First Aid for Choking.

[AmandaF]

My mother, who is 82, was recently diagnosed and now lives with me. She frequently coughes, wheezes and breathes heavily, especially at night. I am very frightened that she will choke and I won't know how to help her. Is there any official first-aid approach for PSP-type choking that I should know about?

I want to be as prepared as possible.

Thank you.

Amanda.

[jillannf6]

Hi

I have thickener for my drinks .

The choking is v difficult to deal with as a patient

Lol Jill

[maggieh]

Hi Amanda

Check with your nearest St John's Ambulance Society (they used to run training sessions) and see if you can get basic first aid/rescusitation training - or maybe your GP's surgery may be able to advise you. Luckily for me, before I retired I had had training as an office first aider so I had learned how to do the Heimlich Manouvre.

This proved very useful once when on holiday with my husband & he choked suddenly on a tablet. He was sitting on the terrace outside our room when I heard him coughing and then a crash. I ran out to find him on the floor not breathing and his lips turning blue. Instinctively I knew what to do, although I don't know where I found the strength. I managed to lift him to his feet in two fast movements, then with two fists clenched from behind I gave two hard pulls inward and upwards under his ribs, Up came the tablet and he started coughing and spluttering, then thank goodness, breathing normally again. It was really frightening, but without the knowledge, Richard would have surely died that day.

Let us know us know how you get on.

Love

Maggie

[AmandaF]

Thank you, Maggie. This is a very good idea and I will follow it up. Your experience must make you feel more confident that you can deal with problems, if they arise.

Thank you so much for suggesting it.

Amanda.

[GlenCourt]

Amanda,

Re the coughing, wheezing, and heavy breathing at night -- I crank my husbands hospital bed so his head is quite high. If you don't have a hospital bed, try blocks under the front bed legs. I also give him a nebulizer treatment right before bed and then he sleeps with light flow oxygen. This combination helps right now.

Good luck,

Margaret

[jimandsharynp]

I bought a book titled "Swallowing Safely". It is excellent and is intended for caregivers. It gives the specifics of what happens before you swallow and during the swallow and afterwards. It gives aids when someone is choking and many other bits of great information. I didn't expect much from the book when I ordered it but was amazed at how much information I gained. My wife is early on in PSP but is already having swallowing problems.

[AmandaF]

Thanks, Jim, that's great advice. Will buy it as you suggest.

Best wishes to you and your wife.

Amanda.