She's 18 mos & well we are from South Texas where it's super hot right now so while strolling through a farmers market in S.A. they had a water park that was basically a few holes on the ground that would shoot water up. I did see her struggle 2 or 3 times when they would catch her off guard and get her in the face..not sure if I'm overreacting since dry drowning has been all over social media. I have heard her cough a few times so I'm keeping a close eye on her..hsve not slept all night. Pls some one tell me if it's possible or if it needs to be like an almost drowning event where they would take in a large amount of water. Thank u all.
welcome to mamapedia, M.!!
Breathe. Is your daughter in respiratory distress? If not? You're fine.
The coughing could be from anything. Allergies, a cold, etc. If she's not in respiratory distress, you're fine. She's fine.
If you get scared, call your pediatrician. Don't they have an after hours number to call?
We were just at a splash pad ourselves. They have to inhale the water for it to get to the lungs. Think of when you're in a pool or jump in to one - water goes up your nose. That's quite different than inhaling it. I doubt they'd be replacing wading pools with splash pads (as they are around here) if there was a serious risk.
We have a pool and our toddlers swam in it and definitely got water up their noses. I'm just trying to put this into perspective.
I would watch for the signs if you're concerned over the course of the day. Trouble breathing, etc. You can Google the signs if you need to, and then I'd call your doctor or urgent care if you feel she's having trouble.
I have not personally ever heard of this, from splash pads. If it helps. our old day care (integrated so also half the kids were special needs) had it's own splash pad. Never an incident.
Thank’s for your question M..
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It's worth keeping an eye on her - isn't it always? - but it would have had to have gotten deeply into her lungs - think like a choking kind of cough.
I think she's fine and you need some sleep.
With the heat wave you have to keep an eye on the kids anyway, so try not to wear yourself out with worry.
Anytime someone takes in water through their mouth or nose, dry (or secondary) drowning is possible. But, it's very, very unlikely!
Dry drowning occurs when water causes an airway to spasm, making it difficult to get enough oxygen. In all my years of lifeguarding and teaching swimming, I never heard of a situation where it actually happened. It's in the news now simply because it's so rare.
Coughing can be a sign, but it's just as likely that she's experiencing some post nasal drip from having water in her nose. How is her breathing? Is it normal, or is shallow, fast, or labored? Do her nostrils look normal (or are they flared when she breathes?) Those are signs of respiratory distress, and that's what you need to be concerned about.
If you're really concerned, call your pediatrician and they'll walk you through it. Most likely, they'll ask the same questions.
Anything is possible, but based on what happened I think it's unlikely. I wouldn't worry about it, but keep an eye out for the dry drowning symptoms if you're so concerned.
