Shaking a infant, even for an instant, can cause lifelong consequences

For a split second, adults lose their patience when they can’t cope with a crying baby, and the consequences last forever. Shaking an infant or young child – even once – can be fatal.

Each year, several children in the Tampa Bay area die from being shaken violently, or suffer another type of abusive head trauma at the hands of a parent or caregiver.

Most parents think they would never do anything to harm their baby. But most often, it’s parents who are responsible for causing injury or death from shaking a baby. The parent or caregiver does not mean to cause abusive head trauma, but they lack the knowledge or skills to cope with a stressful situation.

Read the full story on Tampa Bay Parenting.