What do you do when your son/daughter falls?

[notanordinarygirl]

This question is mainly for the parents of infants/toddlers, but hey, children fall at all ages.

If you see your baby falling down, do you freak out? Do you rush to their aid? Do you try to laugh it off?

Just curious.

 

[Steph]

Mine's 9 months old. It's a long stage of falling down. I don't laugh at him, coz it has to hurt. If he starts crying coz he really did hurt himself, he'll either crawl to me, or I'll pick him up and cuddle him and/or feed him until he's happy again.

 

[notanordinarygirl]

I laugh (not at, but with) mine. My little cousin always cried after the adults made a fuss about her falling down, so I try to downplay the situation and he always laughs with me as well. Then again, he's just toppling over while sitting in his crib or my bed, I don't know how we will react once he's actually walking.

 

[Mayzoo]

I used to try to determine if she was truly injured while distracting her.

 

[lucypevensie]

I've seen kids who react negatively to the adults in the room who are overreacting "OH MY! Oh dear! Are you OKAY?!" as they rush to pick the child up and offer cuddles for something that was no big deal. The kid might not even cry if they hadn't heard how horrible their circumstances were.

So, I tend to treat falling down lightly, but you still need to be sensitive to possible pain or frustration. I might say something like "Oops, you fell, here let's get up and get that ball you were trying to pick up" ... Or something...

 

[Krystina661]

Normally I will ask if they are ok. My boys have fallen and then get back up and they are fine and nothing happened. If its a bad fall or they get hurt of course I'll see where and either bandage them up, put an ice pack on, or do whatever needs to be done to make them feel better.

 

[white dove]

My instinct is to FREAK OUT~!!!!! but I know, other than ignoring the baby is one of the worst reactions to have. I try to make sure falls that can be prevented are prevented as much as possible ("babyproofing"). If it's just a matter of him getting used to his legs and feet, I'll just say "Oops! Let's try again!" or "Oops! Okay, let's take a break!" (because I'm working with him to crawl and walk now). I'm not gonna lie though; sometimes I do the "Aww, are you okay?" thing and kiss his head or cheek.

 

[epiclesis]

Mine's 9 months old. It's a long stage of falling down. I don't laugh at him, coz it has to hurt. If he starts crying coz he really did hurt himself, he'll either crawl to me, or I'll pick him up and cuddle him and/or feed him until he's happy again.

Oops, I forgot to add that I usually say "uh oh!"

He's usually not bothered by anything unless he's tired though.

 

[~Mrs. A2J~]

I usually say "Uh Oh! Up you get!" and they usually get up. They'll let me know if they really are hurt.

 

[ChildByGrace]

Laughing it off is the closest to what I do. I usually give them a quick cuddle to assess how they are then laugh it off.

 

[Beautiful Fireball]

My daughter isn't at that stage yet but when I would watch other kids of that age I'd try to keep my reaction as neutral as possible (unless they were actually hurt, but I'd try not to freak out). My friend would tell kids "come here and I'll help you up" and they would walk over to her and she'd give them a hug. I thought that was a really good way of handling it.

 

[CrystalBrooke]

I know I've freaked out a few times when I thought she was hurt, and one time she did cut the corner of her eye on the coffee table...but I usually stay calm and ask her if she's ok. It's rare now that she cries when she falls, but when she does I'll walk over to help her up and hug her.

 

[FaithPrevails]

It depends on their age. My boys are older, so I usually ask them if they're bleeding and they usually say no. Then, I tell them I think they will live and send them off to play again. If they insist it hurts, ice usually does the trick - they end up eating the ice out of the baggy, which is a great distraction from the injury.

My baby just turned one, so I usually say, "Uh oh!" and help her up with a quick hug/kiss and get her moving again. She got one nasty goose egg right when she started walking and I did take that seriously - with cuddles and ice applied for as long as she would tolerate.

 

[CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN]

I try to see if everything is all right,hug him,while I get him a bottle,disstract with hugs,bottle and cartoons.

 

[rainy]

Attempt to catch them before they fall. If they do fall anyhow donot make a big deal about it kids will let you know if they are hurt. The quiet ones you need to check if they are hurt like a bump or what not do not let the child know you are alarmed.

 

[angelsamongus]

I try to stay calm and distract them. I have found if you freak out then they freak out, even if they are not hurt. I have one friend that every time one of her kids falls or cries she comes running saying "JESUS JESUS JESUS", repeating it until she gets to the child. In a way it is cool, but it is also a way of freaking out!! (side note: she has 5 kids all under the age of 9)

 

[MessianicMommy]

It really depends. I have a 3yr old and 18 month old. Depending on who fell, how they fell and THEIR reaction, depends on MY reaction. My immediate thought might be in some falls to hop up and run over, but I restrain to see how they handle it. Kids are a lot more resilient than people like to give them credit for. Some falls you see and know you have to run and hold them and check them over, and others it's "You're ok, stand up, try again!" I offer hugs if that's what they want, and generally speaking they'll pick themselves up, dust off and try again

We've had a few busted lips and bumps on the head that have required ice, but all in all they were ok. I think some people think that because I AP I will be will them all the time and freak out if something happens, but I find I am actually rather relaxed about it as long as they are not truly hurt.

I wouldn't say I "ignore" it or that I "helicopter parent" - but I do keep an eye and ear out and I generally know the sounds of one of the children being hurt if I didn't see what happened, vs an "Let's make a fuss and see what mom does.."

Both of them love exercising their voice, so screaming doesn't really mean they're hurt when they fall - just that they want attention. There's definitely a different tone to "hurt" vs "attention".

I've also been told I'd do differently if I had a girl (which I don't) but I don't think I will. I never did like the whole wrapping a child in bubblewrap mentality. Unless there's concern for their overall health if they were to fall, there's no reason to worry so much.

 

[EmilyF]

My 3 year old fell 8 weeks ago and broke his femur so I'm wrapping him in pillows these days

 

[CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN]

Cade got a scrach on his knee,cried it's broken,held his leg crying ,while he was being comforted,so he might over act to things.

 

[EmilyF]

Patrick keeps telling me that he's going to break it again so he can have Fruit "lips" and be stinky again.