Becoming a parent means from the moment kids are born, one has to somehow gain superpowers. Parents need to be able to see and thwart dangers they never even considered before. And because there are no actual powers bestowed upon new parents, mistakes will happen. Unfortunately, sometimes those mistakes can be deadly– which is why Nicole Johnson Goddard, mother of three, is sharing what happened to her family when she had a casual oversight with her youngest toddler son, Nash.
Via Nicole Johnson Goddard | Facebook
“Monday came, Jake [her husband] left for a 3-day trip and it was pretty much the same as the day prior. As the evening came I noticed Nash felt warm and he was super fussy. He had a fever, so I gave him Motrin and put him to bed. A very long night with him and then his breathing looked a little laboured to me and he just didn’t feel good. I called my paediatrician immediately and said Nash needs to be seen ASAP. We went in and got sent to children’s main campus immediately. After a chest X-ray, the doctor didn’t like what he saw so he got scheduled that evening for a Bronchoscopy.”
The procedure revealed that Nash had actually aspirated popcorn into his lungs from the choking episode.
Via Nicole Johnson Goddard | Facebook
“The body recognized it as a foreign object and put puss pockets around it,” she explained. “All the inflammation caused him to develop pneumonia in his left lung. During the procedure, the doctor got out 6 pieces.”
However, because the inflammation was so bad, the doctor wasn’t confident all of the pieces were out. Nash had to undergo a second round of the procedure, and luckily, they were able to remove all of the pieces during the second round.
Via Nicole Johnson Goddard | Facebook
“We’re so thankful our little man came out ok. All of this over popcorn which is eaten on a regular basis in our home. I got a lecture of course on how popcorn isn’t supposed to be given to anyone under 5. I hate to use the excuse he’s our third child so I overlook and don’t pay as close attention to the do’s and don’ts as we did with our first.”
And honestly, it is pretty easy for anyone to make this mistake. We’re so glad Nash is on the mend and hope other mamas learn from Goddard’s harrowing experience.
This article was first published on Cafemom and was republished on theAsianparent with permission.