Ice Packs
My youngest child, Fanny, has a habit of going to the school nurse for every little boo-boo. Fanny likes to complain about the service: “All the nurse gives me is an ice pack.”
The ice pack is a small miracle cure for bumps and bruises. The cold temperature penetrates the skin and contracts the blood vessels, thus slightly limiting the swelling and numbing the pain. For best results, use it in the first ten minutes after injury. After that, it doesn’t do much good, so if Jimmy refuses to let you put ice on him, don’t chase after him with it. And if he doesn’t want it at all for whatever reason, don’t worry; ice packs are nice little miracles but not indispensable.