey :cry

I'm glad you know what's up now and I hope she heals quickly!! :pinkheart

Oh, and I have another package finally coming your way :para

[Smidget]

thank you everyone! i got home much earlier, but was up till 4:30 this morning and back up with the babies at 9 only to go to the dr. come home and rest for an hour, shower, and go to my postpartum checkup. i'm really healthy apparrently, BTW, and we're working on getting me an IUD :woohoo

and, i'm hijacking my own thread... as for alanna, a broken clavicle is one of the most common injuries in babies, according to the doctor. and it'll only hurt the baby for a day or two and then be completely healed in like a week. so although it is common at birth, she thinks alanna's happened in the last day or so since even today when you touch her collar bone she screams. :cry i can't even imagine how it happened. both me and DH have been racking our brains, and nothing sticks out. no falls, no rough-housing, nothing. and no points in time when she just all of a sudden started screaming bloody murder that we can say "maybe it was then..." so i don't know. as for what we can do for it, there's not much. tylenol every 6 hours. and the ped told us to put a long sleeve onesie on her (that's practically all they wear lol) and pin the arm of it to her chest so it's almost like a sling. i was afraid to cuz i thought it might piss her off, but she doesn't seem to mind it. she was already favoring the arm, so i guess it's not that big of a difference.

but she's feeling a little better it seems like. she's not as fussy now, and she's been sleeping really well all day. and i'm gonna finish eating lunch and (hopefully) get a nap in. i hope i get a chance to catch up later!!! thank you all for all your support and concern!

[Pezzle Stick]

I'm so sorry smidge :hugs You are not a bad mother..you didn't know.

[CherHell]

Poor baby I'm hoping that she heals quickly...

Don't beat yourself up hon - how would you have known? You have never experienced this broken clavicle thing before... the important thing is you know what is wrong now and you got her the medical attention....


:hugs

[gypsymom]

You are a great mom! As far as how it happened, you can never know. I always asume that my boys inadvertently inflict the injuries on each other. Today I found L bearing down with all his weight on Z's head and he was trying to eat it. Z had puke and drool all over his head as well as scratches on his face. I felt terrible that when I heard him cry out initially I kind of ignored it.

[Duck]

So, how is Alanna doing?

[Ringlette]

How did I miss this thread?! I'm so sorry! I hope A is feeling much better and healing quickly. Babies heal so fast! Don't beat yourself up. I didn't know Eowyn broke her arm until the next morning, and she was up crying most of the night...no pain meds or anything. It's just so hard to tell when they can't tell you what's wrong.

How is she doing now?

[Smidget]

oh, she's alright i guess. still whiney as hell, but i guess that's just her. :teehee i actually just put her on her stomach for the first time since it happened, so we'll see if she's still favoring that arm...but as for when she's flailing around and gettign dressed and stuff, she uses it more now. and DH said that when you touch it now she doesn't mind, so i guess she's cool. i'm just still scared to aggravate it, KWIM? and every time she screams i'm afraid she's still in pain. she screamed bloody murder this am when i picked her up from the bouncy chair, and i was scared it was bothering her again :( god this sucks. i wish i had x-ray vision so i could see if it was healed.

[WendyDixie]

Smidge how did I miss this thread i AM SOOO SORRY. How is she doing? I hope better. And it's not ur fault at all.

I am so sorry I didn't see this i it hadn't been for Ring bumping it up I would not o fseen it. GIve her a big kiss from me will ya?