As a parent of three children, all under the age of five, I have become all too familiar with the emergency room. Our visits often fall under the realm of Murphy’s Law, with children getting sudden high fevers right before the weekend begins. We’ve also had our fair share of overly cautious trips for minor bumps and scrapes. (For instance, when looking up what does brain fluid look like, it’s quite distressing to find that it resembles mucus. How can I distinguish if my daughter’s runny nose is due to tears or something more serious? Fortunately, it was just tears.)
However, the most peculiar ER visit occurred a few months ago. It was a Friday evening, and after a long week, we were all exhausted. I was in the kitchen preparing dinner, eagerly anticipating putting our tired children to bed. Just as I poured eggs into the pan, my son burst into the room, crying uncontrollably.
“What’s the matter?” I asked, concerned.
Between sobs, he exclaimed, “I don’t think I swallowed a penny!”
This was a new one for me.
“What do you mean you don’t think you swallowed a penny?” I inquired, trying to understand.
His emotional state escalated, and he became even more distressed, unable to articulate his thoughts. My husband and I exchanged bewildered glances. I decided to call my daughter, who was playing nearby, for clarification. However, she adopted her familiar silent demeanor, realizing that discretion was the better part of valor.
I sighed, switched off the stove, and called my brother, who is an ER physician.
“He says he doesn’t think he swallowed a penny,” I told him.
“So, he probably swallowed a penny,” my brother summarized.
I sighed again, realizing that this was likely the case.
Thus commenced the most embarrassing ER visit I have ever experienced. My husband took over dinner preparations while my son and I made our way to the hospital. On the drive over, he calmed down, but I couldn’t help but ask for more details.
“I don’t think I swallowed one,” he reiterated.
“But why would you even be worried about it? Can you clarify what happened?” I pressed. He remained tight-lipped, and we continued our journey.
Upon reaching the ER, I explained to the receptionist, “My son doesn’t think he swallowed a penny.” She held back laughter while processing our check-in.
Soon, we were led to a room where I repeated the situation to a nurse and the on-call doctor. “My son is unsure if he swallowed a penny.”
“Did you swallow a penny?” the doctor asked him.
“No,” my son declared, sounding increasingly confident in his denial.
The doctor chuckled and assured me, “He almost certainly swallowed a penny.” (Is there a specific course for this in medical school?) He decided to bring in an x-ray technician to locate the purported penny, emphasizing that while everything would probably be fine, we needed to ensure it wasn’t lodged somewhere.
By this point, my son was happily engrossed in a Disney show on the hospital TV—a treat he rarely gets at home. The x-ray technician entered, cheerfully exclaiming, “I hear your son didn’t swallow a penny! That’s a new one!” He proceeded to take x-rays while my son remained fixated on the screen.
After a while, the doctor returned. “Your son is a very truthful boy,” he stated.
“You mean he didn’t swallow a penny?” I asked.
“No penny,” he confirmed.
I barely registered what the discharge papers said, perhaps warning us to look out for signs of an overactive imagination. I realized I had paid a significant amount for the assurance that my son had not, in fact, swallowed a penny.
In the days that followed, I tried to discuss the incident with my son again, but he remained elusive. Eventually, he mentioned something about not being able to find a penny, leading him to believe he must have swallowed it. Apparently, if it’s not on the floor, it must be in the stomach? I’m still perplexed by the entire episode. But I’m grateful it ended positively.
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Summary:
Navigating the ups and downs of parenting can lead to unexpected situations, such as an ER visit spurred by a child’s overactive imagination. This humorous yet bewildering experience reflects the challenges parents face when interpreting their children’s concerns. Despite the confusion, it ultimately underscored the importance of understanding and communication within a family.
Keyphrase: Overactive imagination ER visit
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