Suctioning and Driving

Children with PCH often have trouble swallowing and they are always at risk for aspirating and pneumonia. In fact I recently heard that most children with PCH die before they are 1yr old (which we knew).....and that the majority of those cases are pneumonia :-(

Once when I was driving Sophie to the chiropractor she threw up . She was in her bed seat , the car seat that lays down like a bed, and she was in the back. I was on the highway and there was nowhere to pull over. She was drowning in her own vomit and there was nothing I could do. It was terrifying. I was trying to find a place to pull over and there was nowhere. She started changing color. Finally a spot came into view. I pulled over and ripped the door open to save her. Well guess what? I don't care what the law is, my daughter does not travel in the back anymore! Nowadays she travels in the front seat right next to me (the airbag is off) and the suction machine is on the floor where I can reach the switch. The suction hose hangs over the rearview mirror.

So tonight Michael was at a birthday party and the rest of us went out. We met Jason at the bottom of the mountain so we were in separate cars. On the way home, I was driving home with just Sophia. On the EXACT same stretch of highway, in the dark this time, she threw up. But this time I was ready. I turned on the machine, grabbed the hose and suctioned the vomit out of her throat while I slowly and safely found a place to pull over.

PHEW!