Yesterday I was doing a downwinder. Half way down there were some great waves (about 2 to 3 meters high). In one of them I crashed and when I came up to catch some air - Bang, and the board hit my head. A clear cut and blood running down.
I kited home and when I came out of the water and other kiters looked at me, asking what happened, everyone of them told me it had happened to them in the past too. I was amazed...
But there is nothing you can do other than be careful and to be prepared that the board might hit you (and no, I don't want to start a new helmet discussion).

Cheers
Caesar

PS: When I came home from dinner and we had a last drink at our friend's apartment, I showed them something on their TV. When I went up - Bang, and this time a cut and blood running off my forehead...you can imagine the laugh. It was definitely not my day yesterday!

Did you have.... straps?
Were you using a ... board leash?
Was there a lot .....of whitewater and the wind onshore to side on?
Where you underpowered.... kite too small ...of a wind lull?
Where you doing a turn.......... to avoid getting munched at the time?

Just curious

you need to create an automatism...but I guess this comes now naturally

When I get washed, and I know my board is behind me (no leash!) I always put my arm behind me to protect the head.

Wishing you a speedy recovery!

By habit now (self-preservation) as soon as I wipe out in waves I sine and move the kite around to drag me away from the board. Sometimes I fly away even before hitting the water!

And I wear a helmet too... Protek watersport, so comfortable.

Me too, you can usually tell if the board is going to come your direction, so I'm used to putting my arm over my head. It hasn't hit me yet though.

Tiago has the correct answer though

I'll never get one of them over my noggin?

if you do then you probably have bigger issues

NO NO and NO to boots in waves! Read somewhere that a pro kitesurfer almost drowned by just letting go of kite in boots and realizing too late that you cannot swim with arms alone in biggish waves. Gess what - your feet are bound together .

Need to be able to kick the board out and use all limbs to take care of staying afloat. 'this said after a coupla decades wave riding in various contraptions.

Remember Ruben Lenten saying he nearly drowned in big surf with boots on..

bruises = keep kiting
cuts = have to let heal if you don't want blood poisoning

so i make sure i sand/blunt my fins a bit every now and again, and i have cut down and rounded old surfboard noses just below eye socket radius or put a nose guard on lol Never look around to see where your surfboard is in the white water at that crucial time! been there...

Mind you i did that recently to a board and the bloody fish tail point stabbed me in the face when surfing.