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I don’t think I will ever forget the sight and the ‘sound’ of when my baby first rolled off the lounge. Fortunately he was not seriously hurt, but if you had witnessed the event and saw how my husband and I reacted you may have thought quite differently!

Then there was the time he fell off the bed, crawled into the cornice of the wall, bungy jumped down the back step or ‘face planted’ into some furniture!  I now know that the ‘first time is the worse time’ and every time something happens, especially with baby number 2, I am now far more in control and less over reactive (my husband, not so!).

With child head injuries, identifying and understanding  what constitutes a serious head injury, requiring immediate medical attention, and what is only a minor head injury, requiring tender loving care is a fine line and one that you understand far better over time, but for those of you who are seeking some simple guidelines, please read on.

I have found that the injuries requiring ‘tender loving care’ follow the same pattern of events;  the sound of a ‘thud’, a moment of silence and instant look of ‘shock’, an ambitious attempt on my count to make my baby laugh,  failing this, minutes of squealing and streams of tears, ceasing when a favourite drink and toy is offered. Crisis adverted!

It can be difficult to tell if a head injury is serious or not and if in doubt you should always seek medical advice.

Especially never hesitate to call an Ambulance (000), if your child shows any of the following signs:

  • Loss of consciousness, especially if longer than 30 seconds.
  • Drowsiness and does not respond to your voice.
  • Has other significant head injury signs, such as unequal pupils, arm and leg weakness.
  • Has something stuck in their head.
  • Has had a fit or convulsion.

Additionally, you should immediately contact your doctor and seek medical advice if your child shows any of the following signs:

  • Has lost of consciousness for less than 30 seconds.
  • Has vomited twice or more.
  • Has a headache.
  • Has a large bruise, lump or cut on the head.

In the event that your child has not lost consciousness, and is alert and interactive, may have a small bruise or cut on their head, but otherwise seems to be acting ‘normally’ apply a cold pack to the injury and pressure to any slight bleeding. If your child is sleepy, let them sleep but you can wake them every hour to check how they feel or that they are reacting as per normal to familiar things.  It is important to monitor your child and at any point you feel that things just aren’t ‘normal’ never hesitate to seek medical advice.

Now, thankfully all my experiences have been very minor and apparently child head injuries statistics conclude that boys will fall more than girls. So, with that in mind, my little men and I are doing our bit for science!

  • I tell you my kids have caused me to loose about 20 years off my life with their antics!! My oldest wasn’t quite 3 before his first real medically required attention accident. He army rolled with a toy attatched to his arm and popped his shoulder *shudder*. My daughter (middle child) flattened (yes completely flat) her nose TWICE in 2 weeks jumping on her bed and smashing her face into her bedhead. She was about 2.5yrs old. And then my youngest.. He was being carried through the house by his big brother, while I was preparing dinner (silly hour in our house). My oldest tripped and dropped my 1yr old giving him a concussion :/
    I tell you, you need get used to it all and I still go in to ‘panic mode’ when one of my kids seriously gets hurt.

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  • this is a great article, thank you so much for posting it. I can’t count how many times I’ve had that time stopping moment when I’ve held my breath wondering if the injury is going to be massive or if its just a bump or graze.

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  • Thanks for the information. My daughter always falls and seems to hit her head no matter how much we try to avoid it. Great to know what signs to look out for

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  • Thanks for this great information

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  • Unfortunately it seems a hard thing to avoid little ones get up to everything, we just need try make it as safe as possible. I had a lot more injuries then my brother did growing up

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  • I’m still waiting for my daughters first bump luckily

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  • Does anyone else find the author’s picture extremely eerie?

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  • Great information to keep on hand…

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  • I had more head injuries than my brothers growing up. I had three years in a row of emergency trips to the hospital on Christmas Eve because I needed stitches. First time I hit the corner of the record player, the year after I ran into the pantry cupboard and the third I had something fall on top of me. The fourth year I was wrapped in cotton wool.

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  • I still remember a few moments when my boys have had eggs on their heads and I was not sure what to do. It’s always best to err on the side of caution and get advice just in case. I rather be an overprotective mother than have something go wrong and regret it later!

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  • My daughter has had many bumps to the head some that requiring doctors visits others a trip to the hospital. I used to carry a lot of guilt over these injuries but in reality there was nothing I could do to prevent them and now they seem to think she may have issues with her vision hence her clumsiness.

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  • its hard to avoid. You can turn around for a second and the kids will get into something.
    We just have to make our houses as safe as possible.

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  • im so not looking forward the first time my child is hurt in anyway

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  • My second child fell out a door and ended up with a large lump on her forehead. She didn’t get concussion. Then she was running down the hallway one day and there was a doodle pro on the floor. She slipped and smacked her head on the tiles. within 5 mins, she was falling asleep on the lounge, and within 5 mins of being up the hospital she started throwing up. Luckily wasn’t too serious and we were allowed to go home later that night. My third child was clipped in the back of her head buy a car that ran a red light and the day after she started getting very sleepy and then complaining that her legs felt funny. Within an hour she was vomiting and we took her to the hospital. They sent her home and said she had a bug. We took her to the GP the following day because she was no better and he said she had concussion. Had a ct scan and she had a small fracture in the bone behind her ear. She was vomiting for 5 days. Wouldn’t eat, every time she drank she would throw it back up. That was the scariest week of my life.

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  • An important read for all parents.

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  • I hate how much a minor cut on the head bleeds!

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  • Thanks for the great article.

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  • Good read thanks for the pointers!

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  • i hate when my eldest bumps his head its the scariest moment ever

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  • Great read i found this interesting

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