Nursemaids Elbow

Never thought I would be posting about something called Nursemaids Elbow but unfortunately I got a first-hand look at it today and I can tell you it wasn't happy or fun! My poor little guy was climbing up to sit on the chair next to me at the kitchen table this afternoon as I was clipping coupons. This is a new favorite pastime of his - climbing in general! I found him on the kitchen table this morning and he is even able to climb into the car and into his carseat unassisted (of course with some spotting from Mom)! We have affectionately started to refer to him as the family "dare-devil". Well today the dare-devil met his match!
Like I said before he climbed into the chair to my left and as usual sat right on the edge of the chair. This always makes me nervous but I have found if I move him myself he will usually do the defiant toddler thing and move right back so I left him where he was. We were listening to his favorite children's folk music cd so I am not sure if he started dancing or just slipped but I caught him in the corner of my eye and I grabbed for him but only got his hand/arm while the rest of him took a tumble. In retrospect he probably would have been better off just falling off the chair as a whole, arm included because 30 minutes later we were in the doctor's office having his Nursemaids Elbow looked at. Thankfully she was able to maneuver his arm a bit and his joint I guess popped back in place. Nevertheless it provided for a very upsetting day all in all.
Of course when he first fell I scooped him up to console him, not yet aware of the severity of the incident. Being the dare devil he is we have gone through these motions before a few times. He usually cries for 10 seconds and then he's back to climbing again! But this time I could tell there was something more. I started to try and undress him to see if I could see where the injury was and I realized that he was having lots of pain whenever I tried to move his right arm. I thought for sure I must have dislocated his shoulder by grabbing his arm when the rest of him was falling. I felt horrible that I couldn't console him. Later at the doctor's office she asked if I could nurse him to soothe him. Boy I wish that had been an option! I have tried this in the past but ever since we stopped using the Lact-Aid after his first birthday he won't nurse unless it is in the middle of the night to help lul him back to sleep. And even that he hasn't wanted any part of for the past few weeks. It seems to frustrate him more than anything so I didn't want to add insult to injury. It did make me think of some other moms I know who are recently weaning their children from breastfeeding. I would give anything to be able to offer my own milk as comfort to my child let alone nutrients. Although I hate to admit it I even have a hard time being around them lately, I think because for one I am jealous and second I am sad they don't see the breastfeeding relationship for what it can mean to the child. Especially with Luke even rejecting comfort night nursing.
But I regress... So after we shed some tears (I felt horrible! I have never seen my little guy in pain and it was heart-wrenching) I called Dave and asked him what I should do and we decided Dr. Punger would be the best place. I can't stand the ER and choose to avoid it at all costs! And thankfully she was able to fix him right up! He cried the whole way there (I felt terrible putting him in the carseat!) and off and on while I consoled him in the waiting room but after she manuevered his arm he was miraculously healed! I almost felt crazy, like I over-reacted! But of course I didn't.
Then when I looked up Nursemaids Elbow I saw it is something usually attributed to nanny's or babysitters? What does this mean? And I wonder if all the problems I have with my joints has been passed on to my little guy? I sure hope not. That was a pretty good fall and unfortunately my grabbing for him led to a pretty good tug of his arm.
Well that is the summary of my day. My two guys just woke from their nap so I gotta go. Hopefully next post will be about something happy!