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Original poster

3 year old knocked out tooth

23 replies

JJRN · 11/05/2022 20:37

My son is 3 years old and yesterday he had an accident at a splash pool resulting in one of his front teeth being completely knocked out - root and everything! Luckily he had no other injuries at all but I am completely racked with guilt. I can't eat. I can't sleep. I cannot stop crying. He had such a beautiful smile and he looks completely different now. He also said this morning oh mum it hasn't grown back. Breaking my heart.
Dentist said we have to wait to see if we need to do anything in the future as losing a milk tooth too soon can affect the adult teeth coming through.
Has anyone else experienced this?
My partner won't talk to me. He is really annoyed with me. I'm so low and just wishing I could turn back the clock :-(
He is starting nursery in September and I'm worried that he will be picked on. If only we had not gone at all! I can feel the anxiety in my chest. It's making it difficult for me to sleep.

OP posts:
Ohdoleavemealone · 11/05/2022 20:40

Accidents happen! try to put it behind you.

2pinkginsplease · 11/05/2022 20:42

Accidents Happen.

I work as an early years practitioner and one of the children in my care tripped and knocked their front tooth out. Dentist said the same. I felt so bad they had done it on my watch however mum and dad said it was an accident and these things happen.

TooManyPJs · 11/05/2022 20:44

Ah bless him thinking it would grow back overnight.

It'll be fine. It's a milk tooth. He'll be fine.

Why on earth is your partner not talking to you? Unless you bashed your child in the face yourself deliberately that seems a completely inappropriate reaction. Is this type of reaction from your partner causing you to have such high anxiety over this?

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3 year olds Children's health Dental health General health
Original poster
JJRN · 11/05/2022 20:51

I was there but in changing room with my baby 7 month old. my sister was with my boy in the splash area. It was the shallow end literally ankle deep and there was a hippo that was squirtung out water he reached onto it and slipped. She caught him in time for no other injuries (such as bust lip etc) thank god. But tooth literally came out

So no it wasn't malicious at all. Me and my sister love my son. I genuinely believe it was a very very unlucky accident.

I keep telling myself that it's the milk teeth. At least he is ok no scars etc. It will grow back in a few years. My friend, doctor, dentist all said these things happen but my partner is so upset with me. I say to myself I need to get it together and deal with it as positive as I can because it is done now and I need to keep my son spirits up..... but yet whenever I speak to my partner I just feel even worse. He said it wouldn't have happened if he was there. He is having trouble looking at our son because he looks Injured. I shouldn't have left him with my sister etc....

These are all thing's I already know and I told him no on is more sorry than I am!

OP posts:
Original poster
JJRN · 11/05/2022 20:53

I don't know if any of you suffer with this feeling but it a feeling of dread that shoots through my chest. I feel panicked like I'm in danger like adrenaline rushing through my body even though I am not in immediate danger

OP posts:
silverlace · 11/05/2022 21:00

I had a similar thing with my son when he was a bit younger than yours. He knocked one tooth clean out and pushed the other up into his gum which required an operation.

I know how you feel, I have a photograph of him a few days before it happened with his lovely smile. It is an awful feeling but no one's fault.

Tell your partner to stop being so ridiculous. Ask him how your son feels if dad can't look at him because he is "injured". He should be stepping up and comforting you both.

You will all get used to it and it won't be long before all his friends start losing their milk teeth.

Kalista · 11/05/2022 21:04

This happened to my cousin's daughter. She knocked competely includinh root her top front tooth at the table corner when she was 1 year old. She is 7 and her teeth just came alright. I knocked out my adult bottom front tooth when I was 11. Your son's teeth will be alright.

I can relate to the guilt and sending you my best wishes. I feel terrible and cannot put yhings behind me easily.

DariaMorgendorffer · 11/05/2022 21:04

Your partner sounds awful op. This was an accident. Lots of children lose a tooth, and a milk tooth is of even less concern, even if it is of some to you which is understandable. Children have accidents all the time. He needs to stop being a dick about it. Please don't worry Flowers

Original poster
JJRN · 11/05/2022 21:05

I read on here that a few mums had said that eventually it becomes the norm. And yes very true all kids will lose their teeth in next few years...just worried about adult teeth being damaged.
I guess I can cross that bridge when it comes to it.
If only we could turn back time hey

OP posts:
dontknowhow2help · 11/05/2022 21:09

My sister's tooth was knocked out at that age (may have been my fault Blush a complete accident!) and did grow back but not until she was about 9.

It's not your fault! Bless him. Hope it is not too sore for him.

dontknowhow2help · 11/05/2022 21:10

It didn't "grow back"... the adult tooth came through i meant to say!

User7493268965 · 11/05/2022 21:13

DS fell over when he was nearly 4 and his tooth went through his bottom lip, he has a very small scar just underneath his lip, his front milk tooth didn't come out but turned grey and dentist said there was a chance of damage to his adult tooth but it was fine.

roastedsaltedpeanut · 11/05/2022 21:18

Same thing happened to my eldest when he was a toddler. He only and four teeth and knocked on out, clean through the gum. Rushed to emergency to be told there the same as your dentist. I was drowning in guilt for years and years and eventually learned to love the little mischievous and imperfect smile, which is what made the smile perfect to me! He is quite young so most of his friends started to lose their milk teeth naturally so he didn’t stand out at all. I find a gappy smile so endearing and charming.

Anyway his adult tooth came out recently, the relief was enormous! I have been told in most cases the adult teeth come out fine, may be a bit later. A lost tooth may affect speech development because it’s tricky to pronounce with a gap.
it will all work out and everything will be fine!

I despise partners who jump on the moral high horse at every opportunity as if they are some superior human species that looks down on us mere mortals and our ineptness. is being passive aggressive his best solution to the problem at hand? Where is the sense in that? What does he want to achieve by being silent other than to show his disdain of your mistake and his deluded superiority? Is this really the best time and place for that?

SpeedyMackechnie · 11/05/2022 21:26

Oh, OP, I really feel for you. You honestly have no idea how this feels if it hasn’t happened to you.

Me daughter’s top 2 front teeth were knocked out when my SIL was looking after her. DD was 22 months at the time, 6 weeks before our wedding. I was completely devastated and cried for days. I felt like I’d broken her. I thought it would affect her friendships, speech, eating, the way her adult teeth came in, everything really. And do you know what? It just didn’t. We all got used to it, I love the way she looked in photos when she had no front teeth. It just became ‘her’. LOTS of people asked what happened to them, which was a bit annoying, but her adult teeth came in fine and at the right age.

Only thing I would say is that the gap left a nice little slot for her thumb, and we didn’t stop her sucking it until way too late so when her top teeth eventually came in there was a bit of an overbite, which we might have noticed earlier has she had teeth. 16 now and a perfect smile (braces from about 11-13)

Chin up, you’ll get through this.

jammyrose · 11/05/2022 21:34

JJRN · 11/05/2022 20:51

I was there but in changing room with my baby 7 month old. my sister was with my boy in the splash area. It was the shallow end literally ankle deep and there was a hippo that was squirtung out water he reached onto it and slipped. She caught him in time for no other injuries (such as bust lip etc) thank god. But tooth literally came out

So no it wasn't malicious at all. Me and my sister love my son. I genuinely believe it was a very very unlucky accident.

I keep telling myself that it's the milk teeth. At least he is ok no scars etc. It will grow back in a few years. My friend, doctor, dentist all said these things happen but my partner is so upset with me. I say to myself I need to get it together and deal with it as positive as I can because it is done now and I need to keep my son spirits up..... but yet whenever I speak to my partner I just feel even worse. He said it wouldn't have happened if he was there. He is having trouble looking at our son because he looks Injured. I shouldn't have left him with my sister etc....

These are all thing's I already know and I told him no on is more sorry than I am!

That sounds like a partner problem, honestly.

As others, including your health professionals, have said - these things happen. It was an accident and it’s not your fault, or your sister’s. 💐

As for ‘having trouble looking at him’, wth? How would he cope with a bigger emergency or injury if it ever happened?

Hope little one feels better about his tooth soon, him hoping it would have grown back is very sweet.

Mossstitch · 11/05/2022 21:37

Your partner is being ridiculous, give it time and something will happen on his watch! Even if you were watching them every second you are unlikely to be able to get to them/catch them quickly enough every time. At least it is just a tooth..... In the grand scheme of what it could be that is very minor! Mum to three boys and how any of them survive to adulthood is beyond me, a few times lost one or other of them, twice near water (I still feel that anxiety feeling everytime I remember some of the near misses). Be kind to yourself, try some lavender in the bottom of the shower if you have any and deep breathing that always calmed me down. Your partner should be ashamed of himself, he should be reassuring you and showing you some extra care for the shock💐

Hallyup89 · 11/05/2022 21:45

My daughter was born without one of her front teeth. She's now in reception and although her teeth do look gappy, they've adjusted themselves so that there's not a huge where the missing one is. I don't think anyone at school has even noticed she's missing a tooth.
My older daughter had a damaged top front milk tooth, when she was 2, that went a weird shade of brown and didn't fall out when her adult teeth came through, so she had this baby tooth stuck in the middle of the two front ones. The dentist removed it when she was 7, and she's now 11 and her teeth have straightened out perfectly.
Neither of my children have ever been made fun of due to their teeth, so don't worry on that account. Your son's teeth will sort themselves out, I'm sure.

NewJerseyWater · 11/05/2022 21:53

Your partner is being disgusting. He needs to stop because as well as it being very wrong to treat you like this, your son will pick up on his feelings.

One if my kids fell off their bike aged just turned 4 and both front teeth were very wobbly and fell out soon after. They were with a relative at the time, I wouldn’t have dreamed of blaming them. They were one of a few kids with missing front teeth in nursery, accidents happen. I knocked one of my front teeth out as a toddler when I tripped over. When you talk to people, you’ll realise how common this is. Mine and my child’s adult teeth came through fine.

Your son will be fine as long as his dad stops acting like a dick. When your son is grown up, you’ll look back at this as just a little thing that happened.

NewJerseyWater · 11/05/2022 21:56

He said it wouldn't have happened if he was there.

As for this, how exactly does he intend to stop his child having accidents when playing? He sounds like a complete idiot.

Original poster
JJRN · 12/05/2022 08:39

Thank you all. I felt very alone last night and your messages helped a lot x

OP posts:
Lottie4 · 12/05/2022 11:07

My DD literally ripped four of her teeth out at 18 months (don't ask but resulted in an ambulance). Her adult teeth all came through.

Try not to knock yourself too much, your DP is being unreasonable. Accidents happen. I'd just got out of the shower when DD had her accident, I'd kept her in the bathroom with me.

spiderlight · 12/05/2022 11:18

I can imagine how upsetting it must be but please don't beat yourself up. My nephew lost both his top front teeth on his first day of Reception, aged just 4. He was gappy for a while but his adult teeth came through perfectly.

I hope your DH has given his head a wobble now and is being more supportive.

SpaceJamtart · 12/05/2022 11:24

I totally get the panicked adrenaline feeling its awful isn't it?
One of my brothers two front teeth were knocked out in a scooter crash when he was two, the adult ones were fine he was just gappy for a few years. He doesnt remember it now even though he went all through nursery and the start of reception before his grew in.

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