In tornado alley, everyone is wary of passing storms. It's a way of life. But more than a few people I know torment their kids during every storm, tear them out of bed at the sound of thunder, and hide in the shelter at the first drop of rain, waiting for the next "big one" even though statistically that will never happen again. I can't imagine what those kids must feel, being torn out of sleep by frantic parents rushing to the basement. Must be similar to Anne Frank and the Nazi's. How scary. I won't instill that kind of fear in my kids because the world is scary enough. I don't want to raise them to be afraid.
This afternoon my son was with his dad, while they were going to the bank a red car next to them was surrounded by police cars. The boys got caught in what we t.v. watchers would call a "take down operation" by our local police, who were trying to arrest a person in the car next to my family. My husband jumped a curb in his truck to get away from any possible stray gunfire. He took my son into the nearest bank, surely that's a safe place, right? And of course the bank goes into lock down so that no gun toting maniacs run inside. Apparently they don't know my husband. What a treat to be stuck in a locked building with my amped up 4 year old. Needless to say, he was very excited.
An hour later, I picked up my son and went to our local home improvement store to pay a bill. We walked in and were waiting in the customer service line, seemingly forever with three kids, when a cashier a couple isles over started yelling HELP! I jogged over, trailing two kids, to see a cashier on the floor. People were trying to hold her up. It was very obvious to me that she was having a seizure, poor lady, and that most of the people there didn't know what to do.
So, with my meager medical training, here's what I think. When some one's having a seizure, there's not really much you can do. Other than preventative drugs, you can't really stop a seizure. Don't put a stick or anything else in the person's mouth. Lay them on their back, or side if you think they're going to throw up, and just keep their head from banging on the ground. Pretty simple. They won't swallow their tongue. They may bite you if you stick anything in their mouth. Afterward, they'll come around and be very confused. Tell them to stay lying down until help arrives or they're aware of their surroundings again. Afterward they're usually tired. Feel free to email me if I missed anything here.
Luckily, another guy there has read this blog and knew what to do. Long story short, I spent part of the afternoon holding a stranger's head while my kids worriedly looked on asking why the lady was sick. Not exactly an easy situation, deep breath, and give calm explanations. I think this helped the other cashiers too. They all looked a little spooked. I jetted with the kids before the fire truck and ambulance got there. I felt a little like Batman. What? You wanted me to hang around?
See? The world is a scary enough place all on it's own.
Today my oldest son was in a police shoot out, a bank lock down and a medical emergency. True story. It wasn't a movie set or anything interesting like that, just the course of a normal day gone wrong in a lot of ways. And a day that was very lucky in others, since we are all home safe. So if all this can happen in a normal day of a 4 year old, then I won't ever understand why parents terrify their kids over events no one can control. I don't want to raise my kids to be afraid. I want them to be strong, and cautious, and smart. I want them to hide from tornadoes, not storms; run to help people, not away; and drive away from danger instead of getting hurt. I hope today taught him just those things.
P.s.- Writing this, I had over 500 views, not a lot for some, but I appreciate you all for reading
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