If you will recall Chris built our bunk beds. The top bunk looks very similar to a crate so we've basically figured from the start that the only way to fall out of them is if you did it on purpose. And who would do that? What we failed to realize was the other way a person could fall out is if they were hanging from the top bunk trying to see the person on the bottom bunk...you know, upside down...then they would fall on their heads from about 5 feet up. Which is exactly what happened last night shortly after the boys went to bed.
Living in a condo especially there are all sorts of noises and thunks that we hear at all times of day, but every once in awhile there is one that pulls you from your seat on the couch and upstairs before you've even had a chance to process what you've heard. This one was it: the boys had been goofing off, there was a thunk and a cry. I ran in to find Jacob on the floor screaming that his head hurt. Chris had been in the shower but got there about when I did. I took Jacob in our room to start checking him over: only a little blood where he bit the inside of his mouth, no sign of a bump yet, able to converse. We've done this a few times and he seemed okay but it was a big fall and all he kept saying was that his head really hurt. A very brief consultation with Chris had me out the door with Jacob heading to the ER. Chris stayed home with Alex.
We talked the whole way there and, again, he seemed fine. He was concerned that he had left the house in his pajamas and he was really tired. And his head hurt. Now is probably a good time to mention that the night before, while I was at my dance class, our fire alarm went off. It turned out to be nothing (probably our adjoining unit burned a pizza or something) but of course there was no way to know that until Chris had gotten the boys out of bed and outside. The end result was that they were still awake an hour and a half after bedtime and Jacob was very concerned about our house burning down. Or getting wet from the sprinkler system. So he was already tired when everything started. So, we get to the ER and he gets checked out and they come to the conclusion I expected: he's fine, go home and rest, here is what to look for, but little boys bounce. One thing I had forgotten to ask Jacob (until the doctor was there) is if he'd fallen on the floor or on the foam mattress at the end of the bed. He says he hit the mattress, which bodes well. So we head home.
Halfway home he's mostly asleep when he starts vomiting. A lot. For those of you without head trauma experience that is a Very Bad Sign. I made a U-turn and headed back to the ER. We got checked in again and were put in a triage room to get him changed into a gown. Now, vomiting after a head injury is a stronger indicator of very bad things in adults and is more common in children, but everyone was glad we were back. They are reluctant to do CT scans on kids because, well radiation on a growing brain can cause problems later on. So we decided to wait and see. He fell asleep and the plan was to wake him up every half hour to check his response to stimuli, etc. The problem was that he wasn't really waking up or responding. With a doctor forcing his eyes open and shining a flashlight in them he had great pupil response but no other response. It was terrifying. Now Jacob has always been a heavy sleeper. He doesn't really do anything half way. But this was the craziest thing I'd ever seen. We decided to do the CT scan - he didn't need any sedation or anything and in fact I moved him from the bed to the machine and he only opened his eyes long enough to tell me his head hurt. Seriously - there are not words. The CT scan came back fine and we were released about 3:30 with a list of things to look for and instructions for the next day: he needs rest and water, he may not be hungry but call us if there are any changes in behavior or personality. Apparently they don't know Jacob very well because if he rested all day and wasn't hungry that would be quite a change in behavior and personality.
He slept the rest of the night in the guest room and sure enough he was bouncing off of the walls and asking for food. You would not ever have known that anything had happened except for the fact that we now have our own Jacob sized hospital gown.
Now, I absolutely admit that four is a little young for bunk beds, but we decided to make the switch for two reasons. The first is that he is and always has been a climber. It used to scare the heck out of me but he's very good at it so we figured we'd use it to our advantage. The second is that he is already 4 feet tall so he has no problem reaching everything he needs to reach to climb in and out of bed. I talked to the doctor about it at his last physical and she didn't see a problem with it. Even the doctor last night who first saw him (the only one who even mentioned it) wasn't concerned about it after she saw him and realized what happened. So we will be revisiting the arrangement but we haven't taken apart the bed just yet.
He slept the rest of the night in the guest room and sure enough he was bouncing off of the walls and asking for food. You would not ever have known that anything had happened except for the fact that we now have our own Jacob sized hospital gown.
Now, I absolutely admit that four is a little young for bunk beds, but we decided to make the switch for two reasons. The first is that he is and always has been a climber. It used to scare the heck out of me but he's very good at it so we figured we'd use it to our advantage. The second is that he is already 4 feet tall so he has no problem reaching everything he needs to reach to climb in and out of bed. I talked to the doctor about it at his last physical and she didn't see a problem with it. Even the doctor last night who first saw him (the only one who even mentioned it) wasn't concerned about it after she saw him and realized what happened. So we will be revisiting the arrangement but we haven't taken apart the bed just yet.
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