They say we have two ears and one mouth because it is more important to listen. What they neglect to mention is mothers have at least two eyes with a possible third in the back of their heads. One eagle-eyed mother made a scary discovery after giving her toddler a bath.
Jessica DeLoach’s family had just moved to a more wooded area and were enjoying time in the great outdoors while getting their new house remodeled. Jessica discovered some irritation in her 2-year-old daughter Averie’s ear post-bath. A trip to the pediatrician uncovered it was ticks. Jessica is sharing her story to help out other parents and caretakers.
Initially, Jessica assumed that Averie had shoved something in her ear. Jessica called her pediatrician to see what she should do. The doctor advised her to come in right away.
"It seriously looked like she had shoved some food in her ear," Jessica recalled to People magazine.
Jessica followed the doctor’s orders and brought Averie in. Thankfully, Averie was pretty much her normal self. She just didn’t want her ears touched.
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Mom had to help out so the doctor could examine Averie and eventually remove the mystery object. Averie sat on mom’s lap so she would remain still and calm. It was not an easy process.
"The removal process was very traumatizing as you have to hold the child still to remove items safely," Jessica explained. "A 2-year-old just doesn't understand what the doctor is trying to do."
It was then the doctor made a scary discovery. The unknown object was actually two ticks. No wonder Averie’s ear was irritated.
"I had no idea it was a tick until the doctor started removing it from her ear," Jessica recalled.
Jessica is relieved the whole incident is behind them, and Averie made a complete recovery after about a month. She believes it could have been much worse.
"I'm just glad she didn't have any after effects," Jessica said.
Jessica shared her story on TikTok to help other parents who might find themselves in similar situations. Her post quickly went viral, amassing over a million views in just one week. Jessica realized that this was more common than she knew.
"Other parents have told me about similar experiences, even ticks crawling onto their child off of their dog. I've learned it happens more than I could have ever imagined," Jessica said.
Ticks can carry diseases, the most common of which is Lyme disease. To avoid exposure, the National Institutes of Health recommends wearing light-colored protective clothing with long sleeves and long pants. You can even tuck your pant legs into your socks or tape any openings. After time in the great outdoors, check yourself and your pets for ticks. Shower and wash clothing on high heat to remove any from hard-to-see places.
