Friday, December 19, 2008

Baby Blues

We had a big scare last night.

During dinner, I gave Isaac something new to eat--steamed chicken and apples. He was really tired, and I should have known better than to give him something new while he was cranky. But he is such a good eater, I thought he'd be fine.

Well, he just didn't want any of his food. He pushed the spoon away and got really upset. And when Isaac gets upset, he doesn't wail--he holds his breath. This time was different, though. He held his breath...and held his breath...and held his breath...until he turned blue. By this time I had pulled him out of his high chair and was blowing in his face, trying to get him to breathe.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to his worried parents, he took a breath. I cuddled him to me as he started to settle down. Then Scott looked at me in horror and said, "He's going to pass out." I looked down at my baby's face, and sure enough his head was lolling and his eyes were rolling back.

Scott asked, "What can I do?" (God bless him!) I told him to put cold water on his hands and splash it on Isaac's face. That seemed to do the trick and revived Isaac from his stupor.

Oh, Lord, how scary! Seeing your child turn blue (and I mean BLUE) is an experience I wish on no parent.

We actually had a fairly similar experience last Sunday, when Isaac got really upset while Scott was trying to use the aspirator on his nose. He held his breath until he burst little blood vessels in his face. Afterwards, it looked like he had a red rash on his face. The rash is still there today, but it is slowly fading.

I talked to his pediatrician today. She said, "Oh, no. You have a Breath Holder!" She said that kids do this to get attention, and that they can actually hold their breath long enough that they will make themselves faint and even have seizures. "They do grow out of it...by 4 or 5 years of age." Oh, goody.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

This can be solved. I have trained or re-certified 730 people in CPR. It always includes the choking baby. Grab him up, you sit in a sturdy chair or on a stool. Place him, face down, between your legs & give him back blows, just below the neck. HEAD DOWN. I'll show you how when I see you. Training does not show this anymore, but I have helped others save lives with this technique.
Love..Grandma

Unknown said...

I just completed getting a Gmail address. I had not expected that one to go through!
Let me know if I need to bring the manikin. <> I still expect to be in Rowlett Mon. afternoon.

Morale said...

Hows the Blue face gowing? Any more breath holding? How different. This one is a new one for me.

some chick said...

AWESOME.

Robin said...

When did he start holding his breath (not necessarily turning blue but just holding his breath when he cries?) I am afraid my youngest is gonna be that way. When she cries she holds her breath for a long time. I have to blow in her face and that helps but she's never gotten as far as passing out. Does that start when they are a little older? Scary!

Tiffany said...

Hey, Robin! This started when he was a newborn in the hospital. I remember them suggesting that he would be a good swimmer when he got older. :)

He hasn't had anymore severe incidents since this post. It seems to be strictly an attention-getting device, so the less attention we give it, the less he does it. Hope yours doesn't get that bad!