My CPR experience

The Experience

He was just lying there, as still as a log. His body was pale. His face was blue. He was cold to touch. His eyes were open, looking straight into mine. This is a sight I would never wish upon anybody. This is an experience I never thought I would never have to go through.

It was a Wednesday evening at work. My colleagues and I had finished our poolside jobs, and we headed round to reception. Usually, we would go and start doing other jobs, but we decided to talk to Sarah, the receptionist. And it is a good job we did. Things were fine. We were laughing and joking around. Until things turned South. A woman, one of our regular badminton customers, came running round asking for help. I remember her exact words, the way she said it and her facial expression as the words came from her mouth.

"We need some help in the halls - Someone has collapsed"

As soon as she said it, she ran off. I followed, so did one of my other colleagues. We got to the hall, to see a few people surrounding a man lying on the floor. We went straight over. I paused and just looked down at him. Until the adrenaline kicked in. I already knew that he wasn't breathing. He was blue. His eyes were open, staring up at me, looking empty. He was still holding onto his badminton racket.

I done the checks and went straight into CPR. As I locked my fingers and pushed down on the chest for my first lot of 30 compressions, it was like my own heart stopped beating. I couldn't get my head over what I was doing, I still can't get over it. And when I say it feels nothing like it does when you do the training on 'Annie dolls', you better believe me. Once I done my 30, I had to do the 2 rescue breaths. I had a pocket mask at the ready, so I placed it on the casualty's face, blew in the first breath. The casualty reacted, but with agonal breathing*. I went in for the second.

During the time of me doing the compression, my colleague was working around me, setting up the AED. We had to cut his t-shirt and apply the pads to his chest and side. My colleague then proceeded with the CPR. He done the compressions, I done the breaths. It was then ready to shock him.

"Shocking in process - Do not touch the casualty, stand clear"

Shock.

No word of a lie, the casualty full on jumped and moved a few metres. It was horrible to witness. But regarding this, we got back into doing the CPR. When I had done my 2 breaths, I checked for his breathing and pulse. It was there. In that moment, I had never felt so relieved. Within moments of the casualty coming back, a flood of paramedics and police officers came into the hall. I stayed close to the casualty, while the others back off a little. I refused to leave. I explained what happened and what we had done. I then got told a few words that I will never, ever forget, for as long as I live.

"You guys saved this mans life, he wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you"

My heart sunk, my eyes watered. I stood back and watched the emergency services do their job, controlling back my tears, my shakey hands in my pockets.

5/10 minutes passed, which honesty felt like forever, and the paramedics took the casualty away. Everything was silent. The halls were empty. It was like nothing happened and I just had a bad dream. But it wasn't a dream. It was real.

I couldn't be in the building, so I went outside. And I broke down. I couldn't get over anything that had just happened. The feeling of giving CPR, the way he looked, the sound off the breathing. It all stayed in my head, it wouldn't go. My colleague came out, we spoke for a while and eventually went back inside. But I didn't do anything. I physically couldn't.

When I finished and got home, I was still very shaken up. I laid in bed for hours, replaying every second in my head. It's one of those things that you can't just forget about. It's been a few months since it happened and I still remember the day like it was yesterday.

For over a week, I couldn't go into the main halls. I was terrified of going in there, or even near there. Every time I got close, I just got reminded of what happened. I managed to go near the halls one time and I started shaking. So, I ran the other way.

A week passed since the event - The casualty came in.

I cried. And cried. And cried. He came and spoke to us, thanking us for what we done. He also offered me a hug, with these words:

"You may as well give you a hug, seeing as you've touched me in other places"

His wife was there, who also gave me a hug. I could tell from her face how happy and thankful she was.

And then things changed. I couldn't see what happened as much, I wasn't hearing the agonal breathing. I could go into the halls without shaking. Yeah, I still remember what happened, but it doesn't affect me as much as it did.

My experience made me realise a lot of things. Mostly, on how precious life could be. The man was fit, he was healthy. But, he had a heart attack. It just shows that anything can happen to anyone, at any time. And I think that is the moral of this story.

Always tell people you love them. Whether you've just had an argument, when you're going out, or going to sleep. Because you never know what is round the corner in life. This guy came in to play badminton and ended up in hospital for a few days. He could've died. But we saved him.

So, always love the people who surround you and never be afraid to tell someone you love them, because there might not ever be a chance again.

And please, if you ever have the time, learn how to do CPR. Because it does save lives and you never know what you may stumble across in life.

Thank you for reading,

S

* Agonal breathing are the last reflexes of the dying brain. They're viewed as a sign of death, and happen when the heart has stopped breathing.