Drama at the doctor

I had a scary moment at the doctor today. Embarrassing and chilling.

It was a challenging appointment from the start. As I filled out forms and confirmed my insurance, Q asked questions about everything around him and R grabbed at things on the desk. In the exam room, Q was shy and nervous, and R was tired and fussy. I juggled the boys as they were weighed and measured, examined and probed.

Then it was time for the horrible shots. Three nurses surrounded Q, held him tightly, and stabbed him with one vaccine in each arm simultaneously. The poor guy had such fear in his eyes as he looked up at me. I told him it was medicine to prevent him from getting really sick. When the pain hit, his bottom lip trembled and his face crumpled, but he didn't cry. Such a brave little man.

R had three shots in his legs. He cried heartily but got over it quickly. They were deemed healthy and happy, collected their hard-earned stickers, and we went off to check out.

That's when it happened. I put R down momentarily as I wrote a check for the co-pay. He crawled around a bit crossing the mat that activated the automatic door. And then suddenly he was on the move, speeding toward the door. Before I could react, the door started moving and closed on his head! It immediately reopened, and I sprinted over faster than I knew I could move, but he was crying and rubbing his head. Nurses gasped. It was awful.

I felt like a horrible mother. He was OK of course, but I felt bad for looking away even for a moment. I had the fleeting thought of the door not popping back open. Of it closing, injuring him terribly....or worse. I felt sick and fearful.

I don't think I'll ever look away again.

--MM