Thursday, August 27

NOT Ready to Use my First Aid/CPR

One minute Mark and I are making dinner (me: grilled cheddar cheese sangwich. him: pizza grilled cheese) and my mini sis is grabbing a snack. We're joking around. Sis is adding things to the conversation. Then she is totally incoherent; talking to herself almost. Then the twitching begins and the talking makes sense, she is almost trying to fight it off.

Witnessed my first seizure tonight. She's a pro now with three under her belt since April, but this was the first I've seen. Oh, and I don't like it.

Second time I've ever had to call 911. First time was for an old man who had a little too much happy juice and fell outside our house. He was ok. This time I was actually scared. I may have cried. I may have told the dispatcher to stop asking questions and send an ambulance already. It took a long time for her to come around even with the sugar that the paramedics pumped into her. But I was calm by then. That was 5 hours ago. She's been to the hospital and out and you would never know.

The first aid training I went through just two weeks ago at work? Well, I'd love to say that it kicked in. I can't really say it. Some of it did (you're still a good teacher T-rav!):

1. Get her to a laying down position: remembered! (someone was going to put her in a chair and I kiboshed that one)
2. Do you give juice? Not a clue. We played it safe and decided not to have her also choking. Did not remember.
3. Recovery position: didn't remember, but she ended up that way.
4. Move stuff out of the way: remembered!
5. Call 911: remembered!

I don't ever want to have to use my life preservation skills (and only in Quebec are you legally obligated, as a lowly first-aider, to help someone in need -- although once you start helping anywhere in Canada you have to keep helping until the professionals get there)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Juice likely should not be given. Choking, you know. Is she diabetic? I can't remember whether seizures co-occur with diabetes. If so, sugary things should or should not be given, depending on whether it's high or low...
--tplug