Alone And Choking - What To Do

Your alone and you start choking, there is no one to help, what can you do?

The average ambulance response time is eight minutes, but if you're choking, the brain can survive for only three minutes without oxygen before it starts to die. So, it is critical to know what to do and to act quickly

'Your actions are the most important factor in an emergency and the first ten minutes are the most crucial. Whatever you do, always do something.'

Obviously, not all situations can be dealt with on your own, such as if you faint or have a fit, and you should always seek professional medical care in a critical situation.

But here, with the help of experts, we go through the most effective self-help procedures you can do if you find yourself alone and in an emergency...

If something lodges in your airway, your natural reflex is to cough to get it out. Doing this as vigorously as you can should work in most cases, says Joe Mulligan (a first-aid expert at the British Red Cross). Bending over with your head down should help move a lodged item.

You can also perform a version of abdominal thrusts on yourself (applying pressure to the abdomen to force a lodged object up and out of your throat).

If something lodges in your airway, try to cough or perform a version of the abdominal thrusts. 

There are two ways of doing this. First, by doing abdominal thrusts with your fist. Make a fist with one hand and place it just above your belly button. Place the other hand on top for support and push really hard, in short, sharp thrusts. Try about five of these.

You could also try abdominal thrusts on the back of a chair - this may be easier in the heat of the moment. Lean over a sturdy chair or table, holding on if you need to, and thrust your upper belly against the top edge using short, sharp motions.

You should always seek medical help after using either of these techniques in case you have caused internal damage or bruising.

'When people are choking, they may not have the physical strength in their arms to perform abdominal thrusts and there are anecdotes of people dislodging the item by replicating the abdominal thrusts on the back of a chair,' says Alan Weir, head of clinical services at St John Ambulance.