When you say “horror situation for parents”, this probably reminds you of many situations but perhaps the most terrifying is when their kids are choking, and they are clueless about what to do at this moment.
It is really not that rare that babies find some small objects in their environment and put them in their mouth. It can be walnuts, peanuts, seeds, sometimes coins or buttons, but whichever one it is – it is a nightmare for the parents.
All of these ostensibly harmless objects can be very dangerous for babies because they can cause choking. The question is: what to do when something like this happens?
There is a simple guide we provide here, which explains how to prevent or save a child from choking, step by step.
First Step: Evaluation of the situation
If you notice the child making odd noises, like for example wheezing or see it experiencing breathing problems, or coughing when opening the mouth – these are all pretty obvious signs that the baby has a foreign object in their mouth.
If the baby keeps the mouth wide open, and you see his face changing colors like red or purple, this indicates lack of breath because an object may be stuck in the baby’s throat and immediate intervention is necessary to help the baby.
If you hear the baby intensively coughing and crying simultaneously, this probably means that it will cough out the foreign item, however if you see that the coughing is not that strong, your assistance is needed, because the baby might be choking.
Second Step: Free the airways from foreign items
You can do this by tapping on the back. First sit down, putting the forearm on the thigh and keeping the palm upwards. Next step is placing the torso of the baby on the forearm, letting the stomach lean on your arm, at the same time using your hand to hold the jaw. Keep the baby’s head a bit lower that its body. Then tap the baby’s back for five times, and be sure not to hesitate using a bit of force. If this still does not work, than employ pressure on the abdomen. If you do this, keep the baby in your lap and hold its head with your hand. Again, the head must be a bit lower than its body. Place two of your free hand’s fingers on the center of his chest, right under the nipples, adding pressure about one and a half inch in depth and to this for five times. After you’ve done five repeats the airways should be cleared.
Third Step: In case none of this works, try CPR (artificial respiration)
This videos will provide you with the methods on how to do CPR on your baby.
