MR

Eerily and sadly (to me) my dad just went through what I did just last summer. I was shakin' up about it all night but wanted to type it out when I could. Last summer, after coming back from the zoo, me and my girlfriend went out to eat at a new Mexican place in town. As we got our food, I took a bite of meat and it was very hot. At first, I didn't think anything of it and then I started coughing heavily. While coughing, a piece of meat got stuck in my windpipe and I started to choke.

To describe what it's like to actually be choking is frightening. Once I realized I was choking, I pretty much lost all feeling in my body and literally felt paralyzed so I couldn't let my girlfriend know with words OR body language that I was in trouble.

It literally felt like hours, maybe really a couple seconds once I lost my hearing and then kind of blacking out. The next thing I knew I was sitting in the booth with my girlfriend sitting next to me and people around me with water. Scariest thing in my entire life. A very hopeless feeling but I know whenever someone's about to pass away, it's peaceful.

Well, last night, my dad went through the same fate, on my birthday dinner nonetheless. We were all sitting around the table, mingling and enjoying our dinner when I looked over and noticed my dads face beat-red but didn't notice he was in the first stages of choking.

He was kind of panicking and trying not to put attention to himself and tried one last effort with beer to make the food go down. I looked back over and he was scrunched over with a huge amount of beer-foam choke back up and he gave this motion in his eyes trying to tell us he was choking. It's weird when your body goes into instinct mode because I knew he was in trouble and choking at that point and I remembered what I went through.

Even though I was shakin' and frightened, I reacted within second's notice and threw my dad up from his chair in one motion. My dad's a big dude and he was literally dead-weight at that point but I got this instinctual strength I never knew I had while I performed the Heimlich Maneuver on him 4 times.

The second one lodged the food from his throat and it spit out like a laser. Turns out, it was a grilled chicken breast the size of a pointer finger. It was absolutley humongous and once I saw it I couldn't believe and just couldn't imagine what he just went through.

I choked on a simple piece of meat and it felt like the girth of an apple. It shook him up the remainder of the night and had a couple emotional conversations with me since. Just a very scary image still engraved in my head. Amazing how quick your body reacts to knowing exactly what to do even though I never performed such a thing in my entire life. Anybody else ever faced this type of humbling reality?

I was wondering who was making such a racket at the table next to me! Keep it down!



Glad everything turned out ok for you. Man, scary stuff!

The Heimlich manuver is something all should know.. I've
had a few situations had to use it in...& I don't care what lol
folks tell ya the "International Sign" is for choking...two hands
around your throat...
I've yet to see that...What you get is a rosy red face...or further on
cyanotic lips ..bulging eyes..panic...
If your by yourself & are choking..grab the back of a chair..
& push down on it with your chest several times quickly..
Congrats on having the calmness & balls to figure it out & react &
save your dad..

PS...Happy Birthday

Awe, so glad your dad is ok and you were there and knew exactly what was happening! Both your parents were so sweet when we met them, loved talking to them! I can only imagine how scared you were, I've been there but with our kids as toddlers. My daughter not so bad, but my son once as a toddler choked while finger feeding himself when we were at a restaurant with my whole family for a birthday once too. And he had managed to gag it out himself pretty quickly by the time I had sprinted up out of my chair and went to grab him out of the high chair, but in that short time I felt that sheer terror also. And didn't matter I had been a ped. nurse for a decade already at that point, lol, at THAT moment, I was just a mommy, SCARED shitless for my baby. Happy birthday btw! I remember yours was shortly after mine, lol. Glad your dad is ok!

Wow... so glad you were there for your dad. Hope he's alright. You'd make Superman proud.

tater1977 wrote:The Heimlich manuver is something all should know.. I've
had a few situations had to use it in...& I don't care what lol
folks tell ya the "International Sign" is for choking...two hands
around your throat...
I've yet to see that...What you get is a rosy red face...or further on
cyanotic lips ..bulging eyes..panic...
If your by yourself & are choking..grab the back of a chair..
& push down on it with your chest several times quickly..
Congrats on having the calmness & balls to figure it out & react &
save your dad..

PS...Happy Birthday

Thank you for that As for your words of the "chocking caution sign" I couldn't agree more. Speaking of somebody who now went through somebody choking TWICE, I can vouch that every limb of the body goes into panic mode and the lack of oxygen in mere seconds stops the line of communication to the brain. It literally is very hard to move let alone act out an charade, but thanks guys. He's doing well. The situation remains a traumatic experience for him & he remains shakin' up about it but he's getting better mentally. I'm authorizing that it's better not to think about "what-if's" because it'll bother him. I'm just happy we got that son of a bitch out of there and the reaction was automatic. Things indeed happen and life is literally a matter of seconds so we're focusing now on just being grateful for family.

YoungJRNY wrote:Turns out, it was a grilled chicken breast the size of a pointer finger.

CHEW, people!! CHEW!! What is it with people and not chewing?


Just kidding, man! Glad everything's alright!

verslibre wrote:

YoungJRNY wrote:Turns out, it was a grilled chicken breast the size of a pointer finger.

CHEW, people!! CHEW!! What is it with people and not chewing?


Just kidding, man! Glad everything's alright!

Haha, trust me, I felt like a 2nd grade teacher afterwords letting him know that now he knows to chew the living shit out of his food from now on. He took it to heart but he said it was just one of those instances where he was so hungry that when he realized he couldn't chew, it slid down and the rest was up to anybody around him. But I second that: CHEW YOUR DAMN FOOD! What is the standard education? Isn't it about, 26 times your supposed to chew your food before swallowing?

My wife saved the daughter of a friend of ours from choking a few years ago. I wasn't there but was glad she knew what to do. Way to go man!

Glad to hear that your father is alright. It's a good thing you were there!

Has your father said if his ribs are sore or anything like that from you giving him the Heimlich? Obviously it's worth having sore ribs in order to still be alive, but I have always wondered if I'd break someones ribs if I ever had to give them the Heimlich.

Journey/Survivor wrote:Glad to hear that your father is alright. It's a good thing you were there!

Has your father said if his ribs are sore or anything like that from you giving him the Heimlich? Obviously it's worth having sore ribs in order to still be alive, but I have always wondered if I'd break someones ribs if I ever had to give them the Heimlich.

Very funny you ask as that was my very first concern of what was going through my head once I jolted him up from his seat. Since his body was kind of was limp because of the lack of energy, I scrambled to find his belly button once I got my arms around him to locate the area around the stomach to push inward and outward. My first one was kind of weak with that concern and the second one I said to myself "fuck it, it's no time to be gentle" as my second attempt went deeper and I used most of my strength, literally lifting his feet off the ground and had him pinned against my chest in the air, which popped the grilled-chicken out.

First thing I told him once he re-gained his breathing was that I hope I didn't hurt him or potentially crack a rib. He just smiled and shook my hand. He's a little sore but nothing over-the-top. I was most concerned about him continuing eating afterword's because the throat could of been sore and weak to swallow even the smallest amount of proportions so I monitored him the rest of his dinner.

Scary, scary stuff, Travis. For you and for him. I'm glad you knew what to do and did what you did. I think sometimes, things like that piece of chicken just slide down your throat before you're ready for them to, especially if you're eating and talking. You did the right thing at the right time. I'm glad everyone is ok.

Glad your dad is alive and well, thanks to your action.

Rick wrote:Scary, scary stuff, Travis. For you and for him. I'm glad you knew what to do and did what you did. I think sometimes, things like that piece of chicken just slide down your throat before you're ready for them to, especially if you're eating and talking. You did the right thing at the right time. I'm glad everyone is ok.

I'll know who to call the next time I see someone here choking on a wiener.

Rip Rokken wrote:

Rick wrote:Scary, scary stuff, Travis. For you and for him. I'm glad you knew what to do and did what you did. I think sometimes, things like that piece of chicken just slide down your throat before you're ready for them to, especially if you're eating and talking. You did the right thing at the right time. I'm glad everyone is ok.

I'll know who to call the next time I see someone here choking on a wiener.

Rick wrote:Scary, scary stuff, Travis. For you and for him. I'm glad you knew what to do and did what you did. I think sometimes, things like that piece of chicken just slide down your throat before you're ready for them to, especially if you're eating and talking. You did the right thing at the right time. I'm glad everyone is ok.

Same here thankfully your dad is alright Travis.glad your dad is ok

Wow good job! Your father is a very lucky man. What a way to celebrate your birthday by saving the life of one of the people who gave you yours.

Peartree12249 wrote:Wow good job! Your father is a very lucky man. What a way to celebrate your birthday by saving the life of one of the people who gave you yours.

So glad you are fine.And glad you saved your dad.

Wow.

This reminds me of my Niece...she was like 3 or 4 years old, watching TV with me in my Parents' TV room.
My Sister (her Mom, obviously LOL) was in the Kitchen, talking with our Mom.

My Niece was eating some sort of candy; I didn't think anything of it...

All of a sudden, she started making choking noises; coughing...and put her hand around her throat.

I FREAKED OUT and ran down the hall to get my Sister.
Mind you, she's an RN....and guess what she did?

In all calmness, she scooped her daugher up off the ground; had her hand come up underneath so her palm was on her daughter's chest.
With the flat of her other hand, she pounded on her daughter's upper back 3 or 4 times; whatever she was choking on was dislodged.

She put her back down; made sure she was OK, kissed and hugged her.

...and I'm like, HAH???

Peartree12249 wrote:Wow good job! Your father is a very lucky man. What a way to celebrate your birthday by saving the life of one of the people who gave you yours.

Right on. He keeps telling people that his son saved his life on his birthday. I just told 'em there's no better bday gift than to simply be there for him in the time of need.

My hero!

good job! well done <3

Glad to hear you guys are ok!

Isn't it amazing how in those circumstances the conscious brain freezes but the subconscious knows what to do, steps in and takes over? I've had a few times on the motorbike where something's happened, like the brakes locking, and while my "thinking brain" freaked out, my "body brain" just did exactly what I was taught to do and I got out of the problem safely. I've tried to keep my first aid qualifications up to date, and I hope if I'm ever in that sort of situation the same thing will kick in - just do what has to be done.

I've never choked, but I have nearly drowned; sailing with my Dad the catamaran capsized in shallowish water and the boom and mast caught in the lake bottom. I got caught under the sail and because I had a life vest on, and I was only eight, I didn't have the strength to swim down under the boom against the boyancy of the vest. I remember panicking, and the water hurting and choking me, and then feeling calm and weirdly alert while I was blacking out. Fortunately Dad realised what happened and got me out in time. I don't remember him pulling me out, I do remember lying over the hull choking again as I coughed up the water and then crying because it hurt so much. After that, Dad decided I couldn't go sailing again until I was a strong enough swimmer to swim 10m straight down with the vest on.

I'm glad your Dad is ok. Tell him I said he has to buy you a hero sandwich for lunch