Ah Ah Ah Stayin’ Alive! Your children are going to find the most creative ways to hurt themselves. Bumping their heads, burning fingers, sunburns, scrapes, bug bites, and more. Knowing your first aid basics will give you peace of mind as you come across the inevitable injury. When I received my EMT-B certification forever ago, I went through the American Heart Association to get my CPR/First Aid certification. This is what I had been certified to teach, and this is what I taught to my fellow police officers when they needed their CPR certification. I would highly recommend learning CPR and First Aid, even if you don’t want to get certified.
There are plenty of injuries that you can take care of yourself, without the need of urgent care. There are obvious injuries that do require immediate attention, such as anything that renders a child unconscious or not breathing. Severe bleeding would also require immediate calls to 911. Severe, meaning, any gashes where blood is flowing.
But, for the day to day minor scrapes, burns, and stings, you can easily get a yourself (or make one) a first aid kit. You don’t need anything fancy. What I have found the most useful are:
bandaids
gauze and/or cotton balls
rubbing alcohol
neosporin
nasal suction
saline spray
aloe vera
tylenol
ibuprofen
This list will work for adult and child alike! If you want to buy a ready-made First Aid kit, you can get one on Amazon or basically any store.
**I am an Amazon Affiliate and I do earn on qualifying purchases**
Scrapes and Cuts
Probably the number one injury your kiddo will have is a scrape. These are pretty minor, but they do need to be tended to with a gentle cleansing. A soapy cloth will do. If you notice that it gets rubbed a lot, put a band-aid on it. I’m a believer in letting the cut breathe, but sometimes it will need to be covered and compressed. If your kiddo is bleeding from a cut or scrape, use some tissue or gauze to cover it and apply pressure. Do this for about 30 seconds and check it. Keep holding pressure until it stops and if the blood soaks through, do not remove the tissue, simply use another cloth. You do not want to remove whatever clots have formed. If it doesn’t stop with compression, it might need stitches, so take them into the emergency room.
Burns
Sunburns, oven burns, water scalds, and fireworks, oh my. Kiddos are gonna get burned. They want to touch things and they don’t want to come inside. What is a burn, exactly? A skin burn can be caused by both extreme heat and extreme cold. It damages the cells of the skin, and the level of damage (epidermis, dermis, subcutaneous) is labeled as a First, Second, or Third degree burn. The higher the level, the more damage and more dangerous and the area of a burn is also taken into account. A third degree burn (which is not common) on the leg is far less dangerous than second degree burns around the mouth and nose because of swelling possibly effecting the airway.
Most burns do not require professional medical treatment. Sunburns can usually heal on their own. Maybe use some aloe vera for comfort. You can get second degree burns from the sun, so keep an eye out for blisters. If they touched a hot stove, running their little fingers under cool water for a few minutes it best and then keep it clean. If it blisters, it is a second degree burn. For little ones, I would take them in if it is a large area affected or anywhere around the eyes, nose, mouth, or genitals. If it blackens, that is a third degree burn and they need immediate medical treatment, as the risk of infection is high and there is severe damage to the body. All of these require that you keep and eye out for infection. The burn removes the skin barrier that naturally protects us from germs.
Water Scalds
Now, a note on water scalds. This can easily happen from baths or washing hands without you realizing it. Check the temperature of your water heater. What is the hottest it can go? Usually around 130 degrees. I handled a case where a two year old was accidentally scalded by hot water from the bath. He received second degree burns. I got involved because the mother covered up the accident and didn’t take him in for treatment for over 12 hours. You can set your water heater to top out heat at 100, that is the recommended heat due to kiddos not regulating the hot water spigot with the cold.
Falls and Breaks
Your kiddo will fall off of things. You may fall off of things. Your spouse may fall off of things. I remember when my first kiddo climbed out of his crib for the first time. I walked in and found him on the floor and my heart jumped into my throat! When I was pregnant with my second kiddo, I managed to slip down the stairs. Accidents happen. Kids are pretty resiliant, and their bones are more cartelidge than bone at this time. However, if you do have a break, use something stiff to encircle the injury site (arm or leg). Such items as magazines, sticks, notebooks, or something similar, and wrap it in gauze or use bunjy cord to keep it steady.
AHA has instructions on how to make a triangle brace to place a broken arm in. If there is a bone sticking out, don’t try to put it back in. If your kid got impaled by something from the fall ( on a stick, a pencil, scissors, etc.), don’t try to pull it out. Call 911.
You kiddo (or you!) is going to bump their heads. When that happens, just be cognizant of their behavior and keep an eye out for any major changes. Headache, loss of energy, or appetite. Vomiting can also be a sign that something is wrong and they should go to a hospital. But, most of the time, they will be just fine.
Cold/Flu
Your kiddo getting some kind of seasonal sickness is inevitable, especially once school starts. Runny noses can last for weeks on end. Be sure to have a surplus of tissue and nasal suctions, such as a bulb. Do not dunk a baby in cold water if they have a fever. This can cause a febrile seizure. A damp, cool cloth is recommended for infants. If it gets too high, use Tylenol. Many times, if the fever is relatively low, like 100, I will not give them Tylenol. The fever is there to burn out the virus. But go too high, it can cause injury.
Keep your kiddos hydrated, wrap them up in a blanket and set them on the couch. They likely won’t want to go anywhere else, anyway. And they will want to be with you. Let them sleep it off. Why is chicken soup good for colds? Because there are vital nutrients and electrolytes in the broth.
Bites and Stings
There are all sorts of insects and arachnids to get a little feisty with their teeth and stingers. Bug bites and bee stings are going to come your way as your little one starts to explore thier world. I can’t tell you how many times I have had to tell my two-year-old to stop putting his hand in holes. Holes covered in spider webs, no less. Most spiders are not poisonous. Be aware of the ones that are in your area. I know here in Colorado, there are black widows and brown recluses. If they are in my yard, THEY DIE!
But there are many garden, regular brown, and grass spiders. I spray my home with an and around the exterior to keep the population down. Same with wasps. I understand some people want to keep it all natural around their homes. There are more natural remedies to take care of them. Wasps kill bees. And they are more aggressive.
Any bite or sting needs to be monitored for any allergic reaction or growing redness. Signs of an allergic reaction can be swelling, rashes, redness, and difficulty breathing. Signs of poisonous bite will be pain around the site, and spreading redness and swelling.
Pet Bites
There are also other animal bites to be aware of, such as from cats and dogs. Even a family dog and cat will bite if they are having tails pulled or ears wrenched. Teach kiddos to gentle touch pets. And don’t assume a pet will be good to little ones if they are left unattended. I’m not suggesting getting rid of dogs and cats, but I am saying your kiddos need to be supervised when the pets are around until your child is older and established. If there is a bite that occurs, if it breaks the skin, it will need to be reported and if it’s your dog or cat, you will have to quarantine it for 10 days (in Colorado). If it is someone else’s dog, they will have to quarantine the pet.
Keep your pets up to date on their shots. If your dog does bite and is not up to date on its rabies vaccination, it will, unfortunately, have to be put down.
Kids are Resilient
Overall, toddlers and babies are pretty resilient when it comes to their own self caused injuries. They will trip, fall, and bang their heads. Usually this does not harm other than teaching them to moderate themselves. They aren’t heavy or strong enough. If you have never used a First Aid kit, or dealt with an injury, then I would recommend making yourself familiar with the contents of a kit. There is plenty of free information out there and there are also paid courses for certifications. Soon enough, you’ll be patching up your friends boo boos too.