A win
Some backstory: I have a 20 month old baby boy, he has a HORRIBLE gag reflex and a weak stomach (thanks to my father for passing that on). My husband is “suppose” to be the “puke parent.”
Now for the exposure therapy: we were finishing dinner and my son decided he didn’t like anything but fruit, crackers, cheese and two pouches today. So at the end of dinner I gave him some more crackers to make sure he was full.
Well, a piece must of went down wrong. He started coughing, I stopped dead in my tracks. He kept coughing, a little gag and I knew it was coming. I grab my red solo cup (recently emptied of lemonade) and positioned in around his mouth. He fought to move it and actively vomited into it. My husband held his head still so he couldn’t puke outside of it. He puked a couple more times, into the cup and a little into his bib.
We started cleaning him up, he starts to hold his mouth open. I knew he wasn’t done. This time he fought so hard to not puke into the cup, my husband stood there like a wet noodled and gagged.
I am trying to get him to puke into the cup (which I had to switch out to a new one because it was so full) while he emptied everything he ate for dinner.
There. Was. So. Much. Vomit.
He finally was done, it was all over him. All over.
I was shaking but I did it. I was able to undress him and even carry him upstairs to the shower. I almost lost it a couple times (the panic was getting higher) but my husband was kind of useless.
I have come to accept that I am probably the “puke parent.” As I asked my husband “So I guess I am the puke parent” and he said “there was just so much.” I politely explained there will only be more as he grows up.
A win. I don’t want to do it again but a win.
Also, he was happy and laughing later that night. THANK GOODNESS.
Edit: my son decided to eat a piece of pear he threw up
AND
I was able to handle washing out his clothes while he was in the shower with dad!