When my baby fell from the bed

THUDDDD!

I was in my kitchen one winter afternoon, getting a quick snack for myself (after playing with my baby Anu for almost 2 hours) when I heard a bang. It came from the room where Anu was with my maid. I rushed there; assuming maid must have dropped something, wondering what it could be. Instead, I saw Anu alone in the room, lying on the floor, face down and crying loudly! My heart almost skipped a beat seeing her lying down! My baby had managed to wiggle down from a bed which had 6-8 inch tall cushions under the mattress on all the sides (the cushioning created a real depression in the middle of the bed, making us wrongly assume that our six months baby would not be able to climb over).

I picked her up and hugged her. Within a minute she stopped crying and was smiling as usual. But I was angry with myself that my baby fell right under my nose. In less than 5 minutes of leaving Anu with the maid, she fell. I labelled the worst mother in this world! And I was (wrongly) upset with my maid. Before I went into the kitchen, I had instructed her not to leave the baby alone on the bed, yet in a rush to finish her work, she sneaked out to put baby’s clothes for drying.

Although Anu was behaving her usual self and there were no visible injury marks, I consulted her paediatrician. Paediatrician checked for bruises and dilation of pupils. He informed that since there was no physical injury, no dilation of her pupils and she was playful and responsive, there was no immediate reason to worry. But he asked us to keep her under observation for next 24-48 hours. If a baby has an internal injury after the fall, it may not manifest immediately, and symptoms may appear in 12-48 hours after the fall. (Click here to read about first aid for babies)

The next 48 hours were terrible for me, to so say the least. I felt so guilty about Anu’s fall from the bed that I could not sleep and stayed around Anu, through the entire night. When the 48 hours had passed without any sign of an internal injury, I heaved a sigh of relief! But due to the self-imposed stress, I immediately came down with cold and fever 🙂 (stress can lower your immunity 🙁 🙁 ).

After this incident, I did learn a few things about how to prevent a baby from falling and what to do when baby falls. But more importantly, I realised that even with the best of intentions and efforts, the journey of motherhood may spring upon hapless situations in which forcibly pinning myself with guilt would not help my baby or me!

What to do when baby falls

A fall can lead to injuries in an infant, depending on the height from which baby falls and impact of the fall (a fall on carpet or cushioned surface is less likely to cause an injury compared to a fall on the hard floor or sharp objects). But honestly, it is challenging to constrain a baby to one place once baby starts rolling, sitting, crawling or walking. Babies like to move all the time and may even slip out of your hand while changing a diaper or just holding/rocking them.

If your little one falls from bed/high chair/sofa/stroller etc. and is crying, gently pick him up. Comfort or hug your child gently to make him feel secure. Check for any bruises, bumps or injury. If there is no visible physical injury and baby stops crying after a few minutes and is back to usual self mostly there is nothing to worry. But you still need to be vigilant for next 12-24 hours for a sign of any internal injury.

In case you notice one or more of the following symptoms in your baby, immediately after the fall or within 12-24 hours after the fall, visit your paediatrician/casualty immediately:

  • Visible injury, bruises or bleeding
  • Bulging of a soft spot (if a baby has a soft spot) or bump
  • Concussion
  • Vomiting
  • Seizure
  • Unconsciousness
  • Uncontrollable crying
  • Dilation of pupil
  • Weird rolling of eyes
  • Excessive or unusual irritability
  • Unusual lethargy or difficulty to wake up from sleep
  • Unusual or sudden loss of appetite
  • Poor coordination or loss of balance (observed if a baby can sit/crawl/stand/walk)
  • Confusion or inability to identify people around

If your child vomits immediately after a fall, turn the baby on his side gently (while lying) to avoid choking. If the baby has a seizure or is bleeding or is unconscious, try to seek immediate medical assistance (in person or to at least guide you) to carry your child to the hospital. If immediate medical help is unavailable, pick up baby carefully, avoiding any jerks or chance of a further injury, even while carrying the baby to a hospital.

Also, based on my experience I would like to say, please do not beat yourself down with guilt if your child falls. Try to remain calm as your baby may be frightened and may need to be comforted. You never intended for the baby to fall but accidents happen. Your self-imposed guilt will just make things worse for you and your baby.

How to prevent a baby from falling

Precaution is possibly the best way to prevent your baby from falling!

Avoid leaving your child unsupervised on bed/sofa/high chair/changing table or any other furniture whose height is more than 6 – 12inches. Also, you can install protectors/barricades around the furniture to prevent a fall or place mattresses/thick carpet on the floor around such furniture to reduce impact due to a possible fall.

Educate family members/ baby’s caretakers about the potential harm a fall can cause to the baby. Encourage caregivers to keep an active/moving baby on the floor as much as possible, especially when baby needs to be left unattended (ideally baby should not be left unattended at any time, but practically that’s difficult unless you have more than one caregiver)!

Use highchair, changing table or stroller with a secure harness only. Add a protective edge guard or cushioning on sharp corners/objects in your house. If using a crib adjust its base as the baby grows to a level from where baby cannot climb/jump out.

These are just a few suggestions for preventing a fall. Employ more fall prevention strategies based on your home layout/furniture. I really hope no parent to be in a panic situation due to a baby’s fall.