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Parenting

27th Jun 2018

Mum shares harrowing warning about going down a slide with children

"Don't EVER go down a slide with a baby in your lap."

Keeley Ryan

“Don’t ever go down a slide with a baby on your lap.”

A mum has shared a photo of the moment her toddler daughters leg broke as they went down a slide together – urging parents to take caution in the playground.

New York mum Heather Clare explained in the caption that she re-posts the photo every year in an effort to raise awareness about the common injury.

She wrote:

“So every year I do a PSA on going down a slide with your child on your lap.

“When Meadow was 12 months old, I went down the slide with her on my lap and her foot got caught between me and the slide. This picture is the moment her leg was breaking.

“She’s still smiling… because it was happening at this exact moment.”

She went on to explain that when they took little Meadow to the ER, the doctor had lectured her on how common the injury is.

So every year I do a PSA on going down a slide with your child on your lap. When Meadow was 12 months old (I went down…

Posted by Heather Clare on Sunday, 24 June 2018

Heather continued:

“I had no idea. I thought everyone took their kids down the slide.

“I strongly feel every playground should have a warning sign, but since I’ve never seen one (and we go to ALOT of playgrounds), I share this picture every year in hopes that the pain Meadow felt and the guilt that I still feel will save other babies and parents from the same.

“Don’t ever go down a slide with a baby on your lap. There is no SAFE way to go down a slide with your little.”

The photo struck a chord with parents across the globe, reaching more than 14,000 likes and almost 82,000 shares since it was first posted this week.

And after the photo ended up going viral, Heather amended the post to clarify some things about the situation.

She added:

“For all of the common sense posts… it is literally one of the top 3 reasons young children are seen in the ER during the Spring and Summer.

“For everyone commenting on how I am holding my daughter. We didn’t start this way.

“She was centered on my lap. When I realized what was happening, I used my top hand to try to stop us and leaned to release her foot. I wasn’t riding down the slide with her on one side and leaning. That’s ‘common sense.'””