Guest Blog, Karey Packard.
Eight years ago, I suffered cardiac arrest in my home. My 16-year-old daughter and I were cleaning our house when I collapsed. She immediately called 9-1-1 and performed CPR on me, saving my life. The American Heart Association states about 70 percent of out of hospital cardiac arrests happen in homes. If you are called on to give CPR in an emergency, you will most likely be trying to save the life of someone you love: a child, a spouse, a parent or a friend.
June 1-7 is CPR and AED Awareness Week and I am urging all New Hampshire residents to learn Hands-Only CPR. It only takes two steps when you see an unresponsive adult. 1. Call 9-1-1 and 2. Push hard and fast in the center of the chest for 100 to 120 beats per minute. To make it easier and to stay on track, you can push to a song like “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees or “Crazy in Love” by Beyoncé.
CPR, especially if performed immediately and accurately, can triple a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival. It saved my life and everyone should be prepared to act in an emergency. Please visit www.heart.org/HandsOnlyCPR for more information.