Why Antony Costa feared for his baby's life
The Blue singer urges parents to learn first aid after his daughter suffers a dramatic fit
Antony Costa has shared the terrifying moment his 8-month-old daughter Savannah suffered a dramatic fit - in an effort to encourage parents to do first-aid training. The Blue singer explained how he and his fiancée Rosanna Jasmin were visiting a wedding venue event in Cambridgeshire when baby Savannah had a fit.
"Rosanna was holding Savannah and we were tasting the wedding cakes that were on display," Antony told the Mirror. "Then suddenly Rosanna noticed Savannah’s head had tilted and her eyes were rolling back. In a second, she started shaking and going stiff in Rosanna’s arms. Then her lips turned blue.
"We didn’t know what was happening. We really thought she was dying."
Luckily a quick-thinking Rosanna remembered instructions on how to resuscitate a baby that she'd learned from a first aid video. She laid Savannah on her side on the floor, tilting her head to stop her choking while Antony called for an ambulance.
"It was awful seeing our baby like that," he said. "We felt helpless. It was one of the scariest moments of my life. We really thought we were losing her. Rosanna was begging Savannah to stay with us."
The fit lasted for 10 minutes and although Rosanna had put Savannah in the infant recovery position – she didn't know what to do next. Luckily the paramedics arrived and rushed her straight to hospital where they discovered Savannah had a virus which had made her temperature shoot up, and had thrown her into a fit called a febrile convulsion.
"They couldn’t tell us if it would happen to Savannah again. But they said it can happen to anyone – children can suffer from them up to the age of 5," Antony said. "We were lucky. We knew a little, but if the paramedic hadn't come, I don’t know what we would have done."
Now that Savannah is on the mend, the couple have vowed to attend a baby first aid course and are urging other parents to do the same. "We are still finding it hard not to check on her every 5 minutes when she is asleep," Antony admitted. "But if there’s one good thing that comes of this it’s that, by sharing our story, we can encourage other parents to be aware of what they need to do if it ever happens to their child.
Photos: Twitter / Antony Costa
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