We had quite an adventure last week when Benjamin decided to
stuff something in his nose while I was taking a shower. From the bathroom, I could hear him yelling,
“I can’t sneeze! I can’t sneeze!” After I quickly dressed, I helped him up onto
my bed and inspected his little nose.
He insisted he had put a Lego up there, yet I could barely
see something that night be it. I don’t
know how in the world it made its way up so high in his nasal cavity except
that he had been sniffling some already that day. I attempted to have him blow his nose several
times, but it didn’t seem to budge. One
time he accidentally sniffed instead of blowing, and the object disappeared
altogether.
Justin arrived home, and we started brainstorming any and
all possible ideas to get this little thing out. Neither of us is quick to head to the
emergency room, not only because of the high co-pay, but also because of the
crazy germs that it’s filled with this time of year.
After many attempts to get it out and calls to several different
people, including his pediatrician, Justin trekked off with him to the
hospital. I knew I could survive better
if I didn’t have to be there if he had to be restrained. Judging by our attempts to get him to be
still while we examined his nose, we had no doubt it would never come out
without him having to be restrained.
Plus, we didn’t really want to expose the whole family to germs if we
didn’t have to.
In the end, the visit was rather anti-climactic. They were placed on the “fast track” as soon
as they arrived, so they didn’t have to wait long at all (It could have been
bad around 6 in the evening.). Benjamin
was met by a nurse who also happens to be a helper in his Sunday School class
at our church, and he was very popular among all the workers there in the
ER. Then, Justin was actually the one
who removed the object by following the doctor’s suggestion.
So here’s the trick:
The doctor had Benjamin lie down on the table while Justin pinched off
the opposite nostril and blew into his mouth.
The tiny piece (which was actually part of a Kinex set) immediately flew out, and they were back home by
7:15. In some ways we’ve felt silly
because if we had Googled a bit more, we probably could have found this additional
suggestion. In other ways, we were
almost hoping it wouldn’t be a pleasant experience, so he wouldn’t attempt to
do this again.
Benjamin arrived home with a milkshake in his hand, and he
proudly proclaimed, “I got stickers!” As
I looked at the six big stickers gracing the front of his shirt, I simply shook
my head. Living with little boys is
always an adventure.
Disclaimer: I am not
a medical professional, and this post should not be construed as medical
advice. I’m just a mom who is sharing
our experience in the ER.
I was wondering where the milkshake in the picture factored into the story-hehe! It's a great growing-up story!
ReplyDeleteOh, I am so in love with this! With three boys of our own (aged four and under, to boot!), we often regale others with similar tales, so it's good to know we're not alone!! And also, that being said ... I'll be filing this helpful tidbit under 'save'. Yeah. Pretty sure I'll be referencing it someday. Soon.
ReplyDelete=)
Thanks for the laugh!
Amanda Reifsnyder
Lexington, Kentucky