How Well Do You Know CPR?
I don’t know it well enough… and yesterday I had a stomach-turning reminder of how fast a child could drown. It reminded me of how I need to improve my CPR skills.
I was visiting my older sister and her boys at their house with my 2 year old Julia. They have a rather large kids pool setup and Julia decided she wanted to test it out. So I rolled up my shorts and took her in.
The water was only just past my knees and Julia could stand up easily with the water just above her waist. I held on to her and we waded around enjoying the cool. After a few minutes of wading about, we were standing there and I had taken my hands off of her. I didn’t think much about it, as I was standing right next to her and she was simply standing in the water.
But I turned my head to look up at my older sister who was on her balcony and I started saying something to her. Almost immediately — only a second could have passed — my sister, who was looking at Julia and me in the pool as she stood on the balcony, pointed and said, “She’s Drowning!!!”
I turned my head back to see my precious child starting to sink face first in the water!
I immediately reached down, scooped her up and pulled her out. She started crying like crazy and I wrapped her in a towel and calmed her down. It only took a few minutes to get her settled, but my stomach still hasn’t entirely settled.
It was the most awful image… my baby sprawled face first in the water and sinking like a sack of stones.
It was only a second my head was turned. I hadn’t even turned my body. I was still not even an inch away from her and yet I hadn’t heard single sound.
She must have just toppled forward and started to sink. Her arms flapping were under the water and so they didn’t make any splashing sounds.
Thank the Lord that I was turned talking to my sister who was looking right at us, so that she could immediately tell me Julia had fallen.
But I can’t get past the thought that what if the distraction had been another child and I had turned to talk to them for a minute… I can’t even let myself think about it.
I felt like the most irresponsible mother in the world.
But I imagine that is how every accident happens… in just one second. You turn your eyes from your child in the mall, and he disappears. You turn your eyes from your child in the water, and the unthinkable happens.
It literally makes me sick to think about it. I thank God for the reminder He gave me yesterday and that it was only a reminder.
And it makes me think about how my CPR skills just do not cut it.
I’m constantly frustrated with my lack of ability with CPR and other life saving skills — and I’ve made some attempts to remedy it — but I still doubt I could put it to use when it counted.
You see, before Julia was born, my husband and I took a one-day St. John’s Ambulance course. But I found I was so panicked by the thought that “I can’t do this… I won’t be able to do this…”, that surprisingly I didn’t absorb the information well.
So several months later I decided to order a training video and even the practice mannequins from an online store. But when my video arrived and I put it in my VCR, it immediately ate the tape. My machine had never eaten a tape so I called the company. But they said, they couldn’t help me since it was a problem with my machine. (By the way that machine still has never eaten another tape.)
So the practice mannequins have sat unassembled on my shelves reminding me of my failure to learn the most important life saving skill.
Even as I sit here, I can see the torso of the adult size mannequin laying on the shelf headless.
Enough is clearly enough… I must get this procrastination under control and master CPR!
Can you help me?
How did you learn CPR? (Or are you like me and still not yet there?) Did you take a course? Do you know of any at home training materials — websites, videos, books or DVDs?
I really want to have a video — either online or a DVD — where I can watch it over and over to try to burn it through the cement block I call a brain.
66 Comments
My husband is a CPR instructor/Fire Department Training Officer and he has started teaching classes to the public. The next group in is the football coaches.
Sorry, sent before I was ready…. I wanted to let you know that you can contact me if you need something. I am sure my husband can help you out.
I have actually had to perform CPR twice, not on children but on adults, one as a result of a car accident that happened literally right in front of us. The other was a Heart Attack victim in the building next to where I was working.
Like other commenters said, you just do it. I don’t really remember alot about my training, I like you felt like it was all greek and not sinking in, however when I was faced with the situation, I don’t know if it was the “motherly” instincts or what, you just react, and do it. In the situations that I was in there was no one else to do it. And I just kinda went into auto pilot until other more qualified help arrived.
A refresher course is never a bad idea though.
I just posted about an incident I had at the beach last week. My 5 yr. old child went missing when I turned to set up my chair. It did make me feel like an irrisponsible parent. My story ended happily, but it tears me up to think about all the families that aren’t so lucky.
I worked for the YMCA for a number of years. They provided CPR and first aid training. If you contact your local YMCA, or the Red Cross… they offer classes. When I renewed it on my own (since I don’t work there anymore) it cost a little more than I expected… but is totally worth it.
I was able to do a one-on-one refresher CPR session when our twins were in the NICU and Hubby has to have a current CPR card at all times as a part of his employment. I have to say though that I too struggle with feeling completely capable if something were to happen.
Sure we’ve had our share of scares with the boys, but never anything truly serious. I really do appreciate you sharing your story and reminding me once again how important this is as a mom! I will definitely be approaching the leaders I know of local mom groups and remind them that it’s a great idea to offer this for their group to participate in!
Meanwhile ((hugs)) to you for your scary ordeal!
I think few realize how fast a drowning can occur, and even with the most vigilant parent watching. It’s not like the movies, where the child flails and calls for help. Most people don’t notice when a child is drowning right next to them.
I know I emailed you about this, but wanted to share it with everyone else. My husband thought he was watching our son when we were on vacation, but it turned out to be another little boy that looked just like him. So he rushed to me to see if I had Matthew with me. I didn’t.
I started scanning the very large pool looking for him and found him drowning in the deep end. He couldn’t get his head above the water and was just..drowning.
No one around him noticed. There were tons of people there playing in the pool. I dove in, pulled him out and he ended up coughing up water and was okay. All I could think was what if it had been just another minute before my husband realized he was missing.
In addition to CPR skills, I think it’s important for parents to realize that kids look like they’re playing when they’re actually drowning. I not only keep an eye out for my own kids now, I try to be very aware of the kids playing around them to make sure they’re coming up for air.
Thanks for posting this. It’s so very important.
I took a CRP class at the Red Cross. It was a 2 day course not a 1 day. I have since taken advanced CRP classes and have taken medical provider CPR classes. Sign up with a real person. Try for a small class so you can get close attention from teacher. I have used my training in hospital situations and on the streets. I have done CPR at least 6 times while not in a hospital(at wrecks and other times…..once on a baby pig)
You are definitely not the worst mom in the world. I’ve been there done that and it is just that easy for them to end up face down in the water. My daughter was just over a year when we went to the community kiddie pool which only had water a few inches high. I got distracted with another child and when I turned back to my daughter, she was face down in the water. She was of course fine but it just shows that even in a few inches of water and a few seconds, it could’ve turned out worse. I took CPR/First aid in college but haven’t taken a refresher course since. I was going to look at our local Red Cross for classes. Try looking there as many others have suggested.
I’m so glad Julia is okay.
I had to learn before i could take my Preemie son home from the NICU. We learned with a CPR Specialist and with a video. We would watch the video then she would talk about what we watched and answered any questions. After the video was over we were asked to show what we learned on a CPR baby. It was the most nerve wracking thing. I felt so much better about taking my son home with me.I would definitely find someone to help you. It was nice to have an actual person there to help answer questions and show you how EXACTLY to do it.
Oh, my goodness… my heartbeat quickened as I was afraid of how your post was going to end! I’m so glad she’s ok! Feel free to delete this if you think it’s spam, but I don’t intend it to be –
I am a distributor for a product called CPR Teddy. I sell it through my eBay store. I also have a CPR Teddy Blog about it. It’s basically an infant practice manikin, but it’s a teddy bear. Comes with a video, pocket reminder card and (if you sign up for it) the company will send you a quarterly reminder to practice your CPR skills. CPR Teddy is not intended to replace a class, but is helpful in continually reviewing your skills at home, for those who don’t have a manikin. And he’s really cute & cuddly… : )
Sorry you had to go through this…call your local fire dept..they will do a class for you.
I have taken several First Aid and CPR classes, since I have worked for several years in Child Care, and the best one that I have ever taken, was given by a fireman, who taught the class on the side. None of the other classes made it to where it was interesting enough for the information to stick, but this one was great! I didn’t even like the one that I had taken years before at the hospital! I suggest calling the Fire Dept.
What a great website! Thanks for sharing your experience with your viewers, it really brings home the importance of knowing CPR and some basic first aid. There are a lot of options for taking CPR classes through community programs, hospitals and private organizations. The key to being able to act during an emergency is hands-on practice with a manikin and an instructor and reviewing the material frequently.
For those busy moms, a blended learning course combining online learning and hands-on skills may be a perfect fit. We offer this type of training at http://www.actionedu.com. We recommend taking a course at least every 2 years. CPR steps have changed over the years so if you haven’t taken a class recently, do it today.
Also, you can listen to the CPR steps on your computer at http://www.learnCPRpodcast.com or on iTunes.
Don’t be afraid to take a class. The steps have become very simplified and a good instructor will coach you through the class and allow you to practice until you feel comfortable. Don’t forget the 911 operators will also walk you through it during an emergency.
Hope this helps.
Jenn, everyone, this all very awful. The same thing happened to us with our 5 year old Zoe with choking. What did we do? We struggled with the Heimlich Maneuver and after a few terrifying seconds, the food popped out. But we’ve done something more which I need to shamelessly plug.
My wife and her friend created Safety Magnets (www.SafetyMagnets.com). Safety Magnets™ are 5″ x 7″ refrigerator magnets that list first aid steps on what to do in common medical emergencies (like CPR, Choking, Burns, and Poisoining). Safety Magnets™ are a must have for all caregivers including new moms and dads, teachers, day care providers, the elderly and baby sitters. Stop looking in the junk drawer for that misplaced CPR manual — try a Safety Magnet and be prepared!!!
Hugs to you. You are not the most irresponsible mother in the world. You are human. Accidents happen. Thank God that she’s ok.
You don’t want to learn CPR from a video. It’s the kind of thing where you need an actual person to actually show you what to do. Take the time to take a class. In my town, the same group that does pre-childbirth classes does infant/child CPR. The Red Cross also does classes.
I had to do the Heimlich maneuver on a kid who was choking on a hot dog at the school where I worked. It was TERRIFYING, but it worked, and he was just fine. Since then, I’ve done it several dozen times on my older daughter, who had some sort of anatomical weirdness that resulted in her choking all the time when she was a baby. She has since outgrown it, thank God.
You know, you may be able to get a group together (your family, your playgroup, etc.) and have the Red Cross come out and teach you. Call your local office and see what the options are.
Love to you,
Amy @ http://prettybabies.blogspot.com
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