BIKE HELMETS.....Do YOU wear one??
Replies
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YES, PLEASE WEAR A HELMET. I never wore one when I was a kid and stupidly, stupidly did not
think of one before letting my 10 year old son go out on a group outing ...he was on a super
saucer (those round blue sleds) and ended up spinning into a tree. He was taken by ambulance to
a bigger city hospital where we found out he had fractured his skull (it was so bad it was in splinters
on the right side) bleeding on the brain and was in a coma. The doctors did not expect him to live
at all and gave a last ditch effort by removing almost half of his skull so his brain could swell as much
as it needed to. Our son was dying before our eyes...the only thing that saved him was God. There
is no way he would have survived otherwise. My son had people praying for him around the world.
He had to have his skull rebuilt and hematomas removed from his brain and was on life support
for nearly a week. He was able to come home after three weeks...the doctors were amazed at how
well and how fast he recovered. God is awesome. I was amazed when the brain surgeon told us
that he didn't even make his kids wear helmets...but that he would start now. Please, please
make your kids wear the helmets and wear them yourselves...life is too precious to take a chance
with. I will never forgive myself for not thinking of it at the time.
Please. Forgive yourself. Sometimes not thinking of something just happens. Okay, what your son went through (and the rest of your family also) was pretty tough. But you learned from it, you improved as a parent, and you're willing to put your difficult story out there so the rest of us don't have to suffer through the same fate as your son, and your family. That's pretty courageous.
Please. Forgive yourself. It's the right thing to do for you, your son, and your family.0 -
HELL YES!0
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YES, YES, and YES. I ride daily (almost daily), and I never leave home without it. Like a seatbelt in my car. A close friend of ours ended up with 18 stitches and a severe concussion without a helmet. It was terrifying. My kids get their bikes taken away for a week if they are caught without one...0
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YES, PLEASE WEAR A HELMET. I never wore one when I was a kid and stupidly, stupidly did not
think of one before letting my 10 year old son go out on a group outing ...he was on a super
saucer (those round blue sleds) and ended up spinning into a tree. He was taken by ambulance to
a bigger city hospital where we found out he had fractured his skull (it was so bad it was in splinters
on the right side) bleeding on the brain and was in a coma. The doctors did not expect him to live
at all and gave a last ditch effort by removing almost half of his skull so his brain could swell as much
as it needed to. Our son was dying before our eyes...the only thing that saved him was God. There
is no way he would have survived otherwise. My son had people praying for him around the world.
He had to have his skull rebuilt and hematomas removed from his brain and was on life support
for nearly a week. He was able to come home after three weeks...the doctors were amazed at how
well and how fast he recovered. God is awesome. I was amazed when the brain surgeon told us
that he didn't even make his kids wear helmets...but that he would start now. Please, please
make your kids wear the helmets and wear them yourselves...life is too precious to take a chance
with. I will never forgive myself for not thinking of it at the time.
Please. Forgive yourself. Sometimes not thinking of something just happens. Okay, what your son went through (and the rest of your family also) was pretty tough. But you learned from it, you improved as a parent, and you're willing to put your difficult story out there so the rest of us don't have to suffer through the same fate as your son, and your family. That's pretty courageous.
Please. Forgive yourself. It's the right thing to do for you, your son, and your family.
Thank you for your kind words...they are much kinder than some of the words that were posted on a local new site...people
were saying the nastiest things, saying it just showed how much we didn't care about our son, how we almost deserved
everything that happened. We have definitely learned from the experience and warn people whenever the opportunity
arises. That day started out like any other day...we never know when tragedy is going to strike, it has taught me a huge
lesson also in making sure that the people I love know that I love them, that they are so important to me. Anyway, thank you for the encouragement.:)0 -
WOW...glad you made it out~curvykim78: I don't know where you live, but some states require helmet use by law (see: http://www.helmets.org/mandator.htm). In my work, I see stats on bicycle helmet use all the time and in the majority of cases, medical evidence proves that a bike helmet could have saved a person's life. I also had a friend die when I was 14 because he was not wearing a bike helmet and he got hit by a car--splattered his brains (literally) all over the street in front of me. Other than that, I also personally choose to wear a helmet (despite the fact that Utah has no law...which is dumb because we have one of the highest bicycle accident brain injury rates in the country) because I believe in doing everything I can to keep myself safe. If a helmet even provided me only 10% extra protection...even only 1%...I would wear one. Because that's a slightly greater chance that I could survive a crash.
I should also mention that I was riding our parkway a few months ago and hit a patch of grit sand that caused my bicycle to go out from beneath me on a sharp curve. I hit the pavement and slammed my head against it and then kept sliding into the river. I had a severe concussion but was conscious and able to get myself out of the water. The hospital told me later that had I not been wearing a helmet I would likely have been knocked out and then drowned in the river. I am so glad that I was wearing a helmet and didn't become a statistic.0 -
Having not read this long thread, my response is pretty simple.
In 1995, my wife was hit by a car while riding her bike. She was crossing an intersection when a lady at the stop sign to her right pulled out directly into her side.
Broken elbow, torn up leg, broken cheekbone, crushed helmet. Time in the hospital, two surgeries and months of PT. She is alive with a fully functioning brain because she was wearing a helmet. I have a wife and my two kids because she made that decision.0 -
Wow, what a touching story. I'm glad your son survived, sorry you had to learn the lesson the hard way...I will get myself and my husband both helmets. Thank you for sharing.YES, PLEASE WEAR A HELMET. I never wore one when I was a kid and stupidly, stupidly did not
think of one before letting my 10 year old son go out on a group outing ...he was on a super
saucer (those round blue sleds) and ended up spinning into a tree. He was taken by ambulance to
a bigger city hospital where we found out he had fractured his skull (it was so bad it was in splinters
on the right side) bleeding on the brain and was in a coma. The doctors did not expect him to live
at all and gave a last ditch effort by removing almost half of his skull so his brain could swell as much
as it needed to. Our son was dying before our eyes...the only thing that saved him was God. There
is no way he would have survived otherwise. My son had people praying for him around the world.
He had to have his skull rebuilt and hematomas removed from his brain and was on life support
for nearly a week. He was able to come home after three weeks...the doctors were amazed at how
well and how fast he recovered. God is awesome. I was amazed when the brain surgeon told us
that he didn't even make his kids wear helmets...but that he would start now. Please, please
make your kids wear the helmets and wear them yourselves...life is too precious to take a chance
with. I will never forgive myself for not thinking of it at the time.0 -
Yes. But it is a mistake to think that wearing a helmet will prevent all serious injury in a crash. You can still break your neck and die. Don't let wearing a helmet be a replacement for practicing safe riding!0
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^^^ WELL SAID!YES, PLEASE WEAR A HELMET. I never wore one when I was a kid and stupidly, stupidly did not
think of one before letting my 10 year old son go out on a group outing ...he was on a super
saucer (those round blue sleds) and ended up spinning into a tree. He was taken by ambulance to
a bigger city hospital where we found out he had fractured his skull (it was so bad it was in splinters
on the right side) bleeding on the brain and was in a coma. The doctors did not expect him to live
at all and gave a last ditch effort by removing almost half of his skull so his brain could swell as much
as it needed to. Our son was dying before our eyes...the only thing that saved him was God. There
is no way he would have survived otherwise. My son had people praying for him around the world.
He had to have his skull rebuilt and hematomas removed from his brain and was on life support
for nearly a week. He was able to come home after three weeks...the doctors were amazed at how
well and how fast he recovered. God is awesome. I was amazed when the brain surgeon told us
that he didn't even make his kids wear helmets...but that he would start now. Please, please
make your kids wear the helmets and wear them yourselves...life is too precious to take a chance
with. I will never forgive myself for not thinking of it at the time.
Please. Forgive yourself. Sometimes not thinking of something just happens. Okay, what your son went through (and the rest of your family also) was pretty tough. But you learned from it, you improved as a parent, and you're willing to put your difficult story out there so the rest of us don't have to suffer through the same fate as your son, and your family. That's pretty courageous.
Please. Forgive yourself. It's the right thing to do for you, your son, and your family.0 -
I don't ride a bike, but I've always thought that wearing a helmet was the best thing you could do for your own safety.
My boyfriend came off his bike about three years ago. Had he been wearing a helmet, he wouldn't have injured his head and been taken to hospital. No one would have known he'd ruptured his spleen - he'd have gone home thinking the pain in his side wasn't anything to worry about until it got much worse and by the time he or his family realised there was something really wrong and called an ambulance, he probably wouldn't have survived.
I know it's rare for the lack of safety equipment to save someone's life, but you have no idea how glad I am that he wasn't wearing one that day and that he gashed his head on the road.
I also now know that bike accidents are one of the main causes of emergency splenectomies, so at least I'd know what to look out for now.
I'd never change my mind about making my kids wear helmets. No helmet, no bike ride.0 -
Hell yeah I wear a helmet. One smack of the head on the ground and you could be seriously screwed up for life or worse yet, die.0
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I ride my bike about 4 or 5 days a week and I always wear a helmet. My rides vary from 1/2 mile (to the gym) up to 60 or more miles. I've cracked 3 helmets in crashes in the last 20 years. I've been to the ER once - car made illegal turn in front of me - I landed on top of his hood - his insurance ended up paying for a new bike for me - but I was OK!
Short answer - I absolutely think bike helmets are worth it if you are going to ride on the road with other motor vehicles!0 -
AMEN!Yes. But it is a mistake to think that wearing a helmet will prevent all serious injury in a crash. You can still break your neck and die. Don't let wearing a helmet be a replacement for practicing safe riding!0 -
i got hit off my bike by a car door once in the city... glad i had my helmet on. i like the style of a skateboard helmet instead of the pointy bicycle ones. i assume it's as safe... better than nothing.0
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I suffered a pretty serious concussion about 11 years ago.
Serious as in I had to take a year off work to recover, and even now, I am still affected by it in some major ways.
The damage from concussions is cumulative.
Yes, I wear a bike helmet, now that I can ride a bike again. For several years after the concussion (not related to bike riding- it's a long story) my balance was bad and I had vertigo issues so I didn't trust myself on a bike.0 -
I suffered a pretty serious concussion about 11 years ago.
Serious as in I had to take a year off work to recover, and even now, I am still affected by it in some major ways.
The damage from concussions is cumulative.
Yes, I wear a bike helmet, now that I can ride a bike again. For several years after the concussion (not related to bike riding- it's a long story) my balance was bad and I had vertigo issues so I didn't trust myself on a bike.
Glad you are better! Congrats for getting into cycling! Vertigo is pretty scary, glad that is past for you.0 -
I wear a helmet but I can feel the eyes of the neighborhood kids judging me as a lame-o while I do it...
But bike helmets are cooler than brain damage.0 -
I live in Colorado where we have an abundance of bike trails and health conscious people. I always wear a helmet, even just riding the bike trails. Come to think of it, it's rare that I encounter anyone riding without wearing a helmet!
Also, be sure and carry some ID when you ride. Like the others have said, you can't control other people out there and if you get hurt, it would be a good idea to have some identification on you too.0 -
I feel like it depends on the speed and difficulty you're planning to bike at....I suppose if you're planning on going pretty fast or you're mountain biking, it's best to wear one, but when I ride around in the neighborhood, I don't find it necessary.0
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I don't have a bike so... no lol0
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GREAT topic. As a kid I never did. As a parent (and person who wants to continue being a person) I always wear a helmet. I'm a decent rider with some experience on roads and trails, but no matter how good I might think I am, there's some idiot out there who isn't, and that dude can kill me through his/her idiocy.
A local well-known/loved real estate agent was on a causal ride around her block and lost her focus for moment. On the other side of that moment was a shattered jaw, a few hours of lost consciousness, many hours of reconstructive surgery, weeks of physical therapy for her and a well reinforced notion of cycling safety for the community.0 -
Ashamed to say I didn't today (my first ride in 10years)
My little barbie hat the used to fit then doesn't now and it was a last minute "ohh i got you a bike" sort of thing...
definitely and undoubtably a helment next time, My stepdad got into a crash literally 2 minutes down the road from home when he was cycling...bust up ribs and cuts everywhere, broken bones dr. says if he hadn't had a helment it would've been a completely different story (he still cycles now !)0 -
I have just bought my first one. I've never worn one before & I have been a real hypocrite as I am a foster carer & have always made the children that I look after wear one.
Thought I'd better start leading by example!0 -
I always wear mine. Personally I don't care what I look like, I just want to stay alive and not be brain dead one day. Once you get use to it you never even realize you're wearing on anyhow!!0
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I don't and I know I really, really should. I bike a lot - regularly 8 miles in the morning. I never bike in the road, always sidewalks and bike lanes, but if a small woodland creature darted out into the path in front of me, I have no doubt I'd wreck hard to keep from hitting it. I'm worried that if I wear a helmet I'll stop biking (I really can't communicate how much I hate the feel of a helmet on my head), but even that would be better than seriously hurting myself.
Nice topic, I needed a nudge.
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I don't and I know I really, really should. I bike a lot - regularly 8 miles in the morning. I never bike in the road, always sidewalks and bike lanes, but if a small woodland creature darted out into the path in front of me, I have no doubt I'd wreck hard to keep from hitting it. I'm worried that if I wear a helmet I'll stop biking (I really can't communicate how much I hate the feel of a helmet on my head), but even that would be better than seriously hurting myself.
Nice topic, I needed a nudge.
The nudge I needed was when I saw that lady life flighted out of the park last week and blood everywhere. I was shopping yesterday for one...0 -
Always. I, too, never wore one when I was growing up, but got into the mountain biking scene in my 20s and have always worn one since then. Even when messing around in the driveway with my son.
I also wear a helmet when I ski or skateboard.0 -
yep, always. I'm too cool not too.
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No never! And I ride my bike every day.
Looks to funny all this helmet peeps out there....sorry :laugh:0 -
Yes I do. I didn't as a child but I make sure my children do.0
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