Scary Moment

First of all my 24 year old son is ok. This morning I received a call asking if I was Andrew’s mom to which I replied yes. He then said my son was ok, but… he has carbon monoxide poisoning!

OMG, that sinking feeling and that scary moment when you hear that something has happened to your child. My son works for Air Canada ground crew and he was doing a security sweep of a plane which had sat overnight. They run gas powered heaters all night to keep the water lines from freezing. The exhaust wasn’t properly positioned so the airplane filled with carbon monoxide but since it has no odour you don’t know it is there. He had been in the plane for about 20 minutes when he started to feel dizzy and had a headache. When he saw that the CO detector was in the danger range, he finally opened the doors to vent and got out. They had him lie down and the firemen from the airport started him on oxygen. That was when I got the call. When that happens, it doesn’t matter if they are babies or toddlers or adults, the OMG moment hits with the same terrifying impact.

The paramedics arrived and again hooked him up to oxygen and took him to the hospital which is where I headed when I got the call. He was finally cleared to leave after 4 hours and a second blood test showed his CO levels were at zero. Something had happened to the first blood sample as the lab asked if the patient was still alive. Repeat blood test. He was sitting up, looking perfectly fine. And making jokes about all the nifty stuff in the ambulance. He figured he must be ok because they didn't use the siren or flashing lights on the way to the hospital.

So all is well again. I have eaten only a few bites of food and really don’t feel hungry. Worry can do that! He is home for the night so I can watch him. He is 24. He is an adult. But he will always be my baby. And I will always worry. If you have kids go give them a hug right now.

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