I personally shaved my toddler son’s hair off and honestly it was pretty traumatic

A little over two weeks ago, I had my first trip to the A&E department at Crumlin Children’s Hospital.

I count myself lucky that it took five years of parenthood before one of my two kids needed emergency treatment.

But then recently my son – named Felix and aged almost two-and-half years – was playing with his just-turned-five-year-old sister.

He slipped on something or other… and fell head-first on to a coffee table in the sitting room. There was a painful crack, and as he cried in pain I saw blood stream down his back.

Less than 10 minutes later he was back to his usual self – but by then I was frantically googling ‘toddler concussion’ and had already decided on medical treatment.

Being a Sunday evening, my only option was the brace myself for hours waiting in A&E. So off to Crumlin we went.

Ultimately, Felix was absolutely fine – his head was put back together and all was well again.

Still (in addition to his bloody scab) Felix was left with a matted mass of hair around where surgical glue had been used during treatment.

I’d hoped the glue would dissolve with a couple of baths and a comb. Wrong – surgical glue sticks skin back together so hair doesn’t stand a chance.

The solution? I personally (no hairdresser would go near a child with a recent head-injury still showing) had to chop his hair off.

Seriously.

Until recently, Felix boasted a full mop of dark blond hair. Not now. Now he has a tightly-shaved head. A ‘summer cut’ as my mother politely refers to it.

It was an understandably traumatic process. I started with a scissors… and then moved on to a razor when I realised I didn’t have the skills to use a scissors.

I didn’t intend to go as short as I did – but with each ambitious, inexperienced shave I had to even out a patch somewhere on his head… until it was just easier to go full skinhead.

Pixar’s Cars was on at the time – Felix’s current favourite – but him being two-and-a-half and all there was an awful lot of squirming and screaming (from both of us) and at once stage I even took a chunk out of my finger.

My son still looks gorgeously handsome, of course, but his ‘new look’ is stark.

However, and while I can now add ‘I shaved a toddler’s hair off,’ to my mum resumé – I reckon the experience was the first and last time I’ll take on that particular parenting challenge.

At least my finger is OK, Felix’s head has healed… and his hair will (eventually) grow back.