To warn you all about the dangers of Foxgloves?

[Outfoxgloved]

Yes. I am unreasonable for sticking this in AIBU. Yes I'm fully aware that it's not at all unreasonable to warn someone about something dangerous.

Yes I'm also aware this post outs me, and so that's why I've name changed.

I'm hoping it's not against the rules to share a blog here? If it is, feel free to delete :) I shall take it like a woman.

Some of you may know the other me on here (since you know the story) please don't out me!

The story of what happened to DD2 last year

Thanks Preemptive, that would be great :)

I will happily gorge myself on all those things.

I'm hoping MN will consider it for blog of the day to reach a wider audience.

I'm too british! Every time I bump it I feel like I'm pestering people :o

I forgot to mention, DP (who knows a lot more about plants) was visibly shocked when I told him about your blog.

It was just the confluence of events! The rare luck that your DH observed the leaves and knew that Esme hadn't had salad for lunch. (DP got a little thoughtful at that part, small victory). The nearest A&E not being 1.5 hours away! Doesn't bear thinking.

My problem is, knowing very little/nothing about plants, I'm overly cautious, and that's also a shame. We keep watching shows like when Hugh FW's friends go foraging, and I always think I'd like to try, but just lose my nerve. And then I feel like a mug relying on supermarkets and packaging. It's sad and irksome, and more education would benefit more of us. I'd totally support a bigger awareness of this.

Foraging when you don't know what you're looking for can be incredibly dangerous. I remember going on one of those foraging courses. Seeing how hard it is to tell the difference between the very poisonous toadstool, and the edible mushroom that to me looks identical to said poisonous toadstool, made me promise myself I'd only ever forage with an expert to hand.

If I've remembered correctly, some people have been poisoned by foxglove, thinking it was comfrey or sage, and using it to make tea. Even the infusion is enough to do harm.

I have resolved to make sure dh always makes all meals from now on :o (although to be fair he already does most of the cooking, he's a dab hand). Blooming lucky we didn't have anything leafy for lunch. There were Spring greens in the fridge that would have looked nigh on identical after partial digestion.

I couldn't say if I would have picked up on it or not. But thank goodness he did.

He's a good H. I think I'll keep him :o

Thanks for sharing, op, so glad you dd is ok. I did know, but it's a good reminder and something that I don't think many people think about. The safety in the home leaflets from the health visitors don't mention garden plants. I think it's something both the nhs and garden centres could look at as it's not just parents who need to know.

I once got a very tight-lipped response from MiL when I refused to let her store a lovely aconite she'd bought in our garden when I had a two year old running around playing. My neighbour also has beautiful poisonous plants growing all along the front of the low wall at the front of her house, exactly the sort of place toddlers and dogs might take an unnoticed nibble.

The message here is to try and teach them not to pick and eat things unless they are sure they know what they are. My grandad drummed this into me as a child. We would go mushroom picking (he was an expert having grown up in rural Poland in the 1920s and had been doing it all his life) and would pick a good one and a poisonous one. We could never tell the difference so we learnt to be wary. It is a hard thing to ensure they learn though.

Thank you for sharing your story. I can only imagine how terrifying it would have been.

Swirling, I haven't looked through the HV's leaflets for a long time. I think I assumed there was probably at least a paragraph about checking your garden for plants when toddler proofing.

Swirling, it's lucky you recognised it. I'm sure many of us wouldn't.

Pilgit, X post, it certainly is a good message. And don't assume your dcs remember. Remind them everytime. I'd always stressed it with my dcs, but hadn't reminded them that morning.

If you'd asked me, I would have said that dd (6) would have told me the second it happened, or stopped dd2.

As it was she didn't react to it as something out of the ordinary.

:)

.