Falling Down the Stairs - it's always an injury to avoid.

Bump, bump, bump. That was the sound we heard when Christopher Robbin came down his stairs. Christopher Robin would drag his favorite bear behind him, and Winnie-the-Pooh’s head would go bump, bump, bump all the way down. That was the only way Edward Bear knew how to descend, we read, though sometimes he felt there might be another way. He never came up with another way because it was hard to think during all that bumping.

There are times that you or I might go “bump-bump-bump” down the stairs. There are times we might just go “bump” down the stairs. Either way, it is a moment where gravity gets the better of us and this offers no service to our body or nervous system. 

I’m going to offer, based on what I’ve seen clinically, that falling down the stairs is a significant injury. Nothing gets broken typically, and what pain we might have “disappears” over the next day, days or weeks, and we carry on with life. Where does the pain go? It would be nice if it evaporates or disperses on its own, but the truth is, our bodies compensate around it. Our bodies integrate that new found kinetic energy and impact throughout our facia and parts, increasing the load on whatever it has been compensating around already. This is the formula of response with most our ‘accidents.’

A fall down the stairs will almost certainly put our body in a ‘flight or fight or freeze’ state. This is challenging because most health care providers are not trained to recognize defensive physiology. This will have consequences later for us. If we fall on our tailbone or vertebrate or head, there will now be compressive energy in the bone tissue. That abrupt stop will most always create a kind of whiplash to our brain and spinal cord. And there will be, most likely, a few of our organs that will experience whiplash. In response to this, our muscles will tighten to further compensate.

All of these ‘injuries’ from falling down the stairs can be reversed and eased. 

For your consideration, if you have stairs in your home, invite yourself to not rush down them. Use a free hand for the railing. Be mindful of your step. Avoid talking on your phone as you descend. Let the stairs be a reminder that you have permission to slow down, breathe and feel each step as you go down.

I’d like to see that ‘bump, bump, bump” on the stairs stay between Christopher Robin and Winne-the-Pooh. It makes for a much more pleasant story and keeps the joy flowing in our lives. 

Pete Connolly