Monday, October 20, 2008
Do Teens Take Too Many Risks?
Something I have often thought about was reinforced this weekend on a call I went on. (I work on an Ambulance.) We were called out to a "17 year-old male. Motorcycle crash. Conscious and breathing. Bystanders stated he was not wearing a helmet." When I got on scene, I saw a young man, not much younger than me, laying on the side of the road bleeding profusly from his head. As a began assessing him, I noticed several lacerations on his head and face. His teeth had protruded through his upper lip. He had tar from the road stuck between his teeth. He had several "goose-eggs" on his forehead, and constricted pupils indicating a significant head injury. He wasn't too coherent as far as the accident was concerned. I continued on with my assessment and as I cut all his clothes off, I noticed road rash all over his extremities. He had what we call an "avulsion" of his toe. Meaning the skin and surrounding tissue had been completely ripped off and was just hanging there by a couple strands of flesh. He had road rash on the tops of his feet and toes as well. I asked him if he was wearing shoes and he told me no. The funny thing is that all of the injuries he had sustained were located on the body parts without protection. I really believe if he had worn shoes and a helmet, he would not have been in as bad shape as he was. Overall, he was extremely lucky, he could easily have been killed. He is what we call a dumb-a**. After the call, I was really upset. I, myself, would never ride a motorcycle without shoes or a helmet and I cannot fathom why anyone else would. Is this a guy thing, or are teenagers to risky? I'd appreciate any feedback you may have on the matter! Thanks.
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5 comments:
I think that teenagers think that they are indispensable. My cousin Denver, is 17 years old, grabbed a hold of his buddies tailgate and long boarded going 60 miles an hour down a country road.. luckily passing his parents, it wasn't until his mom pointed out the danger that Denver got the consequence. His answer was "I didn't even think about it." Thats the problem teenagers don't think- they just do!!
I think that it is a guy thing and a teenager thing. alot of guys are willing to take more risks to look tough, even only to themselves. I alot agree that teens as a whole dont realize that they are not invincible. i think that comes with experiencing the death of someone who is young. truth be told, even that isnt enough to convince alot of people.
The way I see it is this kid was just plain stupid. How many incidences do we hear about people getting killed from motorcycles? This is not an uncommon thing and unless you live in a cave, one would know the dangers of riding without protection. Maybe he was "showing off" or maybe he was just going a short distance and didn't feel the need to put everything on. Whatever the case, common sense was not used. I don't think i would say teens are too risky, i think they just don't think things through first.
First of all, riding a motorcycle with no helmet or shoes is very dumb. However, I have a motorcycle, and have done some pretty stupid things at times. I think part of the problem is that when you are doing something dangerous, a lot of the times you don't realize how dangerous it is. I know many times when I do something dumb, I don't realize how hurt I could have gotten until after I do it.
On the other hand, sometimes dangerous things are just fun. Usually when I do something dangerous, I realize the risk, but I chose to do it anyways because I think its fun. Maybe I'm crazy, but thats just me.
I don't think it is just a "guy thing" to do dangerous activities. I am terrified of motorcycles and I have only been on one ride, clinging to the driver. But if I got enough courage to do what the young man who you found hurt did,(riding with no helmet and no shoes) I would. I would probably only go about 10 miles an hour on the straightest roads possible, but it would be an adventure with a rush like no other that I would want to try!
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