This headline is about a real and potentially life-saving emergency, but the phrase “the only thing you can do” is too absolute.
🚨 If you are alone and choking
If you cannot breathe, speak, or cough forcefully, act immediately:
- Call your local emergency number right away. If you can’t speak, keep the call open if possible.
- Make a fist and place it slightly above your belly button.
- Grasp your fist with your other hand.
- Bend over a firm surface, such as the back of a sturdy chair or a countertop.
- Drive your fist inward and upward repeatedly until the object comes out. (Mayo Clinic)
If you can still cough forcefully or speak, keep coughing rather than immediately performing abdominal thrusts. (Mayo Clinic)
Don’t do this
- Don’t blindly put your fingers into your throat trying to find the food—you can push it farther down.
- Don’t waste time drinking water or trying home remedies if you cannot breathe.
- Don’t use a sharp-edged object as the surface against which you thrust. (Mayo Clinic)
If you become unconscious, CPR should be started by anyone who finds you, with the airway checked for a visible object. (Mayo Clinic)
Important: If the food is merely stuck in the esophagus (you can breathe normally but can’t swallow), that’s different from choking and may require medical evaluation. (Mayo Clinic)
If this is happening right now, call your local emergency service immediately rather than continuing to read.
