Childhood tale of poisoning

When I was younger, about 12 years old, my little brother who was about 4 at the time drank paraffin. He had been roaming around the house while the rest of us watched TV. He landed on paraffin which had been put in a certain beverage bottle and hidden somewhere in the store. He drank some….nobody knew how much considering we didn’t even remember what the original amount in the bottle had been.

It was about 3pm , we were home alone…..me and 4 other siblings and 2 house helps. I remember being called from the living room by the house help and finding my little brother standing at the stairs ,very unaware of his “crime”. Any black child will tell you that growing up, it was a crime (according to the family law) to even commit anything that offended you. It was a crime to cry..like how? How do you even cry after being beaten….you get another beating for that. ….. Will probably write more about this soon. Back to my littlebrother.

At 12, I didn’t have any knowledge about handling a poisoning case of any kind. I probably just knew about the dilution concept of taking milk or lots of water. But this case felt different for me. Paraffin. What if the paraffin reacted with the milk? I didn’t know how worse this could get. Also, I couldn’t use the home phone to call my parents….good thing my brother looked stable, but no this wasn’t the reason I didn’t call. I didn’t call because I was scared I had committed a crime myself.  I was supposed to have been looking after my little brother. Question would be…..how did he find the paraffin in the store and drunk it on your watch…….you feel me?

So, very terrified and confused at the same time, I undressed my brother, bathed him, made him drink water…lots of it, but I still had one problem …..the smell of paraffin on him. At this point I don’t even know if it was psychological? But I had to get rid of it. By this time, it was around 5pm, and my parents would be home 7pm from work.  I did the wierdest thing of my life. I got a toothbrush, smeared soap on it…..yes, soap, one of those scentless kinds and I used it to brush his teeth. Don’t judge me, I didn’t know how else to be alive that night. 

And in not any way did I think of my little brother dying from the soap …I was careful enough that he doesn’t swallow any

Later on, I watched him closely till my parents showed up after work. The little guy was very well, no vomiting , no fever, no stomach upset, and  certainly no smell of paraffin. And you can bet my parents have never known about this story .

I’m happy I have learnt how to manage poisoning in medical school. Maybe I will teach my kids what to do at an early age….just  incase 

Today’s lesson;  as parents or guardians , you should always keep substances of potential harm under lock and key. This includes medicines of any kind.  

Thanks for reading 💖