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Original poster

DD9 broke her collar bone and I sent her to school on a spoon of Calpol!

145 replies

JeSuisPrest · 03/12/2019 16:11

DD (9) fell out of bed last night at midnight (fast asleep, not messing about). She complained of a painful shoulder and was pretty upset. She could move both arms but one was obviously painful. She can be a bit of a drama llama so I made all the right noises, gave her some Calpol and she settled after a while. It was agony this morning and I had to help her dress. I said we would go to the local walk in straight away, but she had an event at school this morning she didn't want to miss and said she wanted to go in. If it was still painful she would tell a teacher. I got the call at lunchtime to say she was very upset. I took her to the walk in - broken collar bone. I feel like the shittest mum in the world.

Please make me feel better and tell me about times when you've not believed your children were ill/injured and packed them off to school with a dose of Calpol and the time honoured phrase "The teacher will call me if I need to come and get you" ringing in their ears... 😳

OP posts:

SlippersAndWinePlease · 03/12/2019 16:46

When I was little , maybe around 10 ish? I hurt my pinky whilst playing outside. I came in moaning to my mum who rolled her eyes and jokingly wiggled it and said "yep still attached"and left me to it , I cried*. Later that evening my pinky looked like a frozen link sausage she still tells me 20 years on how guilty she feels about that still didn't take me to get it checked

*Note - I was a very dramatic child (my family still take the piss out of some of my reactions to things ) my mum wasn't plain cruel.

Gnome134 · 03/12/2019 16:46

Also a collar bone here. DS was playing at school and got dragged by his arm. DH happened to be off work so got the call, he spoke to the doctor's surgery who didn't seemed concerned. I think this was the Wednesday, DS never really complained and it wasn't till the Sunday when he mentioned it was still hurting we took him to A&E and they did an X-ray. This thread shows how common it is, and I still feel guilty!

SlippersAndWinePlease · 03/12/2019 16:47

Bold fail.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

Children's health Families General health

keepingbees · 03/12/2019 16:47

I was a sickly child and my mum never used to believe me.
I developed an awful headache and bad throat halfway through my first day at a new school. She thought I was making it up because I didn't like the school. Shouted at me all the way home. When she eventually had a look she saw I'd actually got tonsillitis.

mummumumumumumumumumum · 03/12/2019 16:48

Very outing this one but I got a call from school that my daughter had hurt herself clapping in assembly. I was busy at work so wanted to ignore but sent her dad to check and she had broken her wrist.clapping.in assembly.

Snowpatrolling · 03/12/2019 16:51

My daughter fell off a storage box coming out of school. She’s known to be a bit of a drama queen!
Got home and sat her in front the tv and gave her some calpol. Was excited for my Chinese so queue a few hours later after I’d filled my belly, noticed her arm going black!
Yep, she had broken her arm!! When the dr said I laughed and said your kidding right!!
Felt very guilty as she needed surgery! Oops!

Lovemusic33 · 03/12/2019 16:55

My mum made me walk home from school (up a very steep hill) with a broken ankle, told me to stop making a fuss, wasn’t until we stopped at someone’s house, I took my shoe off and then couldn’t get it back in again, she then took it a bit more seriously but still made me wait until the next day to go to A&E.

Blobby10 · 03/12/2019 16:57

My middle child hurt his shoulder playing rugby one sunday morning - he was 9 or 10. Tried to carry on but was obv in pain so I pulled him off the pitch. He carried on as normal to school etc and it wasnt until he had an xray 10 years later following a shoulder dislocation that they asked when he had broken his collar bone!! Felt so very guilty but he never said a thing at the time!

Don't beat yourself up too much - maybe it will teach your daughter a lesson that she should only be a drama llama when its justified!

TheOrigFV45 · 03/12/2019 16:59

My sister broke her arm coming off a swing superman style

I read that as "my sister broke her arm off". I think you'd notice that.

Nannewnannew · 03/12/2019 17:00

Oh dear, OP, please don’t feel bad. When I was working in a minor injuries unit, a Mum brought her son in complaining of pain to his shoulder which had caused him to stop playing cricket that day. It turns out that the poor lad had fallen over the previous week, again playing cricket, and had actually fractured it then. Poor Mum was mortified that she had been jollying her son along all week.
Hope your daughter makes a speedy recovery.

KickAssAngel · 03/12/2019 17:01

One summer my DD had pneumonia, but I didn't realize and sent her to tennis coaching for the morning. The next day, of course, I needed to take her to the GP.

I was feeling guilty and told a friend what a bad mother I am. She said "at least you're not one of those parents who doesn't take their kid for an x-ray when they break their arm" ...

At that point I had to confess that the previous year DD had broken her arm and I hadn't taken her for an x-ray (for a week) as it didn't seem too bad.

ViaSacra · 03/12/2019 17:01

I'm a GP and initially thought my daughter was exaggerating when she fell off a climbing frame and broke her wrist. It was 36 hours before I took her to Minor Injuries...

moreismore · 03/12/2019 17:10

You definitely are in good company and should let yourself off the hook. Also your daughter sounds brave and resilient so pat yourself on the back for that

Futureplanning · 03/12/2019 17:10

I made my ds go to football, after not believing that his wrist was really hurting from a fall earlier on in the day.

It was only after watching him play whilst crying and it dangling by his side, did I take him for an X-ray. Yep broken. Mum guilt isn't alive and kicking here!

SinkGirl · 03/12/2019 17:12

My mum once waited 8 days to take me to A&E after a fall, even insisted I play the flute in a school concert - fractured humerus. She felt like crap too. It happens. Maybe take her more seriously next time!

ghostyslovesheets · 03/12/2019 17:14

DD2 - called her fakey Mc Fake when she refused to walk the day after she hurt her leg - (minors said it was a sprain the day she did it) - took her to A+E for a second opinion - A+E nurse made her stand on it to weigh her (also thought it was a sprain) - turns out she'd broken it in 2 places - both the nurse and myself where a bit shamefaced!

Also laughing like a drain at DD3 wobbling all over the place (to be fair she was laughing as well and the Dr's thought it was an ear infection) 24 hours later she was unconscious with encephalitis !

FanFckingTastic · 03/12/2019 17:18

We also had a broken collar bone incident here! My DD was about 4 or 5 and had fallen off her pony whilst we were out hacking in the fields. She had to choose whether to ride her pony back or walk on foot as we were literally in the middle of nowhere. She chose to ride. When we got back to the stables I realised that she was actually in a lot of pain and couldn't lift her arm up.... a quick trip to A&E confirmed that it was broken. I felt bad for ages!

Bippety · 03/12/2019 17:20

The school didn't notice until lunchtime either. That isn't a criticism of them, but it surely couldnt have been too obvious. Wishing her a speedy recovery, relaxing in front of the TV sounds great.

SweetPetrichor · 03/12/2019 17:23

I wouldn't beat yourself up about it. I fell off a horse when I was around 8-ish and complained of a sore wrist. My parents told me it was fine, sent me to bed that night and to school the next day. My mum told the teacher to ignore my whinging (mum was also a teacher at the same school). Then it swelled up...and she had to take me to minor injuries that afternoon and found it was actually fractured. I never let them live that one down!

Goodnightjude1 · 03/12/2019 17:24

It happens OP! Don’t feel bad. I broke my ankle when I was on holiday in France, I was probably about 10/11. I hobbled around, in and out of the sea with a ankle the size of my head for 4 days before anyone thought it might be an idea to get it checked!

Bunnybigears · 03/12/2019 17:25

My mum sent me to school with appendicitis but to be honest I cried wolf that many times I'm not really surprised and only had myself to blame.

It can happen the other way as well DS came home from school with a note saying he had hurt his arm playing but they had applied a cold compress. Turns out he had dislocated his elbow.

recycledbottle · 03/12/2019 17:27

Its hard to know with small children when its a break. My son fell off his bike and I brought him to ER but it was only a sprain and was fine within a week. I probably should have sent him to school. My neighbour, same story, same symptoms but he had actually broken his arm.

listsandbudgets · 03/12/2019 17:31

Dont worry broken collar bones are not always that obvious especially as on the face of it you can still use all you limbs even of ot hurts

When I was about the same age as your dd I fell off my bike and broke mine. My dad and step mum insisted it was just bumps and bruising and maybe some muscle strain...

It was only when I was still complaining of severe pain about a week later having gone back to my mums that she decided they should have taken me to hospital.. there was a monumental row between my parents about it as well

I recovered and so will your dd. All parents make mistakes.

icecreamsundae32 · 03/12/2019 17:31

Don't feel too bad! My middle child is a drama king and always complaining of something or another and I say school will call me if you are really unwell.... they never do.... but one day last year he came out of school white as a sheet, but burning up and crying saying his head hurt and his back hurt and he was dizzy. I had to help him walk home he was that bad, then got him an out of hours appointment as he was shivering and burning up, couldn't walk or do a wee and said he couldn't see properly! He had a kidney infection and blood in his urine and an ear infection at same time poor kid! I wasn't happy his teacher hadnt noticed how ill he was - he said he asked her 4 times to go to the office and she kept saying just have some water... I guess she thought he was putting it on but even I could see when I picked him up he was really ill!

Tiredmum100 · 03/12/2019 17:33

My mum sent my sister to school with measles, she was really I'll, my mum didn't realise ( this was back the 80s). The school kept sending her home, my mum kept sending hamer back in. I remember the doc coming to the house to see her. My mum also sent my sister to school with a broken arm. If fairness they had taken her to a&r whi said all was fine and sent her in her way. Until they rang the next day to say, no it was actually broken. I remember my mum trying to dress my sister wondering what all the fuss was about. My poor sister!

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