Olivia and Ricky experienced every parent’s worst nightmare when Baby Lenny stopped breathing during the night. He was 3 days old. What follows is a story of tremendous courage and resilience as Lenny’s parents battled to save his life. If ever there was a reason to learn CPR, this is it.
Hi Olivia, thanks so much
for sharing your story to raise awareness for other families. Can you start by
telling us a little bit about Lenny and your family?
Of course, myself and Ricky are first time parents to our wonderful little boy Lenny, who was born on the 4th November. He is a happy, laid-back little boy who is milk mad and loves his family very much - especially his Nanny!
Did you have a “normal” pregnancy, Olivia, was
anything flagged to you before Lenny’s birth? What preparations did you make
before the birth?
I had a relatively normal pregnancy. I was classed as high risk as I have a fibroid, and that meant we were placed under consultant care which was wonderful as it meant extra scans and appointments to make sure everything was running smoothly - which it was!
We took the decision to attend a Mini First Aid class in the lead up to the birth, following recommendations from our antenatal class. Judith our trainer was incredibly knowledgeable and delivered a fantastic session which me and Ricky found hugely beneficial. We had gone along to the class keen to gain a better understanding of how to deal with choking, thinking we were getting “ahead of the game” on weaning – little did we know how much sooner we would need to apply what we’d been taught.
How did the birth go, Olivia?
We were told that we were to expect a bigger baby as Lenny (the milk monster!) was weighing in on the larger side. As a result of this, my consultant agreed with my decision to elect for a caesarean section, which I had on the 4th November (Monday), almost a week before my initial due date. I was very nervous as up to this point, I had never had any form of surgery and didn’t know quite what to expect. The section from start to finish was the most magical experience. I was completely shocked at how quickly Lenny arrived. The medical staff at the hospital were fantastic and incredibly diligent whilst also being very caring and supportive.
It sounds like you were very well looked after, Olivia! What were those first days with Lenny like, and as new parents, how were you and Ricky feeling?
After the section was complete, we were taken to the recovery room where the staff were happy with how the surgery had gone - I was then taken to the labour ward where I spent 24 hours (on the Tuesday) before being discharged with Lenny. We spent the first night with Lenny at home – we were over the moon and he was amazing, but we were incredibly paranoid (as first time parents usually are) so we took it in turns to watch him through the night to make sure that he was okay. He was brilliant and slept well between feeds. On the Wednesday we had a lovely first full day at home with Lenny, he took his feeds well, was enjoying lots of cuddles and we were well and truly enjoying our baby bubble. It was on the Wednesday night that the medical emergency took place.
I know this is the tough bit, Olivia, but can you tell us what you can
remember about when Lenny stopped breathing?
After watching Lenny the night before (our first night at home) we were both exhausted. I suggested that as Lenny had had a good night, that when we finish his last feed we put him to bed and then set an alarm for when his next feed was due. Ricky agreed and so we completed our regular routine of changing his nappy, feeding him, winding him, sitting with him for 15 minutes and then putting him to bed. We then set an alarm for roughly an hour and a half later (as at this time he was feeding roughly 1.5-2 hours at a time) and both lay down to go to sleep. Because I was recovering from the C-section, although the surgery had gone well, I was in quite a lot of discomfort. I wasn't able to get myself in or out of bed and was having to have quite a bit of help. Ricky had been lifting me out of bed so that I could lift Lenny out of his next to me to then feed him.
After being asleep for no longer than 10 minutes, I can only describe what felt like a physical pull out of bed. I felt as though I was being grabbed by the chest and before I knew it, I was over Lenny's Next2Me with the sensation that I needed to check on him. I don't know why I felt like this, as Lenny wasn't making any noise at the time. When I checked on him, I initially checked his core temperature then noticed something strange as he didn't move in the way that he normally did when touched. I did the same thing again, touching his chest and still nothing. It was at this point that I used my experience from Mini First Aid - I leant down to Lenny's face, tilting my head so that I should be able to feel his breathing on my cheek and watch for his chest moving up and down.
I quickly realised that he was not breathing. I turned on the bedroom light and Ricky woke up. I explained to him that Lenny wasn't breathing and that he needed to call an ambulance. In the state of panic he ended up dialling 911, which interestingly still worked. I told him to explain to the call handlers that Lenny was 3 days old and was not responsive and that he wasn't breathing. Whilst Ricky was doing this, I carried Lenny over to the window and held him up to try and clear his airway, it was at this point that I could clearly see that he was white and floppy. The call handlers explained we needed to get Lenny onto a hard, flat surface. I therefore put Lenny down onto the floor and leant over him. It was then that my adrenaline was starting to disappear and the panic really started to set in. The call handlers explained that we needed to perform CPR. I froze and Ricky stepped in, delivering CPR and rescue breaths. This went on for a terrifying six and a half minutes...
Oh my goodness, Olivia, I can’t even imagine yours
and Ricky’s fright . . .
Ricky was amazing and went into fight mode, whereas I had completely gone into freeze mode. It was the worst experience of my entire life. Nothing prepares you, ever, for having to witness a 3-day old baby not breathing, let alone your own child. We had waited so long for our little miracle, we'd had 2 days of pure joy and I was terrified that I was going to lose him. Ricky stayed completely calm and applied the skills that he'd been taught by Judith. He calmly counted to the beat of "Staying Alive" and understood the pressure he needed to apply and how hard he needed to breathe into Lenny's lungs - which without having attended the Mini First Aid class, neither of us would have known how to do.
Wow, it just goes to show how recent training gives
people the confidence to apply first aid calmly and effectively. What happened
next and when did medical help arrive, Olivia?
Lenny was not responsive during the six and a half minutes. I was increasingly distressed and remember screaming asking where the paramedics were and how long they were going to be. The handlers explained that the paramedics were on the main road and that one of us needed to go downstairs to answer the door. I was not able to get myself off the floor so I stayed with Lenny, whilst Ricky ran down to let the paramedics in.
It was during this time that Lenny took his first breath. We had 4 ambulances, a paramedic car and a police car arrive at the house. When the paramedics got to the bedroom to find me and Lenny, they checked him over and told all others to stand down. They took me and Lenny into the back of the ambulance and we were blue lighted into hospital.
What happened at hospital, Olivia?
We were rushed straight into Paediatrics, where Lenny had bloods taken and also an X-ray. They tried to take an ECG but couldn’t and they also tried to set up a cannula to administer a course of antibiotics - they were not able to do this as his veins were so small that they couldn't get the cannula in. After this, we were admitted to the Special Care Baby Unit, where over the course of the next few days several tests were administered to try and determine the cause of what had happened. We had several consultants look at Lenny and after many discussions, they informed us that we could be discharged, and that Lenny had experienced BRUE – a brief, resolved, unexplained, event.
Are there any long term concerns or implications from the BRUE diagnosis Olivia?
We aren't too sure yet. We have an ultrasound on his head and a heart scan booked in. We have tried to remain very positive in all of this and have reassured ourselves that every medical professional who has seen Lenny since has told us how healthy he looks and how well he's doing.
That brings me on to my next question, Olivia – how
do you go back to normal life after something like this? How are you feeling
now?
We have been trying really hard to keep a positive outlook on everything that has happened to us. It has really highlighted how well we work together as a team, and although what we experienced was completely terrifying, we are proud of the fact that we were able to step in and apply what we had learnt. We take each day a day at a time. We've invested in an Angel Care Sensor Pad which has given us added peace of mind. They go underneath his mattress and monitor his movements. They're highly sensitive and were recommended by many midwives. This has really been helping us to sleep as we know that should there be any issues, the alarm will go off and we will know that we have to step in.
We are continuing to try and speak about our experience, as you always think that something like this will never happen to you. I try not to question why this happened or even how it happened because I know that I will never get an answer. I just need to appreciate and be thankful every day that thanks to what we were taught at Mini First Aid we were able to step in and save our little boy's life - and for that we will both be forever grateful.
Finally, Olivia, what is the message that you want to send other parents
after what you, Ricky and Lenny have been through?
The main message that we want to get to other parents is that you always think that something like this will never happen to you, but in the awful circumstance that it does, you want to be prepared to potentially save your child's life. We attended our Mini First Aid course thinking that we would only have to use what we were taught when Lenny was older, however, three days in we had to think fast and apply what we'd been taught.
What I found most useful about the class was really gaining a good understanding on how much pressure you should apply for things like CPR and abdominal thrusts by learning these techniques hand on. I am a primary school teacher and have had to administer basic first aid regularly on children, but I've never had such quality first aid training.
If you're pregnant or know someone who is pregnant - do not put off attending a first aid class. It is easy to think you will never have to use what you’ve learned, but should something happen, you will know you have done all you can to save your child.
As you can clearly see from Olivia and Ricky’s experience, learning CPR is a must for new parents. We demonstrate the techniques to use on babies and children at our 2 hour Baby and Child First Aid class where you will get lots of opportunities to practice CPR on both baby and child sized manikins. This gives you a really good feel for the pressure you need to use in the chest compressions – just like Olivia told us, many people are surprised at how forceful you need to be to save a life.
Mini First Aid Founder, Kate, set up Mini First Aid following the death of her brother from
cardiac arrest when he was just 22.
In this video, Kate demonstrates how to
perform CPR on a baby, just like Ricky did for Lenny:
You can listen to Kate’s moving podcast about her brother’s death from cardiomyopathy here.
We’d like to extend a huge thank you to Olivia, Ricky and Lenny for courageously sharing their story with us. It takes real bravery to revisit a traumatic experience like this and we commend you both for sharing this with other parents. We know it will save lives, thank you.
Mini First Aid x
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