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Dr. Gwenn Is In

Think winter safety heading back to school today
New Year's Eve was one of the coldest in year's here in New England. We were ready for the cold and snow but misjudged the wind, as most Boston First Night revelers seemed to have. I've never seen fireworks move like that in the sky before! They just sort of blew sideways in odd shapes and directions. It made for a fantastic show, especially since we watched while moving very, very fast seeing out warmth.

In retrospect, we should have dressed more for a ski vacation - complete with face shields. While everyone was admittedly cold, our 14 year old just couldn't admit that she needed any additional layers. "I'm fine as I am. Besides, I'm not a turtleneck girl." We were tempted to dive into a minilecture about the dangers of cold weather but recognized the futility of arguing with a teenagers who had decided she knew best. Besides, we already had our fireworks for the evening. We'd find another way to drive the cold weather point home to her.

It turned out, the behavior of other teens that holiday evening did the teaching for us. In the news the following evening, we heard this disturbing story about a Marblehead, Massachusetts teenager who became missing in the snow and cold. By the time he was found, he only had about 20 more minutes before he likely would have lost his life. Sadly, a 14 year old in Long Island wasn't so lucky and lost her life after getting lost in the cold and snow for a prolonged period of time.

At breakfast the next morning, I told my daughter about those teens and emailed her the link so she could see the story herself. By the time school started today, we had zero battles about winter dress. You may want to try this approach with your own kids. News headlines can be powerful teaching tools and go much further than lectures which kids often tune out.

You really can't be careful enough during the winter season. As your children head out to school this week, and all winter long, keep the cold, wet and windy elements in mind. Make sure they are dressed correctly head to toe. If they are usually walkers, have a back up plan ready to get them to and from school if the weather suddenly becomes unfavorable. If they take the bus to school, don't forget that waiting for the bus exposes them to the elements - you may have to sit with them in the car or be at the bus stop if the conditions turn for the worse. Despite the many eye rolls, deep down they know you're only trying to keep them safe and out of the evening news.

For more information on winter and cold weather safety, click here.

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