After a somewhat frantic call when he couldn't remember what the building looked like, I thought all was well. I didn't expect to hear a forlorn voice calling to tell me he had to have three shots.
Later when he described how much the tetanus shot hurt, it reminded me of the past. Remember the first shots your infant received and how utterly helpless you felt when your sweet baby felt the prick of the needle?
I remember my firstborn receiving his vaccines at his first doctor's visit. I broke out in a cold sweat while his pitiful crying caused milk to flood out and soak my shirt. I left the office with his blanket draped around my shoulders like a poncho.
When my younger son was seventeen months old he was admitted to the hospital overnight for symptoms of severe croup. This boy was normally attached to me like velcro. He had no idea why some strange lady took him out of his Mommy's arms and walked out of the room. The other nurse told me that he was about to have an IV inserted into his little arm. She advised me to leave the pediatric wing and return in 15 minutes. The sounds of his cries, she told me, would break my heart.
Even though I took her advice, my heart broke later when I saw him lying in the bed with a splint on his arm. It broke again when I had to hold him in my arms and restrain him while they checked his vital signs, or administered the medicine.
My only saving grace was knowing that this pain, whether from vaccines or the IV was fleeting. The good was going to outweigh the initial pain.
There is no way to avoid the pain, but we can ease the hurt. We comfort them, dry their tears, offer a shoulder to lean on, and remind them they are loved.
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