Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

Can't sleep because I've convinced myself SS will be calling me about DS

61 replies

Anonymous1234567 · 29/04/2021 01:27

Name change for this because I feel awful

I don't know if I'm thinking irrationally because I'm overtired and upset but I can't shake this awful feeling.

DS who's 6 has been very poorly all of last night and today with a horrendous cough and a fever (took himfor a covid test this afternoon) and we were up all night last night because he just couldn't settle.
We were both beyond exhausted this evening so we headed to bed at around 9pm. I gave him some nurofen and STUPIDLY left the bottle and the syringe on my bedside cabinet. DS was lying in bed watching TV so decided to go for a quick shower. I got dried and changed and went downstairs to make us some hot chocolate and when I came back upstairs I found the bottle open and he'd helped himself to some nurofen. The bottle was definitely closed properly because I remember checking the cap like I always do.

There was less than 1/4 of the bottle left because I shook the bottle before giving him some and made a mental note to ask my DM to pick up some more for me tomorrow as we were running low.

I immediately called out of hours and explained what had happened and was told to call an ambulance. The dispatcher told me to sit tight and wait for a nurse to ring back. The nurse rang back and after a lengthy conversation she told me he hadn't consumed enough to need medical assistance and to keep a close eye on him for the next 24 hours and reminded me the importance of keeping medication out of reach of children which made me feel like a terrible mother that I needed to be reminded of something I should have known.

I feel so guilty and ashamed of myself. I'm always so careful and keep medication in a cupboard which my DS can't reach but I honestly don't know what came over me tonight!

My DS is now asleep but I'm wide awake, stressed, in tears and feel sick to my stomach envisioning SS knocking on my door tomorrow to ask me what happened and why I was so careless with my child.

OP posts:

Ohnomoreno · 29/04/2021 07:09

I have three kids and I think the medicine issue is pretty much the only thing that hasn't gone wrong. My DH endlessly leaves the booze cupboard unlocked, they've all fallen down the stairs, one of them fell off a boat, I lost one in Morrisons and had to review the CCTV footage to find her...honestly there are way more terrifying mistakes and SS has far bigger problems.

BalloonSlayer · 29/04/2021 07:12

Same happened when my DC were small, I suddenly noticed my DD's breath smelt like calpol but she wasn't the one who was ill! Can't remember how much she had swigged but rang NHS Direct in a panic, and they helped me work out how much she had had compared to her weight and it was ok. I still have the calculations pasted into my address book. I also had the lecture about leaving medicines in reach - I thought she was a sensible child!!! All was well and no call from Social Services.

nancywhitehead · 29/04/2021 07:22

Try to relax, there is absolutely no way social services would be interested in something like this - they have much "bigger fish to fry" as it were! If they called around every parent who did something like this they would have no capacity to get anything done.

Your son will be OK - a slight overdose of Nurofen is not going to do any harm - a very scary thing to go through though xx

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Families

nancywhitehead · 29/04/2021 07:25

Also - the only way social services would even know about this is if the nurse you spoke to on the phone had raised it as a safeguarding concern, which is highly unlikely. It really sounds like she wasn't concerned other than to remind you to keep medication out of the reach of children (standard).

Honestly - don't worry.

MangoMayhem · 29/04/2021 07:27

Don't worry. I have a friend who did this with calpol and her three year old drunk nearly an entire bottle - they did have to get admitted to hospital but there was no SS involvement other than the routine bit that they had attended an emergency department.

TheSockMonster · 29/04/2021 07:31

Social services are human too. If by some bizarre failure of common sense a social worker did end up at your door you’d probably get a sympathetic hug and lots of relief on the social worker’s part to have a nice easy case in amongst all the difficult cases they usually deal with (I used to sit on safeguarding panels!)

Ramenallday · 29/04/2021 07:36

DD 3, had to take her to A&E DRUNK after someone switched the juice and pimms jugs around at a BBQ
DD 3 and DS 4, both swigged from the calpol bottle
All 3 D.C. had to go in with carbon monoxide poisoning due to a faulty fire
DS has been in with multiple broken bones from stupid accidents on scooters and bikes

Not once have I even so much as had a call from the health visitor. Seriously, don’t worry

5zeds · 29/04/2021 07:36

You love him and made a mistake. Build a home where forgiveness is part of who you all are and remember that children learn from how you treat yourself as well as others. . Find a better system for the medication and remember regret and guilt only serve a purpose if they lead to better ways.

Lovemusic33 · 29/04/2021 07:39

I think it’s happened to loads of us, my dd took a whole pack of contraceptive pills which I left on the side (she was fine). These things happen.

Morph2lcfc · 29/04/2021 07:39

@RosieLemonade

I would be cross with DS. Six year olds know not to touch medicine.

How do they know though? Unless you’ve specifically told them. I can’t recall ever telling mine not to touch medicine but as its kept out of the way then I’ve never thought to specifically say. I’m guessing it could be the same with op, now she’s had this incident I imagine she’ll have a chat with him but no reason why he would have automatically known. Especially if he was feeling ill, he may have associated medicine with making him get better so perfectly logical in his mind to drink

minniemomo · 29/04/2021 07:41

Honestly? Ss are stretched to the limit dealing with parents taking illegal drugs, neglect and abuse, at most you'll get a be more careful letter/call but unlikely

Ohdoleavemealone · 29/04/2021 07:42

Think about all the parents whose kids ate the tub of sudocrem, who CHOOSE to give their kids calpol every time they make a noise.
All considered minor and are no worse than what has happened here.

When you purposefully pour drugs into his system and fail to seek medical support, then you should worry.

elfycat · 29/04/2021 07:43

DD2 when she was 2.5 years got hold of ibuprofen 200mg. I don't know how many she took, so had to say the max it could have been - 9 adult tablets. As she was a hefty toddler it wasn't a toxic dose for her weight and after a couple of hours in A& we were good to go.

No SS involvement. The doctor at the hospital had to ask how it happened (DH put them in his bedside drawer mid-cold and forgot to put them back out of reach). I got a letter from SS saying that they had a report of accidental drug overdose in a child, but there were no concern so they were not opening a case.

rosegoldivy · 29/04/2021 07:45

@Ohdoleavemealone

Think about all the parents whose kids ate the tub of sudocrem, who CHOOSE to give their kids calpol every time they make a noise. All considered minor and are no worse than what has happened here.

When you purposefully pour drugs into his system and fail to seek medical support, then you should worry.

Ahhh I am also guilty of this. Same DD. Left her alone for 5 mins to go get her bottle. Came back just as another handful went in her mouth with her proclaiming "yum yum"

Rachie1973 · 29/04/2021 07:51

@Ohdoleavemealone

Think about all the parents whose kids ate the tub of sudocrem, who CHOOSE to give their kids calpol every time they make a noise. All considered minor and are no worse than what has happened here.

When you purposefully pour drugs into his system and fail to seek medical support, then you should worry.

Lol. The sudocream. My granddaughter got our LARGE tub just last week. Coated herself, her cousin and her 7 month cousin. Plus every piece of furniture in the lounge.

I’m a foster carer so have a supervisory social worker. She thought it was hilarious.

I genuinely wouldn’t stress OP xx

HerLadySheep · 29/04/2021 07:59

I drank nail varnish remover as a child! Thankfully with no major ill effects or social services involvement.
It's unfortunate but entirely accidental and with no long lasting problems, social services have much bigger problems on their hands than a loving parent who sought immediate medical attention when there was a problem.
Forgive yourself

Lalliella · 29/04/2021 08:04

When DS was tiny he found a bag of perfume samples in a bottom cupboard in the bathroom and sampled them. Sadly googling “My toddler drank perfume” didn’t help me, I was beside myself. He was perfectly fine though and nothing came of it. Don’t worry OP, you sound like a good mum.

Embracingthechaos · 29/04/2021 08:04

This kind of thing happens all the time. So, so common. I doubt you'll be getting a call from SS. Even if you did, it would just be box ticking to say that they've contacted you and reminded you to keep meds out of reach of children.

I hope you manage to get some sleep.

EasterEggBelly · 29/04/2021 08:04

I would have trusted a 6yo not to help themselves to medicine but kids surprise you all the time.

Hope he’s ok OP.

RosesAndHellebores · 29/04/2021 08:10

Funnily enough when dd took 11 antihistamine and took a swig of benylin aged 16 when she was actively self-harming CAMHS had refused to support her and she had a private consultant psychiatrist safety netting her, because she went to a&e, responsibly, to make sure she had done no lasting damage, A&E tried to admit her for an emergency CaMHS review and reported to SS. In fact they lied about that which I later triangulated. The paed consultant told me I had given permission for it to happen. I had not. I was called at 5.48 and I found out it was reported at 4.15!

In the event I was phoned by SS and the chap had such a poor grasp of English I could barely understand him and was unable to disseminate why he was calling and what support he was offering.

Hopefully they won't call you but if they do I would advise you keep very careful notes because ime nurses and HV are not to be trusted insofar as telling the truth is concerned.

sanfranfibber · 29/04/2021 08:19

OP given DS is 6, could he not answer if/how much he'd taken?

ViewFromHalfway · 29/04/2021 08:20

I once woke up to hear DS1 (about three at the time) over the baby monitor telling his baby brother to stop spitting out his medicine. I raced through to their room to find DS1 had managed to reach the box with painkillers etc. in because we'd just moved and I'd temporarily put it on a window sill on the landing, not realising he could reach it.

He'd tried to give his brother paracetamol tablets and heartburn tablets and DS2 had bits of white all round is mouth. I felt awful and immediately called NHS Direct.

When I actually properly looked at the boxes and picked up all the bits of tablets I could find it became apparent DS2 had spat out everything and couldn't have swallowed more than about a twentieth of a tablet so we were advised to just leave it.

I thought we might have a visit from SS but nobody ever mentioned it!

Obviously, the medicine was immediately moved.

dotdashdashdash · 29/04/2021 08:23

Same thing has happened to me before. SS didn't call. These things happen - I'm a dr, I really should Know better!

Hoppinggreen · 29/04/2021 08:28

When DD was 2 we went to a wedding leaving sil and mil in charge.
DD managed to get mils handbag down from a table and took out her blood pressure tablets. They found her with them and with one tablet on the floor that had been licked but they couldn’t be completely sure she hadn’t taken any so they took her to A&E - we got a call as we were checking out of the hotel 2 hours away!
DD was fine but we did get a call from our Health Visitor a couple of days later asking what happened. I explained and it was fine
She also said that the only reason it had been flagged was because we had been at A&E a few weeks previously when DD banged her head on a coffee table and cut it open (bit of glue, was fine) .
I really would try not to worry

rainbowthoughts · 29/04/2021 08:29

@RosieLemonade

I would be cross with DS. Six year olds know not to touch medicine.

This really isn't one to turn around into a 6 year old.

Flip

1 2 3