Pill Popper

Image from 123RF Stock Photo

I've heard tons of stories about raising kids from my friends with older children. One story that seems particularly common is the (typical) nightmare of teaching them to swallow pills. I actually have fairly vivid memories of the first time I tried. I was staying with a lady from our church, and it seems like I was running a fever. She wanted to give me some Tylenol, but she only had the capsules (remember those, the kind with powder inside that you could pull apart? I'm dating myself). I couldn't swallow it; I'd never tried a non-chewable pill before, and the fact that it floated triggered my gag reflex. She ended up pulling it apart and mixing half the powder in a spoonful of applesauce. I don't really remember learning to swallow a pill later, but that particular experience stuck with me.

Anyway, I realized several months ago that Luke is getting old enough that he will age (weight!) out of children's meds fairly soon, so we should probably start practicing the swallowing thing now, before it comes up. I'm good at swallowing them (I can take 4 Advil/Tylenol sized pills at once), but my husband nearly chokes on them one at a time. I wasn't sure which one of us Luke would take after. I literally have (had!) "teach L to swallow pills" written on our summer to-do list, using the suggestions from various friends to start with mini M&Ms and work up to the regular size, adding in applesauce or pudding if needed.

Turns out, all my fretting was for naught. Luke is having bad trouble with allergies this year (as are most people I know, including myself!), so I bought him kids' chewable allergy pills, but he didn't like the flavor. All on his own, he asked if he could just swallow it whole (followed by plenty of water, don't worry). I said sure. He did it fine, no problem. "That was easy." Whew! Thank goodness he takes after his mom.
Currently feeling: relieved