CPR: Are You Current?

Learning CPR is one of those things we all know we should do but usually don’t take the time for. It seems so unlikely that we’d be put in a situation where it was needed, and it probably is. But you could save a life, and it could be that of your parent, child, or friend. And what if you see a stranger collapse? How would you feel just helplessly standing there, knowing you could’ve saved this person—who is someone else’s parent, child, or friend?

Here is a brief video my brother-in-law sent me that I confess has been sitting in my inbox for months. It demonstrates Continuous Chest Compression CPR—a form of CPR that’s simpler to administer and more effective than traditional mouth-to-mouth. I occasionally notice the video there, only to think to myself that I’ll watch it another time, when I have time. Today I was cleaning out my inbox and saw it, and thought to myself: What if, god forbid, today is the day?

I watched it immediately and wanted to remind all my readers that this is something they need to see. I myself have taken CPR courses at least three times since I was a teenager lifeguarding at camp, but I’ve forgotten details. The great thing about the current form of CPR is that it’s so simple, there are almost no details to forget.

Here’s the link. Let’s all invest five minutes of our day today that could save someone from disability or death. You don’t want to be the one left standing there.