Oh, the Drama and the Trauma

Yesterday at church, while Dave and I were sitting in a meeting, another adult comes into the room and tells us that Paige is really sick.  Of course, we get up and go into the hall to find the three other kids in her class waiting for us all frantic.  At first I thought she might be throwing up in the nearby bathroom, so I ask the kids if she is in the bathroom.  They start yelling, "no, she's is in our class!  She fainted!"  Then they start running towards the classroom.

Dave and I quickly follow to find Paige lying on the floor in a stupor with her teacher huddled over her.  The teacher tells us right in the middle of the lesson Paige's eyes rolled up into her head, she passed out and then her legs shook a little.  She asked us if we thought Paige may have had a seizure.

I got on the floor and rolled Paige over who is conscious but her skin is greenish-white and she is clammy all over.  I thought to myself, what could this be?  Then it hit me! 

I turned to the teacher and asked if the lesson had any blood or anything in it.  She seemed surprised but said, "actually, yes."  The teacher was telling the kids about the time Joseph Smith had surgery on his leg when he was boy and they had to cut the infection away without anesthesia.  That confirmed it.  Paige has a low tolerance for blood or anything like that and has fainted before---even at the sight of cartoon blood.  This however, was a little unexpected because she's never reacted to just a verbal story---there were no pictures or anything.  I told her teacher, "you must be a good storyteller."

Paige was still a little out of it and weak feeling so we just decided to go home early.  Fortunately, she was better and back to normal almost immediately.  She wasn't even halfway home before she asked for french fries and the star sucker she was given earlier in the day for being the "Star Child of Primary."

It was definitely a dramatic day at church and probably a little traumatizing for the seven year-olds in her class.  Each one had a different reaction:  one was crying, the other was over-excited jumping around and talking non-stop, while another kept re-enacting Paige falling off her chair and fainting.  I felt pretty sorry leaving that poor teacher for the rest of class period.

As for Paige, I think she was mostly embarassed.  I told her not to worry about, her mom fainted at church once too!  She's in good company.