Prevent Your Child from Screaming About Every Cut or Fall
If the adult drops everything and runs screaming in panic for every small cut, then so will the child. As the adult, it is your responsibility to calm and soothe a child in a stressful or painful situation, not to make it ten times worse. Even if you are scared, worried, or nervous, the best thing you can do for the child is to never allow the child to see how you feel. A better thing to do is to aid the child with whatever first aid is needed, all the while acting like and verbalizing that everything is okay. Let the child know that he or she will be just fine, even in an emergency situation.
Take all the precautionary steps necessary, but without upsetting the child or letting on that something might be wrong. You can call 911, if needed, obviously, but still reassure the child. Do not ever let the child see you panic. If it is an emergency situation, sometimes stress can worsen certain conditions. It is always best to keep the child calm.
If you cannot keep calm during the minor situations, such as cuts and scrapes, neither will the child. Children learn from what they observe. If a child gets worked up over a minor situation, imagine how panicked the same child could be over a big incident.
When I was maybe around 18 years old, I knew a girl that always panicked for minor cuts. She would act as if she were going to die. No matter how many times someone would attempt to soothe her, it never worked. It would take her over an hour to calm down. I always worried that if she ever had anything serious happen to her, she would put herself into shock. I'm not sure if that's possible, but I know she would likely get a nervous breakdown. I'm not sure if anything bad happened to her, but I sure hope it didn't.
The reason for bringing up that girl is that I remember her mom doing the same. If she tripped lightly, her mom would rush to her and say, "Oh, honey, are you okay?" Even if she said she was, her mom would still continue asking again and again and offering her band-aids and ice for something that wasn't even there. She would scream and panic. This mother's behavior likely led to the child's behavior. As I said before, children learn from observing those around them, especially their parents.
This is how I suggest handling minor situations. If the child just trips, a quick "Uh-Oh" and a laugh is really all that is necessary, especially if the child isn't hurt. If the child is hurt, still do the same and examine the child in a fun way, like mentioning that you want to search for Elmo or some other funny thing. Look at the child's injury and determine what needs to be done. Then, do it, but make it fun and say things like "Oh, that doesn't look bad at all. Let's just put a band-aid (or whatever other treatment is necessary) on here in case. "
Doing it in a fun way not only helps the child forget what is going on, but it also reassures the child everything is okay. After all, it must be okay if the adult is laughing, smiling, and playing.
Published by Lyn Lomasi - Featured Contributor in Lifestyle
Lyn's the Community Advocate at Yahoo! Contributor Network. Contact her with community issues & ideas. She's been contributing since 2007 and previously acted as a Community Guide. Read her tips for success... View profile
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15 Comments
Post a CommentInteresting article. I've always found that assuring the child that they are OK and that the cut is no big deal has always worked for me. Sometimes giving them too much attention when they get hurt tends to make them cry even more. You had some great advice!
But how do you keep the mommie from screaming? LOL. I am such a wuss!
as a father of two hyper twin 4 year old daughters, your article is a lifesaver for me. I thank you for your wonderful advice. Thanks for the helpful words. Every little bit helps.
Great advice. I have four boys that love to rough-house so I know what it's like to deal with a lot of injuries (none serious so far). I used to freak out over any type of injury, but I've learned to control the way I react and my children have gotten more control over their own reactions also. Hopefully I'll never have the need to dial 911, but with the amount of skateboarding that takes place in my driveway and wrestling that goes in their room, the odds are not in my favor:)
lol - I have a 14 year old that still does this! Thanks for submitting this content!
Wow. neat ideas
I always wait a moment to see how my children are going to react. If there is no reaction on their part, I generally don't say or do anything either, unless I can see they need a band-aide or something. If they cry or yell, then I know I need to do some cuddling, icing or whatever the situation calls for. This has worked well for both my boys and they never react unless they are very hurt. I have seen parents over-react for little things and you are right, it creates over-reaction in the child as well.
great advice. I have seen many people do this as well. I always just ask a simple and calm, Are you all right? I have done this since they could walk and it works.
Great article. I see this a lot.
Great info. We like to say "shake it off" and smile around here. Our kids usually start saying that they are shaking it off. They are six and four and are really good about not panicking over minor injuries, thank goodness :)