My family absolutely loves the water and the beach. We bought my daughter for the first time last year and she’s taken up on our love for the water as well. However, it’s still very scary especially for a child who doesn’t know that water– although amazing sometimes has deathly consequences.
When I read about Secondary drowning (also called dry drowning) on Yahoo Shine! I knew I had to share this with all of you. It’s scary, yet something we need to be aware of and spread the word around.
Secondary Drowning occurs when a small amount of inhaled fluid acts as an irritant, causing inflammation and leakage of liquid into the lung.
What parents need to realize is that only a small amount of fluid is needed to get into the lung which won’t cause it to deliver oxygen to the bloodstream. It’s like a slow suffocation and no one knows until it’s too late.
We all know drowning can occur in the ocean, pool and even bathtub (which many people forget) and same goes for secondary drowning. Your child may have swallowed some water and besides coughing you think nothing’s wrong, because they’ve acted completely normal after the incident, but sometimes it can get worse and it can take up to 24 hours to worsen causing death.
If your child breathes in water or comes out of the pool coughing or sputtering, monitor them closely, keeping an eye out for difficulties in breathing, extreme tiredness or behavioral changes. These are all signs that your child has swallowed some water and an immediate visit to your doctor or ER is crucial.
I know my dear mommy’s having a two-year-old child it’s hard to realize whether or not they’re having a secondary drowning because they’re normally fussy and lethargic after a long day. What you need to be vigilant of is see if they’ve had trouble in the water prior to getting out and monitor them closely.
A child would have only had to inhale four ounces of water to drown, and even less to injure his lung enough to become a victim of secondary drowning.
Thankfully, if noticed immediately it can be treated.
I hope I’ve opened your eyes to secondary drowning and you’ll be more conscious as to what’s occurring around your child when around water.
Make sure to pass this along and I’ll speak to you guys soon!
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