'This year, the school holidays broke me - literally'

"On the plus side, I got to lie in bed all day and didn’t have to make a single snack."

I think we can all agree, six weeks is too many weeks between school terms.

Putting the (very real) limitations of paid annual leave aside, six weeks is a long time to keep children entertained, and it’s damn expensive.

As a single mum, I actually consider myself fortunate, sharing the school holiday period equally in a week-on, week-off arrangement. 

Even so, the weeks on are FULL-ON.

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"I was broken... literally"

After camping trips, interstate travel, long car rides, a very hot and sweaty summer... the domestic tensions ran high and my patience was low.

One morning recently, I was coming into the home stretch, my last 24 hours of school holiday parenting before the kids went to their dad’s house for the final week before school started.

Our routine sees that once everyone is dressed and fed we walk down to our local café so that I can get a coffee. Just as we were leaving the house I asked my five year old to brush her teeth.

The audacity of my request unleashed an epic tantrum in the usually very sweet little girl.

Prioritising my caffeine addiction over her oral hygiene (I know, terrible parent) I abandoned the teeth brushing and decided to embark on our coffee mission.

We left the house but her big feelings followed us down the street.

I told my son to walk ahead with the dog, thinking I could wrangle the tiny tyrant. (Spoiler: I couldn’t.) 

I tried to stay focused on getting my coffee but she was pushing and shoving me as we walked (gentle children-ing is something we are working on). 

Despite being on the 5th percentile for both height and weight she is sometimes a force to be reckoned with.

The unlucky combination of her tantrum, summer footwear and an uneven footpath had me twist awkwardly and fall backwards.

My daughter had somehow managed to get tangled in my legs, pinning my foot to the ground, so that as I fell, my leg disconnected and came out of my ankle.

In what I felt and heard as a loud ‘pop’ I hit the ground and screamed.

Not in any pain yet (thanks to the body’s natural shock response), but I was broken.

I’d hit my limit (and the ground) after one too many tantrums these school holidays. I was done. 

Image: Supplied

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"KNOCK ME OUT" 

The kids and I were all in tears, before I collected myself enough to call a close friend who lives around the corner.

She was on the scene in minutes and took my kids and dog home as a group of lovely local women gathered around me for support. With an ambulance still an hour and a half away, I called my parents, who drove me to hospital.

I held my (very obviously deformed) foot in the air and breathed through each bump in the road like a labour contraction, the pain starting to kick in.

An x-ray confirmed that I had completely dislocated my ankle, broken my leg and would need extensive surgery.

“Please just KNOCK ME OUT,” I asked as directly to the treating team, who kindly obliged.

"The break I truly needed"

It sounds ridiculous but a few days in hospital on strict bed-rest turned out to be the break I truly needed. 

To an exhausted mother at the end of school holidays, the public hospital felt like a boutique resort! No pool or spa facilities, but I couldn’t have used them anyway.  

I was lucky enough to get my own room, north facing I might add, with city views - prime real estate.

The most incredible team of nurses, hospital staff and treating doctors took care of me as I started to recover (both from my injury, but also from school holidays).

I got to lie in bed and didn’t have to make a single snack. Pain relief and medical assistance were available to me at the press of a button.  

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The care of a world class public health system was combined with the incredible support network that I have in my friends and family.

The “village” ensured that I had a steady delivery of coffee, flowers, books and food, which has continued now that I’m home.

I’ve been chauffeured around, and was even able to be there on my daughters first day of school this week - a milestone that was definitely worth getting out of bed for.

It's been a welcome rest, but I hope the next holidays ends more smoothly - and quickly.

Originally published as 'This year, the school holidays broke me - literally'