As a parent, there is no pain greater than trying to cope when your child gets hurt. Many parents admit they feel powerless and don’t know how to comfort their child. Whether it’s a bump on the head or a bloody knee, it’s difficult to find the right gestures and words to stop them from crying. More importantly, things can become even more complicated if you have to deal with your own guilt feelings. Are you the reason why your kid got hurt? Could you have prevented it? Even though you know that blaming yourself isn’t going to help, it’s impossible to think clearly when you doubt your skills as a parent. There is no final answer whether you’re responsible for your child’s injury, but hopefully, these various scenarios can help you to react:
Have you been respecting the height & weight recommendations?
There are a ton of parks and attractions you could visit with your child. But don’t let your excitement get the best of you. You need to make sure you stick to the age and size recommendations at each place. Taking your 5-year-old to Disney is a great idea as long as you pick suitable rides, for example. When it comes to suitability, you need to make sure your child can be safely secured – Splash Mountain, for instance, is not recommended for kids under 40 in. – as well as enjoying themselves on a kid-friendly themed ride. Failure to stick to the height requirements can, unfortunately, lead to injuries.
What the equipment unsuitable or broken?
What happens if you’ve been following the recommendations of the park and your child still sustained an injury? First of all, you need to stop the self-loathing guilt trip immediately. If you’ve been attentive to the health and safety regulations in place, you are not to blame for your child’s dismay. On the contrary, the issue lies with the park management team, and you are entitled to claim compensation and support for the medical bills with professional attorneys who have experience of similar cases, such as Hupy and Abraham. Additionally, aside from getting financial assistance, your action can also increase awareness for other parks to review their H&S.
You booked an adventure vacation together
Can there be anything more exciting than sharing a day on the slope in winter or diving in summer? Families who are active together stay together. But, unless you’re an instructor, you should make sure to book some age-suitable lessons for your kids. Indeed, it will help them to learn all the basic gestures to avoid dramatic falls. If you skip the lesson, your child might accidentally get injured by trying to keep up with you.
Sometimes, kids just hurt themselves
Lastly, children will always take risks as they explore their surroundings and get to learn more about themselves. Some climb trees, others ride bicycles. Falling is a natural extension of their plays. More often than not, your child can collect bruises, cuts, and other bumps playing with friends and challenging each other. Nobody is to blame; it’s part of growing up! However, if you want to be extra careful, which is perfectly fine, you can schedule an appointment with a pediatrician after a nasty trip or fall. You don’t want to wrap your kids in cotton wool, but you also don’t want to dismiss an incident for it to escalate out of control. If the accident was relatively bad or involves their neck or head, you can be safe and consult a doctor.
As a parent, you are responsible for your child. But it doesn’t mean that you should feel guilty for every injury they sustain. If you follow regulations and don’t push your child out of their comfort zone, you have nothing to worry about.
