Please help me feel better.

stephzrn

I know I don't post a lot more lurk then anything. My little guy broke his leg today and I feel terrible. He loves going down the slide at the playground and I always put him on my lap but this time he leg must have got caught on the side of the slide and twisted. Instead of laughing like he normally does he was crying. I carried him straight home and thank goodness my husband was there. My son was still crying and wouldn't bear weight on it. I call the pediatrician and they said take him for x-rays. The ER Dr thinks it's a toddlers fracture or spiral fracture and said it's sometimes hard to see on xray until a couple weeks when bone growth starts to show. He is currently in an entire leg splint until we can see the orthopedic doctor and he is not suppose to walk for 3 weeks. How do you make toddler understand that?? I feel like the worst mom in the world and all he is going to remember is that his mom broke his leg when he was a kid. I'm in tears and feel awful.

Oohgurl

Oh no!! Poor little man! It was an accident! Could have happened to anyone! I hope he mends swiftly! 

PumpkinAndThePeanut

So sorry, your poor little boy. I have a story that might make you feel a little better. When I was 3, my mom and I were going down some stairs. She was carrying some glass jars and one of my dolls. I was at the bottom of the stairs and she was at the top. A jar slipped out from under her arm and shattered and a piece of the glass cut my face - really badly, it was very close to my eye and I needed over 100 stitches and a five-hour surgery. I had a pretty noticeable scar for most of my childhood. I guess afterwards I used to say things like, "Mommy, remember when you broke my face?"

The scar is really faded now and I don't even think of it. While it was a "thing" when I was little (I got asked about it a lot), I never blamed my mom for it. I'm sure your DS won't remember this! And even if he could I'm sure he'd never blame you for it.

jesselayne8

Huge hugs! Don't beat yourself up.

c-elizabethf

Oh no, poor guy. Don't beat yourself up, accidents happen!

stephzrn

Thank you everyone for all the kind words and sharing your stories, it helps. My husband is also trying to tell me it's not my fault either. Sometimes I'm OK and other times I burst in tears. There is definitely a lot of cuddle time and hugs going around with him tonight. I'm always concerned about possible child hazards and stuff then this happens and catches me off guard. I thought for sure if he got injured it would be from falling from the chair or table that he is starting to want to climb...

bumpuser3155624

Poor lil guy! Don't blame yourself for an accident. He won't remember anything about this. Hope he's on the mend quickly!

MamaMD

I'm so sorry you and your LO are going through this. Please try not to blame yourself. The exact same thing happened to my sister when she was around this age only it was my lap she was on (I was about 4 1/2). She still teases me about the time I "broke her leg on the McDonald's twisty slide." But honestly all of her "memories" are things she's been told by my parents. I barely have any memory of it and I was 3 years older than her. So there's no way your LO will remember this. Keep up all those snuggles and TLC and I'm sure he'll be on the mend in no time!

HZ2012

Awe. It's not your fault! Accidents happen and at this age they are accidents waiting to happen!

Last week LO fell nose first on the wood floors. Bloody nose and mouth. DH was right there and blames himself for not catching him. I kept telling him that these things are going to happen - it's part of childhood! We've all had something happen to us as kids.

I hope your LO gets better real soon!

kelseyhh

I'm so sorry this happened to you and your LO!! Like PPs have said, there is no way you could have prevented this. Freak accidents happen on slides, but we can't keep our kids off of them because of that.
I wish I had some tips for you. My SIL and BIL just had something similar happen, but it was only 3 days ago, so I don't have any advice yet. Their LO actually broke his femur, and now he has to be in a cast up to his chest for 6 weeks. He will have to be lying down flat the entire time. If they let me know anything that is working for them, I'll let you know!

Boo0512

I'm so sorry, it's so hard to see our LOs in pain. Kids get hurt unfortunately, it's just part of life. It's definitely no one's fault. Accidents happen, hugs!

stephzrn

Thanks again everyone.  I have periods where I know it's an accident and periods where I feel just terrible.  I guess it will just take time.  Thanks Mishy2006, that does make me feel better :-)

JoJo716

Poor little guy and poor mama! One of ds's friends recently broke his arm. To be honest, with the way he climbs and plays, I am surprised that ds has not had any broken bones yet!

coffeeandbooks

Well if it makes you feel any better, an ER nurse once told me that the most common cause of broken bones in small children is the slide break where one leg doesn't go down with the other.   So, I think you are in good company.   But, I am so sorry this happened to you and LO, and I hope he makes a very speedy recovery!

memcgee1

Definitely don't beat yourself up over this!!  My last job was in pediatric orthopedics, and fractures in little ones heal extremely quickly, so try not to stress!  I'm sure it will be a bit of a challenge keeping him non-weightbearing, but he'll likely be put into a long-leg cast to protect the leg that will make it tough for him to put full weight on it anyway.  You're a great mom, and he won't ever remember this!!

caden1206

Poor guy. I hope you both feel better.

kymelissa

My 18 month old had the exact same break at 15 months old. It was a toddler fracture and all she did was step on a doll while cruising along the couch and it twisted. She was in a splint for a week and a cast for 3 weeks. She had not started walking yet (late on gross motor) so she has just started walking in the past month. She had no trouble getting around but she was used to scooting since she hadn't walked yet. She handled it a lot better than I did. The worst part was sawing the cast off. She freaked out at the loud saw. We had a few nights of interrupted sleep but that was it. Like I said, she handled it like a champ. Me not so much.