The night before Alessio’s 23rd birthday party, I was preparing dinner while he sat at the dining table eating some chunky slices of fruit.
Suddenly, I noticed a shadow to my left.
I turned around and saw Alessio standing just a few steps away from me.
That was strange. He should have been sitting at the table.
Then I heard it.
A strange, croaky sound as he tried to breathe.
I knew that sound immediately.
His airway was obstructed.
I rushed over and hit his back firmly, trying to dislodge whatever was stuck, while shouting for my husband.
It didn't work.
He was still making that awful sound.
So I grabbed him from behind and performed the choking first-aid manoeuvre.
My husband came running and took over while I moved around to the front of Alessio to check his mouth.
And there it was.
The piece of mango had come up.
Incredibly, Alessio was already chewing it.
I asked him, “Are you OK?”
“Yes.”
And what did he want to do next?
Carry on eating his fruit!
I cut everything into much smaller pieces, reminded him to chew properly before swallowing, and then served his dinner.
It was only later, after we'd both eaten and everything was quiet again, that I asked him:
“Were you scared?”
“No mummy.”
I asked him again.
Still the same answer.
“No mummy.”
But I was.
Not while it was happening.
During those frightening moments, I didn't have time to be scared. There was only one thought in my head:
Get the obstruction out. Get him breathing. Save my son.
The fear came afterwards.
I started to feel shaky as the reality of what had just happened finally hit me.
This was the night before the 23rd birthday party he had been looking forward to for months.
And I couldn't stop thinking about how differently that night could have ended.
Then something else occurred to me.
Why wasn't Alessio frightened?
He hadn't stayed sitting at the table when he couldn't breathe.
He got up.
He turned towards me.
He came looking for Mummy.
And I think I know why.
Throughout his life, when he stopped breathing, I got him breathing again.
When he became semi-conscious during hypo attacks, I brought him back.
Through illness, emergencies and more frightening moments than I care to remember, I have always been there.
So perhaps, in Alessio's mind, there was nothing to be frightened of.
Mummy was there.
Mummy would save him.
What he didn't know was how petrified Mummy was once it was all over.
The following day, I watched him smiling at his 23rd birthday party and looked at his beautiful cake.
“Happy 23rd Birthday Alessio.”
Those words suddenly meant even more.
Because sometimes a birthday isn't simply another year older.
Sometimes it's another reminder of just how precious it is that the person you love is still here. 
What's your most frightening moment???
#ynny #chocking #heimlich maneuver #savelives #savingmyson #obstructedairrways #scaryincident
