By Matt Davies
Myleene Klass has admitted that she was left “hysterical” after saving her daughter’s life when she “went blue” and collapsed on the floor. Speaking to the We’re Not Getting Any Younger podcast, the 47-year-old singer and TV host detailed a terrifying incident involving her daughter, Hero, choking on a dayglo star.
Myleene, a mother-of-three and a former member of the pop group Hear’Say, shares two daughters, Ava and Hero, with her former husband, Graham Quinn, and a son, Apollo, with partner Simon Motson.
It follows reports that Myleene has recently become a trained first aider for St John Ambulance, reportedly taking on the role after she saved her daughters from choking.
Speaking about the incident, Myleene said: “Well, it was Hero when she was a baby. She choked on those…you know those dayglo stars that you stick on the ceiling? I can’t have them in the house.”
When asked if the star had fallen from the ceiling, Myleene replied: “She found it. She couldn’t speak, she was so little. She couldn’t even…well, she couldn’t speak because she was choking, but she couldn’t even vocalise what had happened.”
Explaining how they knew what had happened, Myleene said: “Because she stumbled in holding her like…she stumbled in. And she was so little, so she was…she couldn’t even speak properly anyway, and her face just went blue and then she just fell on the floor.”
Myleene detailed how she had been washing up in the kitchen at the time. She had greeted her daughter and then endured what she described as the “longest five minutes of my life”.
Myleene said: “I turned her upside down, she was that right age, and I had done first aid, but now, I wanted to learn it to a more sort of professional level.”
Clarifying her actions, she said it wasn’t “literally” upside down, but instead, it was where you “support them,” as she was a size where she could “support along” her forearm. Then, she “whacked” her to dislodge the item.
Myleene explained that the star didn’t come out at first, but Hero went on to vomit the object out and then “toddled off”. Myleene was left “hysterical”.
The NHS says choking in children usually occurs when they’re playing or eating, with young children often putting items in their mouth, something the health service says is a normal part of how they explore the world around them.
It stressed that the best way to avoid choking is to ensure small items are kept out of your child’s reach and cut food into small pieces for them. However, your child could still choke, no matter how cautious you are.
The NHS has shared a comprehensive guide on what to do in such a scenario, including how to give “back blows, chest thrusts and abdominal thrusts” and what to do if your child is unconscious.
To access it, visit the NHS website here.