When you’re home by yourself and send a piece of food down the wrong pipe, it’s easy to panic. However, one man shared the simple steps you need to know to save your life if you start choking alone.
TikToker Ben (@benjhandy) explains in a video with 1.9 million views that someone has about 5 minutes or less to reopen their airway. According to MedlinePlus, brain damage from a lack of oxygen can begin around the four-minute mark.
“In five minutes, you’ll have solved this problem, or you’ll never solve another problem again,” he warns.
What Should You Do If You Start Choking Alone?
While it’s natural to freak out, Ben encourages someone choking to avoid panicking and instead calmly call 911, even if they can’t talk to the operator.
“Maybe they’ll figure out where you are and get there in time,” he says.
Then, he explains that the person will have to “self-administer” the Heimlich maneuver.
The typical Heimlich maneuver involves a second person reaching around the abdomen of the person choking to deliver thrusts to dislodge the object in their airway. However, that method isn’t an option for someone choking alone.
Ben makes his hand into a fist and places it just below his ribcage.
“You’re going to push in and up,” he says. “This is going to hurt. It could cause internal damage, and that’s how hard you want to press.”
The goal of the self-inflicted thrust is to contract the diaphragm to push some air up to dislodge the object.
If there is a railing or chair nearby, a person can also use one in lieu of their hand.
Ben says that slamming their back into a wall or onto the floor repeatedly may also work, especially for pregnant women who cannot apply direct pressure to the fetus.
He suggests heading to the emergency room after dislodging the object to make sure no further damage occurred during the Heimlich maneuver.
Does the Self-Administered Heimlich Work?
Viewers who have had their own close calls with choking alone shared their experiences with saving their own lives.
“Ugh..had this happen over a piece of chewy steak. had to throw myself over my couch arm and an end table….ended up falling and hitting my mid back…it was a hard fall and it saved my life,” one said.
Another shared, “I choked when I was in prison. In my cell alone and DEFINITELY panicked. I’m pretty sure I did some damage slamming my stomach into the sink, but my adrenaline was so high I didn’t feel pain. Follow your instincts. By far the scariest moment of my life!”
“I got a piece of beef hung once when I was alone, and when I tell you that your entire life flashes before your eyes at once, it was terrifying, and luckily, I didn’t panic. I didn’t have a chair, but I rammed my diaphragm into the kitchen bar and it flew out,” a third wrote.
Others said Ben’s video and sense of urgency make them anxious, but they’re grateful for the life-saving advice.
A commenter joked, “The way that I can FEEL myself downloading this into my brain lmao.”
“I was already having an anxiety attack, and this put me in fight or flight mode, but I watched the entire thing in case,” a second viewer remarked.
BroBible reached out to Ben via email for further comment.