"Wear Your Helmet!"

I can't tell you how many times those words have come out of my mouth.  Instead of sounding like I am barking orders, sometimes they are spoken in the form of a question such as "Shouldn't you be wearing your helmet?"  Or "Should you be riding your bike without your helmet?"  Or "What is our rule about wearing helmets?"  But no matter how many times we as parents, try, sometimes our kids still make bad choices.

As an OR nurse, I see the results of 'accidents' that people never think will happen to them, whether it is from a conscious choice making a bad decision, or truly an accident.  For that reason, I have a no tolerance policy when it comes to not wearing your helmet.  Bad things happen all the time.  And they can happen to you.

When I came home from running an errand last Saturday, my 9 year old son was riding his bike without his helmet.  So I told him he couldn't ride his bike for the rest of the day because he wasn't following our rules.  Within about 15 minutes, I heard agonizing screams coming from the driveway.  The kind of screams that can only mean someone is badly hurt.

Can you tell where this is going?

I ran out to find my helmet less and hysterical son sitting on the driveway with his pogo stick and a plastic milk crate close by.  Apparently it is great fun to pogo on the driveway, up to the milk crate, then back down to the driveway.  Boys!!!

Nothing appeared to be broken, but he couldn't answer my questions appropriately.  Things just didn't seem right with him, so off to the hospital we went.  Long story short...he suffered a skull fracture with bleeding on his brain and a severe concussion.  We spent two long and worrisome days in the hospital before they thought it was safe to let him go home.

Since he has come home, we have been dealing with headaches, and today, headaches and vomiting.  I know it is going to be a roller coaster ride of recovery, and it is too early to know if there will be any lasting effects from his concussion, but I bet it wouldn't have been so bad, or even happened at all, had he been wearing his helmet.

And that is my reason for this post.  I hope our story will make a difference to someone.  To you.  To your kids.  To your grandkids.  Please, make them wear their helmets.

Just a few weeks ago, my son's friends asked me why I had to be so over protective with the whole helmet thing.  Now they know.

K