### Mother Issues Appeal after Toddler Hospitalised by Sunglasses Accident
A mother from Liverpool has issued an urgent warning to other parents following a terrifying incident involving a pair of children’s sunglasses, which left her young son in hospital with a serious head injury. Abbie Mitchell, a mother-of-three, recounted the distressing episode that quickly transformed her kitchen into, in her words, “a murder scene”, after a routine day out turned to chaos.
Abbie was playing in the kitchen with her 14-month-old son, Robert, on the day of the incident. She recalled how she had recently purchased a pair of inexpensive black sunglasses for her son for just £7, intending them to be part of his holiday wardrobe ahead of the family’s upcoming trip to Tenerife. Abbie said Robert was trying on the sunglasses with her supervision when a sudden accident occurred.
Without warning, Robert stumbled and fell face-first onto the floor. The impact caused the sunglasses to shatter, sending sharp shards of plastic into his forehead. The result was a deep, one-inch gash that immediately began to bleed profusely. “There was that much blood gushing out of him I couldn’t actually see where it was coming from because it just covered his whole face,” Abbie recounted. Overcome by panic but driven by necessity, she attempted to stem the bleeding with a damp towel before rushing Robert to the nearest A&E department.
Upon arrival at the hospital, the severity of the wound became apparent. Doctors promptly stitched the cut to close it, helping to stem the heavy bleeding. Abbie noted the shock of those in the waiting room at the sight of her own blood-soaked clothing and her son’s stained babygrow. “He screamed, I’ve never heard a scream like it. He doesn’t really cry either… so when he screamed like that it was heart-wrenching,” she recalled emotionally.
Despite the trauma and the drama of his injuries, young Robert bounced back remarkably quickly. Abbie described how, even as she was still processing the ordeal, Robert was already high-fiving and smiling at the medical staff treating him. She confessed, “I was more of a mess than him.”
Robert’s stitches remained in place for four days, and Abbie is hopeful there will be minimal scarring once they are fully healed. Yet, as she returned home and took in the aftermath – blood smeared across cupboards and the kitchen floor – the full gravity of what had happened struck her. “It was like someone had been stabbed in my kitchen,” she said, admitting that it took some time to clean up both the physical mess and come to terms with the emotional impact.
Abbie, who works as a carer, is now urging fellow parents to think twice before allowing very young children to wear sunglasses, particularly those not designed with the highest safety standards. “You think it’s okay for your kids to just wear a pair of sunglasses and you let them around the pool and stuff with them sunglasses on. It’s just a little word of warning to not be far away from them while they’re wearing them,” she advised.
Reflecting on her son’s active and adventurous nature (“He’s a proper boys’ boy… He’s wild. He throws himself off the couch without looking.”), Abbie said she would not let Robert wear sunglasses again until he is significantly older and more steady on his feet. She also raised concerns about the materials and construction of children’s sunglasses, stating, “They shouldn’t be made for babies if that’s the damage that can be done.”
Her experience highlights the importance of rigorous safety standards in children’s products, especially those intended for babies and toddlers. It serves as a timely reminder for parents: even seemingly harmless accessories can pose unexpected dangers to little ones. For Abbie and Robert, this holiday memory will last long past their trip abroad – but her hope is that sharing their story will help others prevent similar accidents.