It is a story we laugh about now, but at the time, I was terrified. I was doing a review for Fiber Gummies, and had just received them in the mail. I put them on top of a high dresser, unopened with the cellophane still on it, and went downstairs to make dinner. The kids were sitting on my bed watching a cartoon. Not ten minutes later my son came running down to me to tell me that his sister had eaten lots of the candy. I couldn't figure out what he was talking about, so I went upstairs to investigate. There sat my daughter with the bottle of fiber gummies half empty. She had pulled their stepstool from their bathroom and brought it into the closet and got the gummies down. How she managed to get the cellophane off and the container open, I don't know. That hot rush of panic came over me and I scooped her up and called poison control. Luckily, these particular vitamins only included fiber.....which meant for a long night, lots of diapers and serious diaper rash. But had they been her regular vitamins, or something else, it could have been much much worse.
Since my recent surgery, my medicine cabinet has filled to the brim with medications that are significantly more harmful to children. Though most tops are "child resistant", 100% childproof they are not. So I headed to my local store and spent $20 on a lock safe. All of my medicines, including aspirin, fit into the safe, and the keys have a special home away from kids' curious eyes and hands.
The idea is perfect for older kids as well. Unfortunately there is an increasing trend of teens and pre-teens using their parents prescription medication to get a "high" or to sell at school. It may be more of a necessity to hide the actual safe and key in separate places the older your children are.
If you have ANY doubts as to if your child may have been poisoned, even if you aren't sure how many they took (or even if they took any at all) call poison control at 1-800-222-1222. The poison control center is open 7 days a week, 24 hours, 365 days of the year. You can also find them on the web HERE.
