A mum has warned other parents to “never ignore a toddler playing up” as she shared a picture of her little girl in an ambulance with blood on her face.
The mum and dad raced to save their three-year-old tot as emergency services scrambled to the scene after she choked on a mouthful of steak.
But before she began choking the youngster pretended she was, messing around at the dinner table for attention.
As she struggled for breath her terrified parents rang emergency services as both the Heimlich manoeuvre and back slaps failed to dislodge the blockage.
The mum from Australia recounted the horror moment she “thought we were in the clear” until her baby’s eyes turned blue and a massive “blood bubble” burst from her mouth.
Sending her story anonymously to the TinyHeartsEducation Instagram page, she said: “One very normal Tuesday night eating dinner with the extended family, our 3.5 year old “pretended” to choke to get a reaction.
“Then with another mouthful of (very cut up toddler sized tender bites) steak, she started properly choking. My partner and I grabbed her from the high chair and started upward thrusts. Didn’t work.
“We moved over to the couch, I grabbed my phone to call 000 and in the commotion my phone fell between the couch into the abyss. Luckily my brother was there and I yelled to him to call an ambulance.
“I put her over my knees and continued back blows. I thought we were in the clear until she tried to come up for air and she’d completely turned blue, eyes rolled back into her head and a massive 'blood bubble' expelled from her mouth bursting over her face, and mine, and partner's body.”
At this point the mum recalled her horror and how she panicked, worrying for her daughter’s life.
The mum was prepared thanks to a recent CPR refresher course she took after seeing choking stories on the same Instagram page where she shared her story.
She knew that as little bits of air were getting through she didn’t need to begin CPR.
She added: “The Operator told us to put her in the recovery position and by that time the ambulance was here, within 4mins!
“A trip to the hospital to make sure there wasn’t an obstruction. A little bit of fluid in her lung and some antibiotics cleared it up. Longest 15 minutes of our lives.”
Even though she’s now recovered the mum confessed to being haunted by the sight of her daughter’s “little blue face covered in blood".
The mum added: “I don’t think I’ve recovered yet, trying not to helicopter parent, I’d never heard of blood expelling while choking but the doctor informed us it might have been from the steak going down, the excessive coughing or back blows.”
