Baby fell off the bed

amother

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 3:05 pm

So my 5 month old fell off my bed this morning. I've monitored him all day he seems to be fine (maybe a bit kvetchy - but okay) I've noticed that anytime he slightly falls or rolls over he will cry and give me this look of fear. is he just hurting or is he "traumatized" from the initial fall. Anybody?

amother

Wheat

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 3:07 pm

He needs to be examined by a pediatrician. He possibly hurt himself and you don't want to miss anything.

One of the most common places for an infant to get injured is a fractured collarbone. If it's not out of place, there's not much to do other than being very careful when you maneuver that arm. However, it needs to be looked at by a doctor.

amother

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 3:22 pm

happy chick wrote:

I believe at this age they tend to forget very fast. They don't cry when they see the pediatrician cuz they don't remember last time the Dr gave them shot. Unless you're nervous that he banged his head, c"v, I wouldn't worry. BTDT, many times.

my question really is if he fell on the back of his head and every time I will put him down (on his back) he will cry, is he crying out of a physical pain or is it emotional trauma? if babies tend to forget easily, does that mean no trauma involved? just wondering....

avrahamama

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 3:25 pm

I'll never forget when my oldest fell out of the stroller. I called the pediatrician and his first question was "what kind of stroller was it?" lol

After I told him. He was less concerned because it was not a very high stroller.

Anyway. You don't seem concerned with injuries but more wondering if he's traumatized. I doubt it. Baby gates exist because kids experiment with stairs. They don't remember the first time they fell down the stairs so they keep going and trying again.

BTW my friend in healthcare told me that she is mandated to report any child that falls down the stairs under age 4!!! Can you believe that until age 4 you are required to have a baby gate

amother

Lilac

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 4:54 pm

avrahamama wrote:

That's nice. I have a baby gate but sometimes my older kids forget to close it. I yell about this when it happens. BH baby never fell pooh-pooh-pooh down steps. But if baby did , I would be reported???

amother

Taupe

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:00 pm

amother [ Slateblue ] wrote:

Your response is very odd to me.

Worry less about emotional trauma and more about physical trauma at this age.

You should absolutely bring him
To the pediatrician to get examined

Signed, pediatric hospital social worker

I think parents are traumatized by over zealous medical professionals making them feel guilty when accidents happen.
My son once fell out of his high chair while with a babysitter. She thought he was safely buckled in and went to get him seconds of food. In those few seconds, he wriggled out and tried to climb out. When I took him to be examined, they made me feel like an abusive parent. They asked so many intrusive questions and then put it in his medical record and from then on at every doctor visit we were asked if he had any falls. I definitely think twice now before going for a fall.

amother

Peach

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:03 pm

amother [ Slateblue ] wrote:

She seems afraid to bring him to the doctor, that the doctor will question if the baby is being supervised.

amother

Slateblue

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:04 pm

amother [ Taupe ] wrote:

My baby fell out of my bed at 7 months. We brought her to the ED and I was shocked at how non judgemental they were. It was no big deal. They see this all day. Unless it is an unwitnessed fall that results in a skull fracture they’ll just observe the baby and dc immediately after.

I think you’re making a big mistake putting your feelings about feeling judged (and being asked too many questions) above your baby’s health and well-being.

amother

Slateblue

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:06 pm

amother [ Peach ] wrote:

She seems afraid to bring him to the doctor, that the doctor will question if the baby is being supervised.

The doctor is supposed to ask those questions. Doctors also understand that at age 5 months babies are beginning to roll over and they see falls off beds all the time. You should always answer the questions honestly. It’s the parents who are cagey and who change the stories that ring our alarm

amother

Ecru

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:15 pm

Did he vomit? Do you see any swelling or bruises? Did he loose consciousness? Is the soft spot buldging/ enlarged? Is he very fussy? Does he refuse to eat/ drink? Did you see any blood ( especially from his ears)?

If you answer yes to at least one of these go to the ER. They generally will check his vitals, eyes, ears and soft spot first. Only if they believe it's very necessary they'll do a scan but otherwise they'll tell you to monitor him. Don't be too anxious around him if you're scared of the emotional harm because they mirror our emotions.

I'm not a doctor, just talking from experience. If he can kid around he's probably fine.

amother

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:19 pm

amother [ Slateblue ] wrote:

My concern is mainly based off of his behavior, as I mentioned he seems perfectly himself no scratch, no bruise, no bump, nothing. only when I put him down he will look at me with fear in his eyes and cry bitterly. he would only relax once I comfort him and hold his hand. it seems to me that he's in stress Crying

ETA He is also a very expressive child, like he will burst in tears when feeling threatened or yelled at (unintentionally [yelled at] of course..)

happy chick

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:21 pm

amother [ Peach ] wrote:

She seems afraid to bring him to the doctor, that the doctor will question if the baby is being supervised.

If you use the same pediatrician regularly , he should be familiar with family dynamics and know that a fall does not mean abuse. If you're all around a pretty good mom , no reason to suspect abuse.

happy chick

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:22 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I highly doubt it. Wait till tomorrow and see if he goes back to normal.

amother

Floralwhite

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:34 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

ETA He is also a very expressive child, like he will burst in tears when feeling threatened or yelled at (unintentionally [yelled at] of course..)

Are you sure he's not crying out of pain when you put him on his back? Is it possible he hurt his back or the back of his head? I would definitely bring him in as a precaution to the dr

amother

Green

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:35 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Please have him checked out! You don’t want to miss something and then regret it!

FranticFrummie

Tue, Jul 14 2020, 5:48 pm

1. Call your pediatrician ASAP, just to make sure that nothing's wrong.

2. Every time your child looks at you and seems distressed, do NOT reassure him. Instead, put on a big smile and distract him with something fun. Right now, children that age are looking at your face for cues, to see if there is anything scary happening. If you are calm and happy around him, that will be enough of a facial cue to tell him that you are in charge and nothing is wrong.

Whenever DD would fall down, I'd watch her face. Generally, unless there was blood or real tears (not just "upset crying"), I would smile at her and say "Ooopsie!" and help her up. The less of a fuss I made, the faster she realized she was not mortally wounded, and she would go back to whatever she was playing.

If I tried to make light, and then she turned out to be genuinely hurt, of course I would drop the cheerfulness immediately and take her seriously.

I think that overprotecting and worrying mothers can make their children fearful and timid. You have to teach them resiliency if you want to help prevent trauma, either now or in the future.

(DD rolled off of the sofa when she was only 6 weeks old! Surprised

I had her all the way up against the back of the sofa while I was folding laundry. The doorbell rang, and in the two seconds it took me to take a step towards the door, I heard this *thunk* and a scream. DD was on the floor, and there was no carpet to cushion the fall.

I got her to the pediatrician that day. He checked her over and said "Don't worry. I doubt this will affect her SAT scores." and sent us home.)