Last Saturday night we were all watching a movie and eating popcorn which is a very frequent event on the weekend in our home. I didn’t think twice to give my son Nash some popcorn.
He had small choking episode but soon was fine. The only thing we observed was a slight cough he developed after the episode.
Monday came, my husband left for a 3-day trip and it was pretty much the same as the day prior.
However, as the evening came, I noticed my son felt warm and he was super fussy. He was running a fever, so I gave him Motrin and put him to bed.
I checked on him in the middle of the night and noticed that his breathing seemed a little labored to me and I could tell he wasn’t feeling good.
I immediately called my pediatrician and explained what was going on, and he said Nash needed to be taken to the ER right away. We loaded into the car and went to meet with a doctor at the hospital.
Apparently, when Nash was eating popcorn, he had aspirated some of it into his lungs when he choked. According to the doctor, Nash’s body recognized it as a foreign object and within two days, made puss pockets around it. All the inflammation caused him to develop pneumonia in his left lung.
I paced and cried the entire time my little man was in surgery. During the procedure the doctor removed 6 pieces of the popcorn.
My sweet boy handed the surgery like a rock star and recovered from it quickly. 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.
Always trust your gut because it’s right!!
