The Q-Tip Caper

Well, there's really no way to ease into this one, so I'll just say it- Will swallowed a q-tip last Monday. You may be asking yourself, "He swallowed the entire thing?" This is the typical response whenever I tell anyone the story, including doctors and nurses. I am now second guessing that this whole thing ever happened. Maybe it was all a dream (nightmare)???

Here's the "short" version of the story, (if you have already heard it, please feel free to skip to the pictures and video below). To keep Will in the bathroom with me when I'm trying to get ready before we leave the house, I often give him two baskets containing cotton balls, and yes, q-tips as well. He likes moving them from one basket to the other. I always thought this was a good developmental activity, and it kept him in the bathroom with me, where he was "safe." He was doing this last Monday and as I'm washing my hands, I hear a gagging noise. At first I thought he maybe just stuck the q-tip in the back of his throat and pulled it out, but when I looked at his face, he appeared to be choking. I quickly stuck my hand in his mouth to try and retrieve the q-tip. In doing so, I must have pushed it down. After the initial gagging, Will didn't cough or choke at all, which was a very good thing.

At this point, I was completely freaking out and called our pediatrician, who advised us to go to the Dell Children's ER. Six hours later, we were home and Will was doing fine. Basically, the only instructions given to us were to watch for the q-tip in his diaper, but no guarantees that we would even be able to identify it (we have yet to see it). As one of my friends said, "All of that time in the ER just to wait for a dirty diaper???" My thoughts exactly, Stacey! After X-rays and listening to Will's breathing over and over, they felt that he was fine, and there was nothing else to be done. (They did X-rays even though they said they wouldn't be able to see the q-tip...why did they do the X-rays then??? We are still asking ourselves the same question!)

A pretty successful first trip to the ER, I'd say. And I have to say that Dell Children's is a pretty spectacular place. Will and I may start going there to hang out on a regular basis. Will had more fun in the ER room than he usually does at home. Anyone want to meet us there for a playdate sometime?

See for yourself:

Does this child appear to be sick?

Stickers? Yes, please?

New toys (well, temporarily)? Yes, please!

X-Rays? No, thank you!

Don't know if you can see his face, but he's not happy. This was a very traumatic experience for us all. I wish I had taken a picture of the contraption they strapped him into.

And the crime scene, just as we left it.