Last weekend my oldest daughter slipped and fell outside on our wet and snowy brick back steps. She was helping me retrieve the dogs from their gated pen and...WHAM...she split her leg open to the bone. The sheer sight of the 6 inch gash below her knee had me calmly telling her that we needed to call 911, but inside I was absolutely losing it!
My husband and I responded to this emergency like a well oiled machine. We knew our place in this emergency. We knew how we needed to respond without even blinking or talking - we talked with our eyes - it was really cool thinking about it now. Daddy tended to her with a firm compress and I phoned in the emergency and followed their directions and answered their questions.
All the while, my daughter watched us - like an eagle. She was gauging our response and I think as we kept calm, she in turn kept herself together. We knew she was in pain and shock, but she just looked to us for our encouragement. We kept saying that she will be okay, and to stay calm - she would be taken care of as soon as possible.
The local ambulance company came quickly and took over. They tended to our daughter and offered caring words of support, they were awesome. Once on the ambulance, the two EMT's talked in code. I knew that they were trying to keep some info away from our daughter's ears. The attending EMT then told us there was a BEST case scenario and a WORST case scenario. Best option; stitches or worst, immediate surgery to repair her leg. It really was that bad looking. EEK!
Our daughter was listening to the whole thing with big eyes and again, looking to me for my responses...so every time I spoke, I made it feel like I was in complete control of the situation and totally trusting of the professionals around us. I could see she was relaxing. I was really proud.
The EMT's wheeled her into the ER and the attending doctor was ready to meet us at the door. He took a look and made the decision quickly and reassured us that she was going to be just fine - stitches and a WHOLE lot of 'em were in our future.
Our daughter then started to go into 'I'm gonna be strong through this' mode. She was chipper and gregarious to all the attending nurses and doctors. She was making the best of the situation and so with that, I did too. The nurses asked her 'grownup' type of questions, too...that confirmed to me that my daughter is soon to be entering her teen years and it's a whole new ball game now. She is old enough to answer those important questions a hospital needs to know. It's was weird. The one about if she smoked had me snickering inside.
I could tell just by looking at my husband that he was horrified. I hugged him and told him what a great team we make. He agreed and we just focused on the hour long stitches that were to be done.
Our daughter was AMAZING and BRAVE. The gash went deep to the bone and required many internal stitches and over 8 to close up the gash. It looks like a smile face below her knee....she will require a visit to the plastic surgeon in 6th months. For sure. She is now in a soft cast to immobilize her leg from bending for 1 week. This is tough for a preteen...almost like she is grounded or something.
Who knows how resiliency is found in humans, but I do think we can teach this lesson when it matters MOST. If we had freaked out, (which really is in me to do), I think the whole event wouldn't have gone as well. Yes, I think our daughter is REALLY, REALLY brave - and I'm insanely proud of her. She showed her true colors when the chips were down, and she is one BRIGHT LIGHT OF SUNSHINE!
My husband and I responded to this emergency like a well oiled machine. We knew our place in this emergency. We knew how we needed to respond without even blinking or talking - we talked with our eyes - it was really cool thinking about it now. Daddy tended to her with a firm compress and I phoned in the emergency and followed their directions and answered their questions.
All the while, my daughter watched us - like an eagle. She was gauging our response and I think as we kept calm, she in turn kept herself together. We knew she was in pain and shock, but she just looked to us for our encouragement. We kept saying that she will be okay, and to stay calm - she would be taken care of as soon as possible.
The local ambulance company came quickly and took over. They tended to our daughter and offered caring words of support, they were awesome. Once on the ambulance, the two EMT's talked in code. I knew that they were trying to keep some info away from our daughter's ears. The attending EMT then told us there was a BEST case scenario and a WORST case scenario. Best option; stitches or worst, immediate surgery to repair her leg. It really was that bad looking. EEK!
Our daughter was listening to the whole thing with big eyes and again, looking to me for my responses...so every time I spoke, I made it feel like I was in complete control of the situation and totally trusting of the professionals around us. I could see she was relaxing. I was really proud.
The EMT's wheeled her into the ER and the attending doctor was ready to meet us at the door. He took a look and made the decision quickly and reassured us that she was going to be just fine - stitches and a WHOLE lot of 'em were in our future.
Our daughter then started to go into 'I'm gonna be strong through this' mode. She was chipper and gregarious to all the attending nurses and doctors. She was making the best of the situation and so with that, I did too. The nurses asked her 'grownup' type of questions, too...that confirmed to me that my daughter is soon to be entering her teen years and it's a whole new ball game now. She is old enough to answer those important questions a hospital needs to know. It's was weird. The one about if she smoked had me snickering inside.
I could tell just by looking at my husband that he was horrified. I hugged him and told him what a great team we make. He agreed and we just focused on the hour long stitches that were to be done.
Our daughter was AMAZING and BRAVE. The gash went deep to the bone and required many internal stitches and over 8 to close up the gash. It looks like a smile face below her knee....she will require a visit to the plastic surgeon in 6th months. For sure. She is now in a soft cast to immobilize her leg from bending for 1 week. This is tough for a preteen...almost like she is grounded or something.
Who knows how resiliency is found in humans, but I do think we can teach this lesson when it matters MOST. If we had freaked out, (which really is in me to do), I think the whole event wouldn't have gone as well. Yes, I think our daughter is REALLY, REALLY brave - and I'm insanely proud of her. She showed her true colors when the chips were down, and she is one BRIGHT LIGHT OF SUNSHINE!
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