this post was submitted on 11 Dec 2023
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Workplace safety harnesses are very different from climbing harnesses
Does a climbing harness provide more support if you are suspended in it? Or less?
I would say less. But you can spend hours sitting in it if need be. It's not always comfy but it's doable.
Totally different type of harness. Not applicable at all.
OK, this is a workplace safety notice so of course it's focused on a work harness. Is a climbing harness more extensive? Does it offer more support if you end up suspended in it?
If not then the risk of suspension trauma is higher than in a work harness.
Holy shit you know absolutely nothing. I've been rock climbing for more than a decade. You can sit in a climbing harness for hours and hours. It's not the most comfortable thing. But I've spent multiple hours sitting in harness's countless times in my life. I can't believe I'm even having this conversation with someone who knows absolutely nothing about what they are talking about.
For the sake of this photo they are tied into ropes coming up from below but they also have an anchor point above in the background and most likely a point directly on the ledge they are on. They will be tied into very short dynamic ropes for the majority of their time up there making it very difficult to fall more than a couple feet.
Well, I'd say it is something to expect: someone without experience is trying to understand, most likely in good faith. If anything, thank you for sharing your experience, I'd say it wasn't necessary to rant this much but at least you did give an educational reply, thank you for that
Climbing harnesses are usually sitting harnesses that are more padded around the legs and back than work harnesses are.
The bigger thing, though, is that suspension trauma typically happens when you're purely hanging. The amount of time you can hang in a void in a work harness is way, way shorter than the amount of time you can bounce off a wall in a work harness, particularly if you're able to support much of your weight with your feet.
For climbers, the main worry would be hanging around if you're somehow incapacitated from a heart attack or having been knocked out somehow, because workers are a lot more likely to be suspended over a void than climbers.
That's like arguing a condom is less effective at preventing pregnancy than a trash bag, because the condom isn't as big.
No, not really... the suspension trauma happens because the harness straps squeeze your arteries shut, blocking the bloodflow and causing stagnation. If the harness has fewer and/or thinner support straps then you will have the same body weight spread across fewer/smaller points, increasing the pressure and making the problem worse. Blood becomes hypoxic really quickly if it can't move.
I've given safety awareness training and first aid response training on this topic (for work, not for recreation).