Kids That Go Bump in the Night (or Day)

I remember the first time R rolled off the bed. One minute he was drifting off to sleep while nursing and the next minute - THUD! I awake to a piercing scream and find my baby face down on the floor. "I AM A TERRIBLE MOM!" - the words were stuck in my head like one of those songs you annoyingly keep singing despite best efforts  (Achy, Breaky Heart, anyone?). When Z was born, I was confident and almost cocky in my mothering abilities. I wasn't about to repeat the same mistake twice, oh no. We bought a bed rail and pushed the other side of the bed against the wall. When I travelled, I even put a mattress on the floor next to the bed, just in case she did, via some circus act, manage to make it to the floor. Guess what? She managed to roll off two connected twin beds, on to the mattress and then on to the floor under the bed. I found her a few minutes later on her elbows, under the bed, looking rather pleased with herself.  SERIOUSLY?!!! Point is that getting injured is a rite of a passage every child goes through at one point or another; no point beating your head against the wall (sorry couldn't resist!) and ditch the mommy guilt too please!

Bumps 'n' Bruises

Time to revisit our ol' friend, Arnica! Arnica is one of those things no one should be without. You can rub some ointment gently into the bruise a few times a day and you'll be amazed at how quickly the swelling goes down. Better yet, keep some in the fridge so you can attack the swelling from all fronts. You can also administer Arnica in tablet form (30C or 30X a few times a day) for very severe bruises similar to the egg shaped one R acquired in Gym class. Sigh. There are some other simple remedies you can try like using lavender oil and also ice of course. There's also a folk remedy my mom swears by which is a 1/4 tsp or so of Turmeric powder mixed in hot milk - it's supposed to heal deep injuries from within. The milk is the carrier because apparently Turmeric works best when mixed with high fat content foods - you could substitute the milk for something else that has similar properties. This works well for injuries to the bone. The herb Comfrey is also known to aid in healing of bones and muscles and can be used as an external soak for inflammation. Add some Epsom Salts to a hot bath (Magnesium Sulfate) and the heat combined with the properties of the salts will also aid in reducing any associated pain. My final remedy for aches and pains general is a rice sock - take an old cotton sock, fill it with uncooked rice, microwave and voila! You have a home made heat pack.

Here is the link to a post from a fellow mommy blogger who details the things to watch out for when your baby gets a bump on his/her head. Dizziness/concussion is an alarm bell and any signs that your child is behaving out of the ordinary after an injury should be treated seriously and addressed by a doctor. 

Cuts 'n' Scrapes

I've talked about Calendula being great for wounds before so I won't go on like a broken Billy Ray Cyrus record (tee hee). Clean the wound with some witch hazel or my favourite, California Baby's Boo Boo spray a.k.a diaper wash first because Calendula tends to seal wounds with alarming speed. In my embarrassing post about my cut lip, I also mentioned raw honey working well for cuts - it arrested the bleeding immediately so it's a good one for wounds that don't respond to pressure or ice. If after a cut, you notice bruising or inflammation around the wound, it is likely the wound is infected and you should have a doctor see it (although Calendula and honey will work to prevent infection so if you catch it in time, this should not happen).

Burns

Raw honey works equally well for burns. Another great homeopathic cream like Arnica & Calendula is Urtica Urens. Great for burns and has helped me avoid blisters if used immediately. Vitamin E oil (break open a capsule or buy the oil itself) can help prevent scarring and also helps in healing the skin. This is really for first degree burns only. For more severe burns, take your child to the doctor to be on the safe side and use homeopathy to help help with the healing. The more common remedies for burns (with a young child, symptoms will be difficult to determine however) are:

-- Cantharis (restlessness associated with burn, better from cold)

-- Hypericum (shooting pains in nerves)

-- Hepar Sulphuris Calcareum (infection associated with a burn)

-- Urtica Urens (stinging pain, worse from cold)

AOBs (Any Other Business..I have to use my Project Management skills somehow!)

-- For insect bites, try applying a drop of neat lavender oil (this is the only essential oil you can apply undiluted) directly on the bite. Also use a baking soda paste to help with itching.

-- For splinters, tape a piece of banana peel onto the affected area and leave for 5 mins. The properties of the peel are supposed to help draw the splinter out

-- For bee/wasp stings, try homeopathic Apis Mellifica especially if the area is hot and swollen.

-- For nosebleeds, try a pinch of organic Cayenne pepper on a moistened q tip. Doesn't sting much contrary to belief and works immediately. 

I'll leave you with a quote from one of my favourite Mr. Men stories, Mr. Bump ;-)

"The trouble was that Mr.Bump just could not help having little accidents. If there was something for Mr. Bump to bump into, he'd bump into it all right."

~S~

Baby Constipation

Deciding when to pull the trigger and start baby on solids is a tricky one. Start too soon and you might have allergies to deal with later on - wait too long and your baby won't want to try anything other than milk.

In my experience with both R & Z, waiting longer was definitely my preference. With R, I started grudgingly at 6 months with..wait for it..avocado! Very excited at the prospect of trumping the common rice cereal, I began slowly introducing different foods, following the rule of one food a week to rule out any allergies. Unfortunately, my excitement was short lived as soon after we started him on banana, my firstborn became constipated. Contrary to popular belief, constipation isn't really about a lack of stool but relates more to the difficulty in passing a stool. Quite possibly one of the worst moments of my life was watching my poor child scream in pain as he tried to poop - 'twas time to roll up my sleeves and find something safe to help alleviate his suffering.

First port of call...reflexology. After reviewing different articles on the web, I was satisfied that this was an easy and pretty harmless treatment - it involves massaging certain spots on the feet (and also hands) that correspond to different parts of the body.

Example of a Reflexology Foot Chart

This type of chart is a great tool (!) to have for any mom, new or otherwise. You can find others on the internet, I chose one I like from a  website that has some great reflexology information. I have used reflexology to help colds, coughs, UTIs and just to relax my children as well. The technique involves using your thumb to apply firm but light pressure on the spot that corresponds to the problem area. You can massage in circles or just up and down - no hard and fast rule here except that you need to do it often and for at least a few minutes on each foot per session. For constipation, refer to the points above that relate to the liver, colon, intestines, stomach and the rectum all of which have a role to play in getting the body rid of waste.

A good aid in helping with the massage is olive oil. Used often in 'desi' (the somewhat affectionate name for people and culture of the subcontinent) remedies, olive oil is a relaxant as well as good for circulation. My mom and dad frequently told me to massage the kids with oil after baths and especially before bedtime to help them sleep soundly - babies especially benefit from the closeness and warmth of their loved ones' hands and also from the therapeutic qualities of the oil. You can also add a drop or two of lavender essential oil to make it even more relaxing - very safe to use on babies and smells great!

Second port of call..diet! I ditched the bananas and looked for constipation easing foods. Topping that list was mushed up prunes  - a few spoons of the yucky stuff and baby R was happily pooping away. Other good fruits for constipation are pears, peaches and plums..all the P's (excuse the pun!). Cut dairy as it is known to make the issue worse and add lots and lots of H20!

The combination of both diet and reflexology did the trick and I was a relaxed mom again (not for long though). Needless to say with Z, I waited a little longer and went very, very slowly. In fact, she didn't really start eating properly until she was a year and she never had a problem with constipation (or putting on weight).


NB Both my kids were exclusively breastfed up until they started solids and for a good while after..I'm a big believer in breastfeeding and feel that it is sufficient for the first year but certainly know & understand that it is not possible or ideal for everyone. If you are not breastfeeding, waiting until 6 months or beyond to start solids may not be the best thing to do so please exercise caution, do your research and discuss further with your pediatrician.


Happy Feeding!


~S~