A Car Accident and a Birthday

On Monday, I was driving the boys to a friend's house to play, stopped at a stop light and was rear-ended. Instantly my head hurt as it had slammed against the head rest. Not ever having been rear-ended before, I looked in the rear view mirror because I didn't actually believe that we had been hit. Honestly, my mind went to earthquake first (but I realize that is probably because I'm in the middle of reading 1906 right now). Sure enough, the car was right there, too close to doubt.

After exchanging information with the 87 year old lady, I continued on my way, my car seemingly unharmed. I figured my headache would go away soon enough. I was wrong. I started to feel strange -- my vision wasn't fuzzy but my mind sure was. It was hard to keep up with the kids and I really just wanted to crawl on the couch and sleep for days. After the playdate, my friend urged me to go to urgent care while she watched the boys for me. I hesitated but then realized there would be no easier time to go... and it was only two blocks away. I could walk! (because driving didn't seem wise at the time).

They said I had symptoms of a concussion and gave me a muscle relaxer to help with the whiplash pain in my neck and shoulder. My friend drove us all home since I wasn't alert enough to drive. Chris met us at home and stayed home the rest of the week to care for the boys so I could rest. Thankfully the boys seemed unharmed!

Chris's birthday was on Friday but I had purchased a ticket to the Monet exhibit at the Legion of Honor for Thursday afternoon prior to this eventful week. So on Thursday I put on my brave hat and managed the kids by myself--with the help of my neighbor! Thankfully I felt alright most of the day and Chris enjoyed his day out.

On Friday morning, we woke up and celebrated Chris's birthday with presents and cards after breakfast. Then he took the car in to get an estimate of the damages. The car seriously looks like nothing happened, but of course it's $1000 to have the bumper repaired. Just like my head I suppose . . . I looked just fine, but I felt worse.

I was nauseous in the morning but really wanted to go to MOPS because we were having a special guest speaker and I didn't want to miss it. Chris drove me and the boys to the meeting and I'm glad I went! But afterwards I felt miserable. Shortly after we got the boys down for their naps, I started making phone calls to my primary care provider and the urgent care. I needed to be seen again. My headache had gone from manageable to this-might-be-killing-me pain. I was routed to the ER and since the boys were napping, I opted to go to the ER I could get to by bus. Not the highest rated ER, but the most convenient and I trusted they could get the job done.

After waiting in the waiting room, and again in the triage room, I was finally seen by the doctor who wasn't really concerned at all with my symptoms but agreed to give me a CT scan to make sure. After being there -- in the none air conditioned room on a hot day, with the flickering florescent lights, and random humming sounds from the equipment with the worse head ache ever --for three hours, I was told I was going to be fine. The CT scan was clean; the pain I felt was symptoms of the concussion sticking around. I should be fine in another week. I was relieved nothing else was going on in my brain but a little perturbed that I would have to wait to feel better and there wasn't anything I could really do.

So I went home. My superman husband had wrangled the kids together and went grocery shopping -- something I still have not tried with both kids! And took care of them when I returned to so I could make dinner. Not once complaining that this was his birthday.

And today, Saturday, the end of this weird week, I celebrated my husband's birthday by taking him to his favorite brunch place and filling him up with chicken fried steak and eggs and praying over his year and all the things on his shoulders. My headache subsiding long enough to enjoy the outing and my man.

On Monday, I was driving the boys to a friend's house to play, stopped at a stop light and was rear-ended. Instantly my head hurt as it had slammed against the head rest. Not ever having been rear-ended before, I looked in the rear view mirror because I didn't actually believe that we had been hit. Honestly, my mind went to earthquake first (but I realize that is probably because I'm in the middle of reading 1906 right now). Sure enough, the car was right there, too close to doubt.

After exchanging information with the 87 year old lady, I continued on my way, my car seemingly unharmed. I figured my headache would go away soon enough. I was wrong. I started to feel strange -- my vision wasn't fuzzy but my mind sure was. It was hard to keep up with the kids and I really just wanted to crawl on the couch and sleep for days. After the playdate, my friend urged me to go to urgent care while she watched the boys for me. I hesitated but then realized there would be no easier time to go... and it was only two blocks away. I could walk! (because driving didn't seem wise at the time).

They said I had symptoms of a concussion and gave me a muscle relaxer to help with the whiplash pain in my neck and shoulder. My friend drove us all home since I wasn't alert enough to drive. Chris met us at home and stayed home the rest of the week to care for the boys so I could rest. Thankfully the boys seemed unharmed!

Chris's birthday was on Friday but I had purchased a ticket to the Monet exhibit at the Legion of Honor for Thursday afternoon prior to this eventful week. So on Thursday I put on my brave hat and managed the kids by myself--with the help of my neighbor! Thankfully I felt alright most of the day and Chris enjoyed his day out.

On Friday morning, we woke up and celebrated Chris's birthday with presents and cards after breakfast. Then he took the car in to get an estimate of the damages. The car seriously looks like nothing happened, but of course it's $1000 to have the bumper repaired. Just like my head I suppose . . . I looked just fine, but I felt worse.

I was nauseous in the morning but really wanted to go to MOPS because we were having a special guest speaker and I didn't want to miss it. Chris drove me and the boys to the meeting and I'm glad I went! But afterwards I felt miserable. Shortly after we got the boys down for their naps, I started making phone calls to my primary care provider and the urgent care. I needed to be seen again. My headache had gone from manageable to this-might-be-killing-me pain. I was routed to the ER and since the boys were napping, I opted to go to the ER I could get to by bus. Not the highest rated ER, but the most convenient and I trusted they could get the job done.

After waiting in the waiting room, and again in the triage room, I was finally seen by the doctor who wasn't really concerned at all with my symptoms but agreed to give me a CT scan to make sure. After being there -- in the none air conditioned room on a hot day, with the flickering florescent lights, and random humming sounds from the equipment with the worse head ache ever --for three hours, I was told I was going to be fine. The CT scan was clean; the pain I felt was symptoms of the concussion sticking around. I should be fine in another week. I was relieved nothing else was going on in my brain but a little perturbed that I would have to wait to feel better and there wasn't anything I could really do.

So I went home. My superman husband had wrangled the kids together and went grocery shopping -- something I still have not tried with both kids! And took care of them when I returned to so I could make dinner. Not once complaining that this was his birthday.

And today, Saturday, the end of this weird week, I celebrated my husband's birthday by taking him to his favorite brunch place and filling him up with chicken fried steak and eggs and praying over his year and all the things on his shoulders. My headache subsiding long enough to enjoy the outing and my man.