Top 10 Parent Essentials for your Child’s Cuts & Scrapes

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My husband and I were watching television in the living room while our two children, ages six and four, were (shockingly) playing outside and getting along great.  We’d look out our window every so often to check on them and see how things were going. With every glance there was a new location.  First it was the trampoline, then the sandbox, and then a faceplant on the cement.

Yup, that last location caught us all off guard, especially my daughter, who had been the one to go down.

Let me start by saying that she is okay.  

It was one of those moments with lots of crying and a few puzzling seconds for Mom and Dad as we tried to figure out where the diluted pink color of blood was coming from.  Teeth were intact except for the already loose tooth. No large visible cuts that could be deemed ‘a gash’.  BUT she did have a top lip that would make Jessica Rabbit jealous.

Her first fat lip. The hyperventilating and crying didn’t have so much to do with the pain of instant pouty lips, but with the shock of the fall itself.  We’ve all been there right?  One second you’re up and okay and the next you’re doing a burpee with your face, trying to figure out where the last two seconds of your life went so wrong.  

And back to Mom and Dad.  We spent the moments after the smackdown, trying to assess the situation, hoping that we had all of the supplies needed at home to make this boo-boo situation turn a corner to healing real quick.  

I was running through the list of supplies I might need in my head.  

This is when it happens Mom.  You realize you are out of something you need or best case scenario you’re in the land of “thank goodness I have one left”, which has you making your list of ouchie essentials for the next time one of the kids takes a spill.  

So let’s save you some time.

Here is a list of children’s first-aid essentials for the next time you go to the drug store.

Top 10 Essentials for your Child’s Cuts and Scrapes

1. Neosporin/antibiotic lotion (I prefer this over the ointment)
2. Wash cloths (great for wiping tears, face, dirty hands, blotting wounds)
3. Band aids (several styles and sizes)
4. Hydrogen Peroxide (yes, I grew up with it and I’m fine)
5. Small/Large gel boo boo pads (small ones for those small child and hand and large ones can rest on scraped up knees)
6. Tylenol – good to alternate between pain relievers
7. Advil – good to alternate between pain relievers
8. Thin towel – can be wrapped around boo boo pads when your little dare devil says their too cold
9. Tweezers – helpful in removing stuck debris, or splinters (depending on where said fall occurred)
10. Gauze pads/tape – sometimes before you put a band-aid on this is a good option for a larger surface area that’s still bleeding or damp (yuck); better than going through a whole box of band-aids (and cheaper)

Scrapes and cuts are like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you’re gonna get.  Surface wounds, deep cuts, small cuts that bleed worse than they should. 

Not to mention that every child is different.  My son usually pops right back up after a spill, demanding that he’s okay (except for that time he went over his bike’s handlebars), while my daughter will panic just thinking about the potential for the sight of blood.  And both reactions are okay, I’d just like to be prepared for anything.

Oh also, not mentioned, a comforting blanket and some deep breathing exercises are good supplemental resources.

Once the cuts and scrapes are tended to, sometimes we all need a good cuddle and some deep breaths.