After feeding her 3-month-old baby, the boy suddenly began to cough and vomit. Next thing you know, Zane completely stops breathing.
Panic sets in. Scared for her baby’s life, Nicole Bechtle immediately gets on the phone and starts dialing 911.
The situation, she describes, was terrifying:
“I don’t know how long it was – it felt like an eternity. It was probably two seconds, but he started turning different colors of blue.”
On the other side of the phone, a West Metro Fire Rescue operator talked Bechtle through infant CPR step-by-step. After two minutes of performing the maneuver, Zane suddenly let out a huge cry and began to breathe normally. Bechtle told KUSA:
“That cry that most people would find annoying was like an ‘ahhh moment’ to me. The weight on my shoulders from that situation was lifted and I knew he was going to be okay at that moment.”
The 911 operator, whom Bechtle credits for saving her son’s life – is now lobbying state leaders to make learning CPR a requirement for new parents.
For many infants, choking is a leading cause of unintentional death. The best way to deal with it is to learn CPR. You never know when you might need it.
