Sleeping in, coffee brewing, kids getting dressed and ready — it was shaping up to be a wonderful and relaxing Mother’s Day. After our nice morning, we headed to my brother’s for an afternoon cookout. The kids played outside, and the new puppy got a lot of attention. The grill was fired up, and dinner was about to be served. Everyone was having a great time!
The dining room was full of laughter, smiles, kids, and food. And then, in an instant, the mood changed. I heard, “OH NO!” and saw my son struggling. Before I even knew it, I was up out of my seat, thinking to myself, NO, NO, NO, this is NOT going to happen. I picked up my 3-year-old, tipped him head down, and whacked his back with a series of hard blows. I didn’t stop until I heard someone say, “It’s up, it’s up!” and I saw his food on the ground.
My son had choked on a piece of chicken.
Chicken, a food we’ve eaten a thousand times.
Chicken, the healthy meat he loves (especially wings)!
Chicken, the food I will now fear.
Since he was born, I have had a pretty significant fear of choking. More so than any fears of the other bad things that could happen. Some would say I was a little crazy delaying the introduction of solid foods or how small I would cut (and still do) his food.
This is why.
Those 30, or even fewer, seconds are not something I EVER want to re-live. Those seconds I replay over and over again. Thankfully, the outcome is fine, but did I do the right thing?
Do you still tip your 30-something-pound child face down and whack their back when they’re choking? Should I have given him the Heimlich? Should I have looked in his mouth?
These questions need answers.
And I have found how to get them. A CPR and First Aid class is now on my calendar. I have signed up for a refresher course since the class I took previously was before my son was born, almost 4 years ago. My family has committed to going to the class, too.
No one has forgotten that incident.
I highly recommend everyone take a class. Obviously, caution can help avoid these situations on occasion, but you never know when they can and will happen. So take a course, be prepared, and hope you never have to use what you learned. We are our children’s protectors — the least we can do is be prepared.