16m old possibly drank bleach!!!

[Nickname1234567]

Hi all.
I feel like a terrible parent right now!
So around an hour ago this happened, I live in a flat and was sweeping the front room when my 16 month old wondered into the kitchen because i had accidentally left the door open slightly and he has entererd the kitchen, he usually walks into his bedroom to play with his toys. It had to have been less than a minute he had been left, probably about 30 seconds!, i walked outside the front room and seen him sitting on the kitchen floor with a bottle of opened bleach!!! I know i had shut the cap after use and put it under the sink but it must not have clicked and he managed to unscrew the cap and put the top of the bleach bottle into his mouth (i suspect, as i smelt bleach on his mouth), so i was immediately panicking, pacing feeling sick crying i rang 999, they said that it is unlikely that he has swolled any based on his symptoms and that he probably did just put the top into his mouth and didnt consume any of it, they said to just keep an eye on him but he will most likely be fine but I feel absolutely terrible, i dont usually let him into the kitchen without me, and i am mortified that i have let this happen, and how stupid i am that i havent yet installed a lock on the cupboard which i have been thinking about for a while!, im also now worried that health proffesionals or even social services are going to contact me because i have been unresponsable by letting him get into the cupboard! - i am probably being irrational because im so upset that this has happened. I dont even know what i hope to achieve from writing this, but i have no one else to get advice from really. My little one seems fine and is acting himself, but i am definitely going to be watching him none stop all night because i am so paranoid. I immediately washed his mouth out when i smelt bleach in his mouth and have brushed his teeth and gave him plenty of water to drink. I am a ftm and have well and truly learnt my lesson from this. :(

I doubt they’d phone social services - accidents happen.

That said, you do need to work to prevent this in future. A child lock on the cupboard sounds a sensible idea

God, that's scary! It sounds like he's fine though. Bleach would have burnt like bloody hell and he'd be throwing up/coughing/crying if he'd drunk it. Just thank your lucky stars and move on.

Thanks for your comment - I agree i do need to get a lock and i will be out first thing tomorow to get one. Does anyone know where i can find child proof locks? Mother care maybe?

Don't worry, these things happen.

With my pfb, I stupidly had those toilet rim cleaner things in the loo and he picked it up and stuck it in his mouth. We had a little trip to A&E and they confirmed he was fine.

Health visitor came round, nothing else happened. I learned and didn't use those rim cleaner things again for years after.

Thank you, he was crying at the time but that was mainly due to me being hysterical and scaring him! He seems okay thank god, im just so relieved that he is ok, but im still worried, and will most definitely be up all night with a hand on his chest!

Amazon. We have these on most of our kitchen cupboards (the bottom ones anyway) and the work brilliantly. You can't see them from the outside, either.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cupboard-biddle-Cabinets-Quality-Adhesive/dp/B07H9D1JD2/ref=mpssa111_sspa?keywords=cupboard+locks+for+children&qid=1559247209&s=gateway&sprefix=cupb&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

I would imagine MotherCare do them if you have one you can get too.

I also bought some amazing magnetic ones from Amazon,for future reference, if he starts getting into any other cupboards!

Shouldn't your 16 month old be in bed by 8pm?

Do you have a cupboard that's very high to put your cleaning products in?

Thank you for your comments i will take a look now.

Welcome to parenthood, you have to have eyes in the back of your head. When my son (he's 36now) was 18months decided to climb the ladders I had out to clean the windows, the door bell went so was distracted thought he was safe as had put him behind a baby gate. He then climbed on to the kitchen worktop opened a cupboard and
drank glue solvent. This was on the top shelf and at the back of the cupboard.
You are not a bad parent, you have contacted the right people for advice. Put it down to experience and think of what they little one will get up to next and try to deter them.
Over the years we became well known at a&e with all my sons antics.

Oh no, what a scary situation for you. Even if social services were informed; the absolute most they’d do is check to see you’ve rectified the situation and put locks on the doors to prevent it from happening again.

Accidents happen, you absolutely did the right thing by seeking medical advice and have learnt by it by looking into locks. You could also consider moving things like this to a high shelf out of reach.

I got some locks from boots for my cleaning drawer and this has stopped my baby opening it. Easy to unlock but take a while to loosen up to be able to put back on. Easy to install as have a sticky pad on the back. We had others which had screws which we were never going to use!

www.boots.com/the-boots-baby-multi-purpose-latch-10185878

Hope your little one is ok xx

Please don't worry. It sounds like your child is fine and that's the main thing. If health visitor does call round I'm sure they will be pleased to see you've added locks etc and reduced future risk. Things happen, try and not be too hard on yourself. It doesn't make you a bad parent, I'm sure their are lots of us that have had narrow escapes and a had to learn our lesson! X

I’d say swap cupboards around so cleaning stuff, medication etc are in a high cupboard

catmg do you have children that actually sleep??? Amazing!

Putting my 20mo to bed by 8pm would be totally useless, there’s no way he’d go to sleep then no matter how early he’s woken up.

Hope he’s ok.

Our under sink cupboard locks with a key, so provided it’s kept locked and key put away properly, there’s no way a toddler can get in there.

@catmg - my 16 month old goes to bed at 8.30 every night. You probably think me very lax and permissive.

I know 2 parents whose children got hold of bleach and SS got involved, but there was a background for each.

I think if there are no other concerns and you're taking steps to ensure it doesn't happen again, you're fine.

Thanks all. Ive just ordered some locks, the door will remain shut around my little one untill they have been fitted.

My sister drank diluted bleach when we were little. Her symptoms come on quickly, so if he did he would most likely be throwing up badly.
My Grampy use to soak his teeth in bleach and water. The glass was in the bathroom up on a shelf and she climbed up and drank it. 999 telling mum don't let her be sick as it burns but it couldn't be helped. She had to drink a pint of milk to sooth her.
No SS involved, but this was 30 years back now!

I'll just add - from a safety perspective, cupboard locks which have a mechanical function (e.g. plastic springy catch you pull down to open) are much safer than magnetic ones. If the magnets become detached from the cupboard and find their way to the floor they become a massive hazard for small children, as if they swallow two magnets they can become attracted to each other through the bowel/intestine and cause rupture.

I think it’s very unlikely he managed to tip the bottle up and swallow any bleach, he will be fine. I had a similar incident. I was cleaning the bathroom with a spray bottle with bleach cleaner, turned around and my toddler was licking the top of the bottle. I Phoned 111 and they didn’t seem bothered at all. These things happen and it’s an easy mistake for a FTP to make. I don’t think you realise how quickly the little blighters move! I highly doubt ss will be interested but it is a wake up call. Apparently lots of kids try to eat those washing liquid tab things because they look like sweets. A lock on the chemicals/cleaning cupboard is the way forward.

And oh dear, i have never had any kind of background with ss and havent got any reason for to so hopefully the emergency services will just recognise that it was a complete accident, they did ask to access his medical records whilst i was on the phone which obvcourse i agreed to. I havent had any other problems before other than minor illnesses, this is the first time something like this has happened and i feel the worst! :-( i feel so guilty but i am so relieved that he is okay that is the main thing. Thank god :(

Locks on the cupboards, like the idea of putting the chemicals and medicines high up and maybe consider a stair gate to the kitchen. We’ve always had one to stop them going into the kitchen. I think if you’ve put things in place to prevent it happening again then if SS do come then you can show what steps you have taken.