The day after Thanksgiving is a special one in my family: it’s the day we haul out the holly and deck the halls to make the season merry and bright. Wreaths, banners, elf and reindeer tchotchkes, our fake tree, and, of course, a Christmas stocking for each of us.
But over on TikTok, one pediatrician, Dr. Em (@dr.emzieees) wants parents of young children to hang the stockings by the chimney with care. (For those counting: that’s four Christmas song jokes in one paragraph. You’re welcome.)
“This is your sign to not use stocking holders this year,” Dr. Em begins. She then shares a picture of her own son, a toddler, with her decorated living room in the background. The family stockings are hung on “teeny tiny command hooks.”
“I have seen now three children who have been injured … because the parents use those heavy holders for the stockings. And what do babies do when they see stockings? What do 3 year olds? Honestly, up to age 5?”
Hint: they are 100% going to try to pull them down at some point. Because they’re kids, and kids are chaos with little to no sense of cause and effect.
“I would not have these in your home,” Dr. Em continues. “The heavy stocking holders that sit on the mantle: all you are doing is creating a hazard. Children … grab the stocking and they try to pull the stocking down and what happens is that stocking holder comes down almost always on their face. It leaves these really nasty marks. I’ve seen kids who need stitches from it. This is your PSA.”
In the comments, plenty of people were grateful for this insight. Many hadn’t even considered the danger before.
“Never thought of this (and I’m a childproofing fanatic 😅),” one said. “Thank you!!!”
Others knew the dangers from unfortunate experience.
“I have a family friend who has a glass eye because she pulled one down when she was a toddler,” another shared.
One commenter highlighted the fact that this was not just a concern for little ones, noting wryly, “Mine fell on my face last year… I’m 26.”
Indeed, this is not a new phenomenon: this outlet reported on the issue back in 2017. Other news stories go back to 2009 and even before. You can even find other TikTok creators warning against weighted, unsecured stocking holders on a the mantle. Go ahead and look up “stocking holder injury” in the app.
We’re sorry to bring you one more thing to worry about this holiday season — we know your plate is already quite full — but just think of it this way: swapping out an unsafe item in your house is going to take way less time than a possible trip to the ER.
