Sports and Hurt Kids

My daughter injred herself in the pool doing the freestyle. She twisted her hip. So injuries happen anywhere. I do not limit them, if they want to try a sport, great. But we do take the precautions, wearing helmets, goggles, etc.
Oh, and my now 23 yo went to play raquetball without his goggles, took a ball into his eye socket. The Navy was not happy with him, he is OK, but he now wears goggles and protective gear. Would I have stopped him? No, but I would have told him to put his goggles on.

We all hate to see our kids hurt, but like you have pointed out, that's the risk you take when you let them be kids. I wouldn't think of bike riding and the playground as inherently "dangerous" despite what happened to your kids - my daughter has yet to get seriously injured on the playground (beyond a couple of scrapes). They are just activities that are not without some level of risk. I wouldn't keep my daughter from doing something she was interested in (within reason) because of the chance she could get hurt. They need exercise and physical activity to stay healthy.

Look at it this way - if your kids are not physically active in some way, they are inside the house, possibly just sitting on the couch watching TV or playing video games. Why do you think there are so many more cases of childhood obesity and Type 2 diabetes these days? Why are kids showing signs of diabetes and heart disease at earlier and earlier ages? Because they are staying inside and are not active enough! I would be way more worried about that!

My daughter is 4 and her annual pediatrician check-ups always happen at the end of August - invariably she always manages to have some scraped knees when she goes in. I used to worry that it "looked bad" but the nurse and doctor there said not to - they WANT to see kids with scraped knees. And (and maybe this is a little old-school but it makes sense) they also like to see them with a little bit of a tan over the summer. Because it means they have been playing OUTSIDE instead of just sitting indoors all the time.

I didn't know my biological father until I was an adult, so I never knew his father. But one day when I was catching him up on the activities my sons were involved in, he told me that he really admired how we keep them active and having fun. He said that HIS father did not allow him to play anything, not even basketball, on a team because he was scared of injuries. I had never heard of such a thing before! He said that while he sees that his father was trying to protect him, now as an adult and childhood long, long gone, he sometimes feels sad about how he missed out on a lot of fun. I do NOT want my children to miss out on their youth. I absolutely want them to look back at their childhood with smiles and lots of stories to tell! You can protect your children by providing them with properly fitting equipment, by teaching them the proper ways to do certain things (a properly fitting helmet when skateboarding or biking, holding the bat correctly, pivoting your back foot correctly, throwing in a way that won't make you lose your shoulder by the time you're 20, when playing soccer you MUST tackle with your leg slightly bent, etc, etc, etc). Teaching them, and getting them good coaches, will not only provide quality time in the backyard together, but also protect them while they're out having a good time. Any kind of hockey in my opinion could be pretty "dangerous", but your guys got hurt on a playground, not the dangerous sport. Funny how that happens. :)
I'm all for teaching them how to behave, how to think as they do things, to be aware of the world around them, how to do things correctly, and then let them play as hard as they want to play with those guidelines in place. There's a few situations where we may say no (my oldest is going to be too little for football, but we can steer him to all kinds of other options)....and my husband insists that while rugby has no pads, there are not the life threatening injuries that football has because the hits and positioning are different, so youngest may be allowed rugby, but husband says NO to football. I'm also picky about schools, classes, and coaches. If my youngest (bigger body type) pursues wrestling or some form of boxing, obviously I would shop for a coach that would do it in a way I'd agree with. My oldest is in kung fu and loves it, and while his teacher gets on my nerves sometimes, he's VERY good at discipline, respect, and when performing certain moves, he makes sure the kids know to do it very slowly and to obey a tap immediately (the consequences for not obeying immediately or hurting a classmate would be "dire", lol). For sparring, there's so much padding, it's actually kind of stupid looking. Little tiny michelin men on the mat.
But no, I've never met anyone personally that kept their child from being a kid just for fear of injuries (except my dad's story).....at least, noone that admitted it publicly.

No and yes. My husband and I have never prohibited our boys from playing a sport because we feared injury, but we are considering making our youngest quit a sport because of multiple injuries. Our boys (12, 15) are very small and have played hockey and football. They both quit football on their own (thank goodness)--the oldest after several years because he realized he couldn't be competitive and that it could be dangerous, the youngest after only one year because he didn't really have fun playing football. Our oldest, knock on wood, has survived 10 years of hockey with only minor bumps and bruises and a few stitches. Our younger son, however, suffered two concussions and a sprained shoulder playing hockey this year and for the first time ever my husband and I are considering making a kid quit a sport because of injuries. His season ended a month early by doctor's orders, but we are already getting him used to the idea that his hockey career might be over.

Like you said, I believe you can't keep kids in a bubble, but we can do whatever is in our control to keep them safe, e.g. appropriate supervision, helmets when biking, etc. I tend to worry so there have been times over the years when I've needed calming and "coaching" from my husband. But boys can get hurt in a variety of ways and it's just part of raising boys. Until this hockey season, our youngest (who is injury prone) suffered his worst injuries from Scouting. He likes to compare stories with my younger brother who kept our mom on her toes with trips to the ER!

I wouldn't let our son (now 21) play football because I was afraid of the injuries. *Well that's not completely true. When he was in 5th grade we let him go out for a rec team. He is HIGHLY allergic to poison ivy and got into some somewhere on the practice field. His face was covered and every time he put his helmet on in that August heat he was sweating and it was spreading. I called the coach and explained all of this. Said I was a nurse and understood the importance of the helmet but could he just do a modified practice until we got it cleared up. I'll never forget this guy telling me that he signed up for football and needed to play football! I said that it was FIFTH GRADE and my son wouldn't be back! By the time HS rolled around, our small school didn't offer football and he was over it anyway.

But was sitting at our daughter's gymnastic lesson one time, (she's now 17, but she was probably 8 at the time?) and watched her fall off the beam and thought what's the difference?! She now plays softball at first base and back-up pitcher. I'm always worried about those line drives!

But fact is, they could get hurt or injured anywhere doing anything! My son got a tooth chipped sledding one winter! My daughter did have to get stitches, over her eye, when she was in preschool, just skipping on the playground, hit a raised spot in the concrete and fell.

Plus, I think you are being a great parent by letting them experiment with different sports at a young age. They will figure out what they like and don't like, what they are good at or not, and naturally pick their favorites.
Not to mention all the life lessons learned when playing sports either with a team or not. Think of the dedication and focus needed to play a good round of golf!

I had a boss once who played football in college.
He absolutely would NOT let his son play football.
He said it's just not a healthy sport - too much hype, pressure from crazy parents and coaches, not to mention that even with all the protective gear there are still too many concussions which are just not good for growing/developing brains.
His son played soccer until he broke his ankle in 3 places and then all he could play after that was golf.

I have a friend who is totally fearless herself -- she sky dives and does ocean diving and kayaks and...would try anything. Her son has always played baseball and soccer and a little tennis for fun. He's a very serious baseball player and very good at that and soccer.

So when she forbade him to play football, I paid attention. This was a long time ago, even before the more recent news and studies about concussions in football players. If this mom who is physicall fearless (but smart) herself knew that football was too risky for her very fit and smart son, then that vote against football had a lot of meaning.

Lacrosse, hockey, soccer, etc. all have risk of injury. So does just walking down the street. But football, where a large part of the sport is intentionally sacking and making hard contact with others, is a whole other thing and much, much riskier because the sport just inherently demands that participants hit each other hard. In most other sports that's penalized.

I've never forbade my kids from playing a sport (or climbing a tree, swimming in the creek, or anything else) due to fear of injury.

BUT...I'm scared to death that they're going to want to play high school football. I watched a documentary on injuries sustained in HS football play and it is SCARY! These kids get multiple traumatic brain injuries! That's no joke...and can affect them for the rest of their lives. WOW.

I will NOT let my children play football. Ever. My first son was involved in a car accident with me and had brain injury and trauma. While he is perfectly fine now, the Neurosurgeon that took care of him for a year after the accident has told me that he should not EVER play football or do boxing. So...those sports are out for everyone!
My son does play soccer and I cringe every time he heads the ball, but luckily he misses a lot! lol I figure one or two headers a game is completely different then smacking your head into someone repeatedly every game.
I feel like a broken leg, arm, or hand will heal but a brain injury (or in our case, repeated brain injury) is not going to.
L.

My granddaughter broke her right arm by doing a round off on the spring board floor at the gym. She was the only other person in the building, I was setting up some displays for a sale in the store. I had here in my sight but was working and felt she was safe.

The owner was coming in the back door and saw her flip. She has her hands the in the wrong position and it just snapped both bones in her forearm. It was no ones fault and she is fine today. There are rules posted about being on the equipment and they can usually do stuff on the spring board floor, it is allowed.

I have a pet peeve now, I am always telling the kids to get off the equipment, even when their parents are standing there letting them play on it before class starts.

There are rules up about not letting the kids do that but parents don't pay attention. I go tell the kids to get off and then tell the parents they can't let their kids on the equipment due to possible injury. Most are fine with it but a couple have just looked at me and let them get right back on. I usually go get the owner and he tells them the kids can't be on the equipment. He isn't a confrontational type person so he is much more diplomatic than I am.

I won't let my son play football.

IF we lived in a football area, then I probably would. Seattle is NOT a football town. Very, very, very few people (even players and coaches) understand the basics on how to make a clean hit. But I've got family in Tx, where a FOUR year old busted out with "No! Your shoulder's wrong! Do you wanna HURT someone?" Meanwhile, up here, my cousin was on the state championship team, and was doing EXACTLY the same thing the toddler was saying not to. He got recruited into a big football school, and had to spend his entire first year learning how to do things 'correctly' to avoid injury (penalties) before he was allowed to play. Even then, he gets called on illegal stuff and bad hits all the time, because he spent 10 years doing it wrong.

I DO let my son do almost everything else :)
- swimming
- soccer
- basketball
- baseball
- snowboarding
- martial arts
- gymnastics
- breakdance
- etc.

I WON'T let my son climb. About 1/4 of my family used to climb. They're all dead, save one, and he's lost his hands from frostbite and has been monumentally depressed ever since. Not because they were bad at it. Because they were the guide up Everest that sent the group out on the first chopper and stayed behind. Because even after setting avalanche charges (and wearing beacons) a freak avalanche came through.

Climbers, eventually, nearly all die. You don't find old climbers very often, because they get really good at it. Everest, K2, Glacier Fields.. and eventually... the mountain wins.

I've lost too many people I care about to climbing.

The most important thing about kids sports-is teaching them to exercise for life. Good Health! Worrying about not getting hurt-so not letting them play, could lead to poor health issue in the future. You won't get hurt on the outside sitting on the sofa, you will on the inside of your body.

As my son gets older and the sports become more intense and aggressive, this is something that worries me. He is going into his 5th year of football, plays basketball and baseball. Last year, there were multiple concussions of his team mates, and I don't think parents take this seriously enough! One of the boys had to be taken off the field in an ambulance, and then, mom let him start playing again a few weeks later and actually yelled at him to get back out there, even though he had just been HIT IN THE HEAD AGAIN!

And last week, in wrestling...this same kid got knocked unconcious again and had to go to 2 different hospitals and have more tests...do you see a brain injury here??????

So, sports can be incredibly scary and yes, kids are going to get hurt...but I would never tell my son he couldn't play, unless he got hurt, then it would be a no go! (and my son has amblyopia in one eye and a specialist told us to protect his good eye, he also wears braces, so when he isn't wearing a mouth guard in basketball, we worry about mouth injury...and believe me, we tried to make him...we did tell him no baseball unless he had a mouthguard in...or no playing for sure!)

And you are exactly right...just playing on a playground can cause injury! My son had a free standing porch swing set fall on his face (which is why he now has braces...it messed up his mouth really bad! Poor kid...but he is still so "pretty" as my friend told him...he has gorgeous eyes and dimples!)

Anyway, the best we can do as parents is to make sure they have and use all the protective gear available and make sure they learn to play properly to protect themselves!!!

No. Injury potential is of course a concern but I'm not going to deny my children something they love out of fear. My boys play ice hockey and lacrosse (along with less dangerous sports such as soccer and baseball). My step-daughter has a black belt in Karate and has moved on to kick boxing, Muay Thai and boxing. They're definitely not what I would have chosen for myself or for them, but these are the things that they love.

ETA: the only injuries my kids have sustained were that my oldest son was knocked off of his feet in gym class and got a mild concussion. My SD injured her shoulder by carrying a messenger bag that was poorly balanced and way too heavy.

My 18yo daughter plays soccer like it's her job. She's sprained an ankle and hurt her knee (not in the same season, thankfully!) but no major injuries.

On the other hand, she's currently recuperating from shoulder surgery, having torn her labrum. The funny thing is, she doesn't remember any "injury" that caused the tear. No fall. No bruising. No nothing.

Her orthopedist says she has very long, loose ligaments and it's not unusual for a person like that to cause an injury because they don't realize their range of motion is too great. She bends more and stretches farther than any ballerina I've ever met.

Go figure. I ride horses. Another daughter rides as well. My soccer player is fearless. And yet, I swear she wound up needing surgery because of something she probably did in her sleep!

I guess the point is, as much as we'd like to, we can't keep 'em in a bubble. Sports (especially when the kid is well conditioned AND the coaches pay attention) offer so much to kids and NOT playing sports can't guarantee physical safety. Just ask my daughter's surgeon...

I refuse to keep my daughter from excelling in a sport that she would like to participate.

She trained for 5 long years to achieve her Black Belt and through all the bumps and bruises, it was worth it.

She's been cheerleading for the last 4 yrs. last year she was a flyer and I cringed everytime they threw her up in the air. The other years she has been a base and she actually has had more injury from being a base then a flyer because the base gets hit with a foot, elbow, rear, etc catching the flyer.

It is not fair to her to limit her choices because I am afraid she will get hurt. Children don't come with bubble wrap and we have to be able to let go and let them grow up.

Children can get hurt running through the yard, riding a bike, walking.... so what gives? You can't raise them in a bubble and live in fear of the what if's.

I've got two words for you: bubble wrap. Haha, just kidding! Seriously though, wouldn't it be nice to be able to put a big protective bubble around our kids? I too have three boys and can't imagine not letting them play a sport in fear of them getting hurt. Now that doesn't mean I didn't gently steer them away from football (they were/are really small for their age(s) one would've snapped like a twig getting hit in that sport!) Had they persisted I would have let them play. Honestly I am trying to think of a sport that doesn't have a risk of injury and am having trouble coming up with one. We do the best we can without going overboard. We let them ride a bike but make them wear a helmet, doesn't mean they won't get hurt.