This morning, a student had a seizure in my second hour class.
It was probably the scariest thing I've seen in my life, thus far. The worst part, the thing that I can't get out of my head, is that at first I thought he was goofing around. The students were working in groups, trying to get through "Clifford's first Valentine's Day" (en espanol) and I was walking around, checking on the groups. I happened to walk up to this student's group right before it all began. He was making some weird noises, but he wasn't convulsing or anything...it just looked like he was being a little goofy during group-work time. It wasn't until his eyes started to roll and his body began convulsing that it hit me - THIS WAS REAL.
And then it hit me. And overwhelming feeling of helplessness.
I'm just a student teacher, I don't know what to do in these types of situations. Do I call 911? Do I try and support his head? After a fleeting moment of being frozen to the spot, I called for my mentor teacher, who quickly gave me the extension to call the office while she tried to sit the student up. The school secretary called an ambulance, and sent some help to our room. After a couple minutes (which felt like an eternity....) a wheelchair, a hall monitor, and the school's police officer arrived at our room to help until the ambulance arrived.
All I could do was comfort my students, and again, I felt extremely helpless. Nothing I could say could change what had happened, so I did what I would have wanted for myself: I gave out tissues, hugs, and reassurances that they were taking good care of him and there was nothing that we could have done differently.
Does that mean I don't feel guilty for the few seconds I thought that he was kidding and not getting help sooner? Not at all. Am I so str0ng that this didn't shake me up? Yeah right...I'm as emotionally unstable as they come. But I did manage to hold it together to give support and comfort to my students. Once they'd gone on to their next class though, what had happened finally had the chance to sink in, and I'm left feeling dazed, shaken up, and scared.
Now, even 2 hours after it happened, my 4th hour students are splitting into groups to work through the Clifford story, it's replaying in my head over and over and I'm afraid it will happen again. I still feel helpless.
But, I learned today that I can stay strong in the face of an emergency and be the rock that my students need me to be, and for that, I am extremely proud and grateful.
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Good job Melanie! I can empathize with you! That would be scary -- but it sounds like you did everything you could do promptly. I'm glad I read this -- it will help me in the future if I face a similar situation.
ReplyDeleteCarol
Woe, Melanie. That would tough. Nothing could have prepared you for that. Way to support your students! I also love your honestly. thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
ReplyDeleteI relate to what you felt on a smaller level: I often feel distrustful of my students and jump to conclusions to learn that a student was just doing something innocent. i need to learn not to assume anything but to always be observant and on task.
Hey Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI am impressed by this blog. This is the type of thing that scares the crap out of me. In 5th grade, one of my classmates had a seizure next to me and it was very scary. As I was taking my CPR certification, I was praying that I will never have to use it. Although, I think as you did, somehow we find the strength we need when trials arise. Well handled and thanks for posting this.
As teachers, we will come in contact with ALOT of kids with different needs (educationally and medically). I think that the best way to prepare ourselves for something like you experienced is reading and visiting websites for tips. When I get my own classroom, I will look up the medical conditions of my students so that I can best help the students. Even so, I know that it is impossible to prepare for everything that can happen. You handled this situation well.
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