Something's screwy!

On Friday when I went to my mom's for lunch, I found Jocelyn playing under mom's table with her cousin Callie.  Jocelyn sees me and sits up.  She coughs a little, and looks nervously at me.  "Mommy, I just swallowed a screw."

Oh jeeze.  We made in through more than three years of her putting everything in her mouth without an incident (that we know of).  So it comes down to an accidental swallowing because she likes putting things in her mouth?  Really, kid?

I ask her and her cousin details about the screw, and whether it had a point or not.  I highly doubt there would be a pointy screw at my mom's, but I have to ask.  I try to ask how big it was.  I'm not getting any good answers that make me feel better, so I call her doctor's office.

A couple hours later, we head in for x-ray number one.  First, they check her chest, and thankfully it's not there.  That means it's cleared the esophagus and it's not in a lung or something.  Second, they check the belly. 

There it is!  It looks like it's in her stomach, and it's a half inch blunt-tipped screw.  Thank goodness!  The doctor checks her out, she seems otherwise fine with no pains in her stomach.  So we are instructed to watch her and bring her back tomorrow.  They will do another x-ray to make sure the screw is moving.  Also, a doctor will check her out to make sure she's not showing any signs of blockages.

We are to watch for fever, vomiting and bad bellyaches.  If any of those happen, we should take her to the emergency room immediately.  I am hoping and praying it won't happen that way. 

We are also to check her stool (ewwwww!) so we can verify she has passed it.  Just what I always dreamed of!  Checking my daughter's poop for a screw.  Thank you, Jocelyn, for the gift that keeps on giving!

No poop on Friday.  The next morning, Jocelyn is still feeling fine.  We take her to the Prompt Care since it is Saturday, and her regular doctor's office is closed.  We wait for the doctor who comes in and checks her out.  Everything seems normal, so we head back to x-ray.

This time, we get a nice, clear picture of the screw and where it's located.  It's made it down into her intestines, maybe to her colon.  We are relieved to know it's moving along.  The x-ray tech tells me her intestines are full of...hmmm...I can't remember exactly how she told me Jocelyn was full of it, but she did.  She said that it was probably slowing down progress.  I was still hopeful, based on it's location, that it would come out in poop #1.

Later that afternoon after her nap, poop #1 happens.  I can almost tell right away, it's not there.  I check anyways (yuck!) and verify what I already know.  Only a mother's love can make a person do these things, I swear.

Even though the second doctor suggests we come back each day until the screw shows up, we decide to wait it out another day at least.  I will call her doctor's office on Monday if we have nothing by then. 

Sunday brings poop #2.  Similar to the first poop, I could almost tell right away a screw would not be in there.  But I check anyways.  I have to be sure.  And I'm right.  No screw.  Ugh!  How much longer can this take? 

Monday comes, and I'm hoping for something.  I decided to wait until after the next poop to call her doctor's office, but I watch her closely for signs of problems and feel her belly every day for any pain or hard spots.  As of Monday night, no poop.  By this time, I think she's trying to avoid pooping.  She's a little nervous it's going to hurt when it comes out.  It's starting to frustrate me.  Halfway through her bath, she tells me she has to poop.  I do a little happy dance because I'm sure it will come out in #3!  Yes, I just did a happy dance for poop...the first time since potty training.

She sits on the little Elmo potty that I've set up for poop collection.  After a while, she says she's done.  She also tells me there's no screw.  I ask her how she knows, and then I look.  There's only a few tiny rabbit poops in there.  Sigh.  I guess we're going another day.

Tuesday.  If it doesn't happen today, we head back to the doctor.  Nothing by lunch time, but when I go back to my mom's to pick Jocelyn up, she hands me a folded papertowel and says, "Mommy, I have a surprise for you!"  I unfold it, hoping that it will be what we have been waiting for the last four days. 

It is!  It's the screw!  It looks just like I thought it would.  I am so relieved, and we do a little happy dance together.  We've had many conversations since that screw was swallowed, and she promises me she will never do it again.  I want to believe her, but as always, I never say never--especially with this kid.

So, in this case, it take approximately four days and two hours for a screw to travel the entire digestive system of a three year old.  Thankfully there was no real damage, and hopefully there will be a lasting impression and lesson learned.  I will certainly have a good story to embarrass her with one day when she's a teenager--and great pictures to prove it.