‘Miracle’ Kid, 5, Saves Mom’s Life With Quick Thinking
A quick-thinking 5-year-old boy saved his mother’s life this week when he used her cellphone to call his dad for help.
“If it weren’t for this little man, I probably wouldn’t be here right now,” Melissa Williams, of Kingsport, Tenn., told WKPT about her son, Tommy, as the two sat snuggled safely in her hospital bed. Williams, 43, suffered a heart attack Sunday evening when the two were home alone together, and began feeling sick and sweaty and eventually passed out.
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“There was so much pressure and pain that I — I think that is why I passed out, from the pain,” Williams, who could not be reached by Yahoo Parenting, told WKPT. Tommy then grabbed his mom’s cellphone and called his father, Jonathan Malone.
“He let me know what was going on, he said that ‘something ain’t right, Daddy,’” said Malone, who then instructed him to run and get the neighbors. “He said, ‘Alright, Daddy, I am on my way,’ and he hung up.”
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Added Williams, “Got [to the hospital] within an hour of the onset of the heart attack, and the doctors said that was really good. [The doctor] shook this one’s little hand because he said he was the reason I got here so early, he is my little hero.” That’s especially true, she added, because Tommy was born three years after she had her tubes tied. “They kept telling me that he was my miracle baby, and the doctor told me last night that ‘your miracle baby saved you.’”
Tommy’s dad, Jonathan Malone. (Photo: WKPT)
Williams told ABC News she underwent a successful cardiac catheterization Sunday night at Holston Valley Medical Center, and was sent home from the hospital’s intensive care unit on Wednesday.
With heart attacks, according to the American Heart Association, brain damage can start to occur within just 4 to 6 minutes after the heart stops pumping blood. In addition, if no CPR is provided, and until emergency defibrillation, a victim’s chances of survival are reduced by 7 to 10 percent with every minute — making Tommy’s efforts life-saving indeed.
Kids who save their parents’ lives make it into news reports with regularity — this year, for example, a 6-year-old Missouri boy did so by calling 911 after his father had a diabetic attack; and last year, an Atlanta 3-year-old called 911 after her dad severed his arm with a machete while trimming tree branches.
Melissa Williams. (Photo: WKPT)
So when is it appropriate to start preparing your child for a serious emergency, and offer lessons about how to call help in the case Mommy or Daddy is unable to pick up the phone?
“Generally around 3 is the age to start, because they can call 911 even if they can’t yet talk,” Florida-based child safety expert Debra Smiley Holtzman, of TheSafetyExpert.com, tells Yahoo Parenting. And she’s got a favorite technique when it comes to teaching them exactly how to make the call. “I’m a big fan of role-playing, which is a great way to teach them to handle stressful situations,” she says. “It’s just wise to have them practice with different scenarios.” Other tips from Holtzman:
Teach empowerment, not fear. “The trick is being calm yourself,” she says, “as well as emphasizing that an emergency situation may never indeed occur, but that you always want to be prepared and have a plan.”
Explain when to call 911 — and when not to call. If there is another adult nearby, a child should always go to him or her before dialing, Holtzman says.
Practice on different types of phones. Do this because handing a cellphone is different from using a landline, she stresses, and you never know which you’ll be near when seconds count.
Post emergency numbers and basic information on the fridge. Holtzman has a helpful form that can be printed, filled out, and posted, so older kids have all the information they need — and may not be able to think of in a moment of crisis.
Be prepared yourself. “All parents and teens should take a CPR class, which is a great investment,” Holtzman says. “Plus, it teaches you to be calm during emergencies, just as you want your own child to be.”
(Top photo of mother and son: WKPT)
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