[dharmama]

...and she gagged/choked on it.

I was doing up a stir-fry and sent DH to the market for a few more items. Lil was next to me in her highchair playing with her sippy cup and a toy. She started getting fussy and trying to buy myself a few more minutes, I gave her a whole carrot to play with and teethe on.

For a couple of minutes she was totally happy...rolling the carrot around on her tray and every once in a while bringing it to her mouth. I wasn't concerned about her mouthing it because she doesn't have any teeth and it was too large for her to fit the whole thing in her mouth. I slipped back into my cooking Zen and was quite pleased with my creative teething toy.

All of the sudden I heard her gagging and I turned around and realized that somehow she had gotten a tiny bit of the carrot in her mouth!!!!

I unstrapped her and turned her over to give her back blows and before I even did she vomited. She vomited again and gave a couple of big coughs.

As I realized what happened - and more importantly what almost happened - I totally lost it and started sobbing.

By this time Lil was totally calm, except for the fact that she was clearly bothered by my crying. She kept laughing and batting at my face and trying to bite my chin while I was SOBBING.

When DH got home I broke down all over again telling him what happened. He went and looked at the carrot he would have never considered it dangerous to give her that.

We found the tiny piece of carrot in her vomit...and I'm telling you it was SMALL...but big and hard enough that it triggered her gag reflex (thank God).

Oh mamas...it was such a scary moment. I never even *thought* that I could be giving her something dangerous. I've been snuggling her all night since it happened and I just put her down to sleep. As soon as I put her down I started crying all over again.

Just thought I'd let others know about this as a warning and now I'm off to make a cup of tea and try to relax a bit.

 

[Camellia]

Mama. I hope you feel better soon. It wasn't a "bad mama" moment. It was a pure and simple accident. I'm glad your Dd is safe and happy! Take some deep breaths. You did nothing wrong.

 

[leomom]

Aw, you poor thing! You sound like a great Mama. Hope you enoy your tea.

 

[USAmma]

It sounds like it just triggered her gag reflex, and that's why she vomited. I'm sure that tiny piece would not have choked her in a serious way. Poor baby though! And poor you! Don't blame yourself. Nitara's feeding therapist gives her all kinds of choking hazards in order to get her to taste new things.

Darshani

 

[dharmama]

Thanks you guys. Wow...this mama stuff is intense.

 

[starlite]

I agree with the others ... it wasn't a "bad mamma" moment it was a scary moment!!!

When my ds had just started solids we'd freeze small cubes of pureed vegies to use at our convieniance. Ds started really choking and I have never been more afraid in all my life! Finally after our prompt first aid we found a peice of broken plastic (clear) in his vomit. We discovered a tiny bit of the plastic tub had broken off that we kept the frozen food cubes in. How was I to know? How were you to know? Just a scary accident ... you are a good mamma. You were supervising and had not left her unattended, you administered first aid, you have done nothing wrong.

Choking is really scary and can happen at any time - which is why little ones need constant supervision. Wont be the last time you dd gags like this either and it will be just as scary as it was the first time round ... ds also started eating the gum nuts off the ground in the backyard and has also choked on them. Never saw him put one in his mouth ... but I was there to witness the choking on one! They surprise you with what they find laying around and put straight in their mouths. Can't take your eyes of them for a second!

Never leave kids unsupervised while eating as they can choke on 'safe' foods too ... you will be surprised!

Glad your all ok.

 

[saritabeth]

awwww

s to you.

Its all so scary....you are not a bad mama it happens to the best of us. We had a similar thing happen with our dd. You just move into Robot Mama Mode and do whatever it takes to get that out of her mouth!!

Enjoy your tea and be kind to yourself.
Sarita

 

[freegirl23cat]

you are a GREAT! momma...and you should give yourself credit for your quick and effective response! i know what you mean about this momma stuff being intense...sometimes i freak myself out about what can happen that i won't know what to do! you did great!

 

[rubelin]

aw sweetie, sorry you got such a scare. You totally weren't a bad momma! That's what the gag reflex is for, as scary as it is, it's how babes learn what should and shouldn't go down. It's trying not to flip out as they are doing it that's the hardest part

 

[dharmama]

Thanks mamas! I'm letting go of my bad mama thoughts...I changed the title to scary mama moments instead.

And actually after reading your responses I realized that I could feel good about my response. It's been a while since I took the infant/child CPR but I instantly had her in the right position to do back blows. So that's a positive thing to focus on.

We had such an awesome snuggly night last night. Poor baby must think I'm

mama though!! Every time she woke up to nurse I was kissing her like crazy, telling her how much I love her and a few times

again.

The range of emotions that come with motherhood are...wow. Intense.

~Erin

 

[DeadHead*Mama]