Is it an old wives tale...

ling79

to not put LO's to sleep after hitting their head?  DS hit his head kinda hard on a bookcase tonight cried about 5 min and then was acting ok.  It was right before bedtime so we did our normal routine and he is sleeping so soundly.  Now I am worried its "too soundly" I keep going in to check on him.  He definitely has an egg on his forhead, should I wake him?

 

Also, as a side note...DS is insisting that the expression is "old wise tale".  I say "old wives" who is correct??

Thanks

nooniesgal

I think they say if the bump goes out and not in you are good to go.  Sorry, not much help but I would have put dd to bed like usual too!

ling79

ling79:

to not put LO's to sleep after hitting their head?  DS hit his head kinda hard on a bookcase tonight cried about 5 min and then was acting ok.  It was right before bedtime so we did our normal routine and he is sleeping so soundly.  Now I am worried its "too soundly" I keep going in to check on him.  He definitely has an egg on his forhead, should I wake him?

 

Also, as a side note...DS is insisting that the expression is "old wise tale".  I say "old wives" who is correct??

Thanks

 

Correction - DH is insisting....not DS

Kateysomething

old wives.

I'd probably have done the same.. wouldn't wake him, but i'd probably also be second guessing myself.

Mrs.Goldenblatt

I thought it was meant more for when there is a possbility of a concussion. 

ShanJosh777

I don't know the answer about the bump on the head.... but the expression is definitely wives tale.

MrsVictoriaB

I asked the pedi about this last time this happened to DS and she just said to keep an eye on him but I could put him to sleep. She said I could check up on him every 2-3 hours if I wanted but if he was acting normally, there was no blood, loss of consciousness, all the scary signs, he was probably ok!

tonysbride2b

1. Old wives tale. 2. My doctor said so long as they cry right after hitting their head, 99% of the time they're a-okay. If they pass out or are unrespnsove afterwards that's not good. Try not to worry, easier said than done, I know.

cotner

DD fell and cut her eye about a month ago.  While on the phone with the on call doc - they did say with any head injury to wake every 2 or 4 hours, I can't remember.  We had to take her to the ER so they were able to rule out a concussion.  Do you have the number for a nurses line for a Children's Hospital in your area?  They could answer your question and you won't have to bug your pedi.

LoriB00

When my DD fell down the stairs and had a nasty bruise on her head, my pedi office had me just slightly rouse her every 15 min!! while I was awake and then every 2-3 hours the rest of the night.  They told me to just touch the bottom of her foot and as long as I got a physical response then she was fine.  Of course my DD was difficult and I ended up having to blow in her face to get her to respond.

preg_amy

The expression is "Old Wives Tale," but what you are talking about isn't.

You shouldn't put them to bed if they've had a concussion.  A bump on the head probably isn't a big deal.

Our pedi said to watch for vomiting within the first day.  A bump is a good sign.  Both eyes should dilate and constrict at the same time. 

When DS bumped his head the last time, the nurse told us to wake him at least once in the middle of the night to make sure he was responsive.  But if it's not terrible and you're not worried about a head injury, it's probably not necessary.

KGsky

IDK, but I think the rationale is that you can't determine how normal they are acting if they go to sleep right away.? I remember once a kid dry-drowned because the mother put him to sleep right after b/c he seemed tired, instead of observing his behavior.? Of course he had enough bizarre behavior prior that she should have been alerted that something was wrong--but then who had ever heard of dry drowning until Oprah?? I try to keep DD up for an hour or so just to make sure, but you can put them to bed after a reasonable time.

foreignroyalty

With any head injury it is prudent to check for altered status periodically so you can put lo to bed but I'd def. wake him slightly by giving him some water and check his mood/reactions/responsiveness.

"old wives tale" is the term- he understands it has a negative connotation, right? So why would it be wise? 

VinBert

My SS fell off his bunk bed and hit his head.  Seemed fine and didn't pass out.  Went to bed and woke up puking, eyes dilated...  took him to the ER for a scan, had a mild concusion

Geekchick921

Mrs.Goldenblatt:

I thought it was meant more for when there is a possbility of a concussion. 

It is.  It seems like whenever DD really whacks her head it's right before naptime.  I try to keep her awake for an hour so I can watch her for concussion symptoms but she's never shown any.

Unresponsive, disorientation (hard to tell that with a baby, though), dilated and/or uneven sized pupils (one side is larger than the other), and vomiting are all concussion signs to look out for.