Shot Trauma

I have to sigh thinking about my day. I took all my kids to the doctor today for shots - all of them - Emily, Ethan and even Willow. Just turning two, Emily had her usual check-up and Ethan was along for the ride. I really hadn't even thought about flu shots until we arrived at the office and saw all the kids traipsing in and out of the office in front of us. But it was probably a good thing that I hadn't. We all know the reaction - hysterical cries and tears. Emily was actually excited to see the doctor. She was fascinated by the fact that the doctor was going to check out her body parts and listen to her heart go "boom, boom - boom, boom." She was more than eager to be there and so was Ethan, that is until he heard me ask the doctor about him getting a flu shot too. Total transformation. He started whining, hiding, refusing, yelling. Oh my! When the nurse finally came back in to give the kids their shots, I had to drag my 4o-pound hysterical son out from under the doctor's desk and pin him down on the examination table. I quickly pulled down his pants (the shot was to go into his thigh) as he continued to explode, kicking and screaming the whole time. The nurse grabbed his legs, and jab, there was the shot. More intense yelling, crying, craziness. Of course, by now, Emily was also crying, but luckily she was much braver than her big brother. Emily let the nurse pick her up and lay her down. She cried for less than a minute while Ethan continued his trauma. I was in disbelief. Emily left the doctor's office smiling, Ethan left crying. I finally had to harshly tell Ethan to quit it, which he immediately did. So much drama! Then we were off to pick up Willow and take her to the vet. Luckily Willow is a wonderful patient and sometimes the best kid I have :)