Sunday, August 10, 2008

Kids with Concussions

My almost five-year-old was playing with my 17-month-old and things went terribly wrong. He gets mad, picks up the baby and basically throws him down on the floor. I run(too late of course) and console the baby while sending the older one to time out.

The baby keeps crying and crying. I start to get worried and try to think of the symptoms of a concussion. What should you look for if your child gets hurt? I remember lethargy, but can't think of anything else.

I was completely overreacting and the baby is just fine, but I still wanted to know the symptoms of a concussion in kids:

1. May lose consciousness, but doesn't have to

2. Dizzy, dazed, moving differently than normal

3. Slurred speech (if the child talks)

4. Sensitivity to light ( I did take the baby outside and make sure his pupils changed with the light)

5. Irritable

6. Overly tired all of a sudden

According to teenshealth.org, a concussion is a temporary loss of normal brain function. When someone gets a head injury, it can actually bruise the brain and cause it to swell.

Concussions and other brain injuries are fairly common. About every 21 seconds, someone in the United States has a serious brain injury.

The article also says boys are more likely to get concussions than girls, unless the girl plays soccer. Do your kids get violent sometimes when they play?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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4 comments:

Maria said...

My son hits when frustrated, but considering his age (19 months), I think that is normal behavior. He is still learning to deal with emotion, and we (and his daycare provider) are working on having him verbalize (or signing) his frustration rather than hitting.

tsheets said...

Time Out????!!!!!

Maybe for coloring on the walls....But, for something as serious as basically body slamming the baby.....

Oh! I know! Maybe you could give him a treat each day that he doesn't cause a head injury to the baby.

Jen Christensen said...

Rewards do seem to work with my older one. However, I don't think he'll ever body slam the baby. He was too violent for my taste in this case, but he has never seriously hurt him. I didn't mean to give the impression that he's a bad kid. He loves his brother, but they do fight, which I think is perfectly normal. I would be scared if they always got along.

And about the time out, it was a very long one where we talked several times about not hurting others and the dangers of hitting or throwing a baby. He also did not play outside that day. He definitely got the impression that this is a serious matter.

I sound defensive, but really I don't mean to be. I am curious, what discipline works for your kids? I am always willing to try something new that is recommended by another parent!

Maria said...

I think you handled it well. Certainly, tsheets is not suggesting that you beat your child or something equally appalling. Violence as a reaction to violence teaches... violence. A horrible cycle.

 
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