Feeling the Fear of Falling?

Updated: Dec 17, 2023

In this blog post, I would like to address how severe falls during childhood can lead to disasters if not handled properly. I would like to address places they commonly occur, as well as ways to avoid them from happening. Not only this but I would like to talk about ways that we can help make sure that after a fall these kids are taken care of so that way their injuries don’t get worse.

Effects and Fall Hazards

Kids can fall all the time and sometimes when they fall they aren’t always negatively affected they just have a small fall; however, falls are the main cause of injuries for kids. The Center for Disease Control Prevention (CDC) says that roughly 8,000 children are treated in U.S. emergency rooms for fall-related injuries every single day. Common places for kids to fall is on the stairs, beds without railings, windows, baby walkers, and on cluttered pathways. There are also fall injuries that may cause effects that need specialized care such as difficulty breathing, broken bones, bleeding, swelling, headaches, and loss of consciousness.

Prevention Techniques

While falling is accidental there are a couple of ways to avoid the situation from happening and several on how to keep the damage from the fall as minimal as possible. A few ways to prevent your child from falling include:

Never leave your child unattended in high places
Don’t use a walker for your child (instead use an activity saucer that doesn’t move)
Never leave a child alone around the stairs
Don’t keep loose rugs around the floor
Make sure all pieces of furniture a child might climb on are stable
Clean up spills around the home immediately

How to Act

After your child falls they will usually be ok, as their bodies are still developing and learning. However, if the child is crying or unable to get back up it is best to remain calm. A child is

able to recognize if you become frantic and that will cause them to panic themselves so it is always best to stay calm. After the child falls, ask them what hurts and then proceed to check if there are any injuries.

Tips on what to do to minimize damage:

Bumps and bruises -apply ice for 15-20 minutes
Cuts and scrapes-clean area with soap and water and then put on a bandaid if bleeding
Let the child rest and watch over them

A Few Severe Falling Incidents

Accidents with falling are happening all over the country, and you don’t want to be the one that wasn’t paying attention to your children, so remember to always keep an eye on them and be prepared.

What do you think is the most important thing to do immediately after a kid falls?