What should I do for toddler that got stuck by a cactus?

janandmar asked:


Over the weekend our 24 month old got a ball of cactus stuck under her shirt. We pulled the ball out right away and she was fine. Later she started screaming about it and we found another sticker under her waistband. It has been a couple days now but she was screaming about it again today and kept pulling away when I tried to inspect the area. All I could see were some red patches and one red bump that seemed to irritate her the most.

She has very sensitive skin anyway so I don’t know if it is just irritated or if there are still tiny stickers that I can’t see. Should I somehow try to get any invisible stickers to the surface or just wait it out? None of the methods I can find online seem like they would be well tolerated by a toddler (duct tape, needles, etc.) I’m also wondering whether to call the doctor since I’ve read it could get infected.

Anyone have experience with this? We could really use some advice to make our daughter more comfortable.

Oh, and we don’t know what kind of cactus it was. It was very low lying in the grass and the ball was pinkish with just straight stickers (not the whiskery kind). This happened in south western North Dakota.
Thanks for the answers but I can’t even begin to imagine waxing a toddler’s delicate skin and I can’t even get her to stay still to look at it let alone allow glue to dry (though it sounds like it would work). I’m looking for something that is appropriate for a toddler and also wondering if anyone has had this happen to their kid and what you did.

I will try the Tylenol if the pain persists – right now it seems to be only occasionally bothering her. Some warm baths sound good, too.
Well, we have just waited it out and the irritation seems to have gone away. Thanks for all the suggestions.

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