This is not a feel good post. Mass school shootings are thankfully quite rare – there are a lot of horrible things in and outside of school that are more likely to befall a young person and that we should worry about more.

But trauma happens, and like CPR or knowing how to use an Epipen or defibrillator knowing how to control bleeding is a skill that one day might save someone’s life. Just speaking as a parent, I wish schools my kids attend would put at least as much effort into making sure adults know how to stop bleeding as they do into ineffective “lockdown” drills that are mostly theater. Lots of routine things can cause serious bleeding, hit by cars, sports injuries, and various kinds of accidents.

So today’s National Stop The Bleed Day and if you’re not familiar with the basic ideas, here’s how you can learn more.

There are also kits you can buy for personal use with various tourniquet options. Stop the Bleed has some, too, and other medical supply retailers. Amazon has some of these available as subscribe and save options. If you need them with that frequency you may want to reconsider choices you’re making. Get some basic training before you need to use one. It does not take a lot of time.

It’s an important issue and a pretty easy way to become educated with a skill that will matter if you end up being the first responder after something awful happens.