Owies! Taking care of them

Taking care of scrapes and cuts is part of being a mother and part of being a human being (see the story at the end of the post). We're always told to wash scrapes and cuts with soap and water and then put on antibacterial ointment and cover with a bandage. Here are a few tips I've learned from practical experience and from taking several Red Cross first aid classes:

1. Lukewarm water doesn't sting as much as cold or hot.
2. A couple of drops of antibacterial dishwashing liquid in a cup of water works very well for wound cleansing. Then rinse.
3. Cotton balls are softer on tender skin than paper towels. However, on rough abrasions, cotton balls may leave little fibers that then have to be picked off. Never use toilet paper that disintegrates, because it will leave bits and pieces in the wound. The easiest way to clean a fresh wound is under running water if the wound is on a limb that can be put under running water.
4. When applying antibacterial ointment, hold the tube about 1/4 inch from the skin and squeeze out a generous amount as you move across the wound. Do not let the tube tip touch the skin (painful and unsanitary). Do not put the ointment on your fingers to rub it onto the skin (painful and unsanitary). You will have what looks like more than you need, but when you put the bandage on, it is usually absorbed by the bandage pad and that keeps the ointment against the wound until the bandage is changed.
5. Change the bandage every couple of days.After 3-4 days, if the wound has stopped seeping fluid, remove the bandage and expose to air. Keep clothes away from the wound.
6. It usually takes 1-2 weeks for a wound to heal and the scab to come off, depending on how deep the scrape.
7. After 3-4 days, a scrape is usually healed enough that some of the scab may start coming off on its own. DO NOT PICK THE SCAB!
8. If you want to help the scab come off when the skin underneath has healed sufficiently, use a combination of coconut oil, sweet almond oil, and jojoba oil (all of which have healing properties and are antiseptic) to VERY GENTLY rub on the scabbed area several times a day. These oils not only help the skin heal with less scarring, they lift the old scab off the skin and reveal the new skin underneath without revealing the new skin before it has healed. You may need to go to the health food store to find these oils.

Keep the wound dry!
Water or moisture on the wound softens the scab and may make it come off before the skin underneath is healed enough to be exposed, plus a damp, gooey wound is a breeding ground for germs.

1. Try to keep the wound out of the water while bathing or showering, even if the wound is wrapped. Never submerge the wound.
2. Use a plastic bag held in place with packing tape to wrap around the wound or self-adhering plastic wrap. I like the plastic wrap. The wrap is just to keep splashing water off the wound. Do not submerge the wound even if it is wrapped.
3. Remove the plastic bag or wrap immediately after the bath or shower so the wound does not get damp and gooey.

NOTE: A surgical incision should be cared for exactly as your doctor instructs you.

Bandages
1. Plain gauze pads or strips can become solidified in the scab and make changing the bandages very difficult and painful and may pull off some of the scab to expose the skin before it's healed.
2. Many cheap plastic bandaids don't stay on for more than a few minutes. Go for the gold and get the more expensive brand names.
3. The flexible cloth and sponge type bandaids often stick on better.
4. Be careful not to get the ointment on any part skin that the adhesive on the bandaid has to stick to or the bandaid will come right off.
5. Some people (like me) may develop a rash because of the adhesive so you may have to use gauze strips to hold on a non-stick sterile pad. If the area where the adhesive sticks becomes red and irritated, remove the bandage immediately and rub with the oil I mentioned above. It may take a few days for the rash to disappear.
6. In emergency situations, wrapped feminine pads used for menses may be used as a gauze pad to place on wounds. They work very well to absorb heavy bleeding and are usually sterile if the packaging has not been damaged.

Story: I've had several occasions to use my first aid training. For instance, when I was just engaged to be married, my future brother-in-law (age 9) fell off his bicycle and did a great job of skinning his knee and leg. He often cried over little hurts, so no one really paid him any attention, but I could see that he was really injured this time. So I got the water and soap and a paper towel (because that's all I could find) and a few bandages. He sat on the couch so I could fix him up. He kept his eyes closed and screamed the whole time I worked on him, gently wiping off the blood and dirt and picking the gravel out of his wound. I got done with the cleaning part and waited for him to quit screaming, but he kept right on for about half a minute more, until I said, "You can quit screaming now. I've been done for quite a while." His eyes popped open and he said, "I didn't know you'd even started. I couldn't feel you at all." It turns out he was screaming in anticipation of the pain that might come while I was cleaning out his scrape. I just laughed and put the ointment on and a few bandaids and said, "You're done." He happily hopped up and went back out to play. Being gentle can make a great deal of difference while treating children. If they trust you, they'll hold still better and you can treat them better.