There are major problems with this disorder. One problem is that when a person does not feel pain, then he or she does not realize he or she is hurt, which can be a dangerous thing. The second problem is that this disorder can lead a person to have behaviors that are more risky than others because he or she does not have the fear of getting hurt. My doctor said that everyone should be made aware of a child that suffers from this disorder. Since he or she could take a big fall and break a bone or seriously hurt him or herself, continue playing and even cause more damage to his or herself. As a parent, this alone can be a scary thought to think about.

I have seen my children with this disorder, playing outside, fall down and get back up and continue like nothing happened. Then when they turn around or run by me, they have a big bump on their head or a scraped knee, you are reminded that you have to check a child with this disorder if they fall or get hurt. I know some of you may be thinking, yes that would be common sense. When you also are parenting other children that do not suffer from this and you do not deal with the child getting hurt on a daily basis, you forget you are parenting a child with that disorder.

Beth was riding her tricycle with her siblings and fell over. I was outside working in the flower beds and also watching them, so when this happened I got up to go to her. Beth got right back up said, “Oh, I’m okay.” She climbed back on her tricycle to ride along with her siblings. I stood there watching her for awhile, she did wipe her face with her shirt (with the temperature being the high 90’s I did not think about that), and she rode by me several minutes later, she seemed fine. I went back to my gardening and the children continue playing outside. That night I was getting Beth’s clothes off, noticed some stains on her dark clothing, and then I saw a gash on her head in her hair. The staining on her clothes was blood and her scalp had matted blood. I did not even think or realize she had hit her head when she fell. I cannot even begin to tell how bad or unfit I felt as a mother to my beautiful daughter. This was a huge learning experience for me. I could not let her tell me she was okay as my other children have done. I have to check her out up close.

Foster Care: A Child That Feels No Pain