You’ve probably heard of the Heimlich maneuver, which another person can use to help someone who is choking. But what do you do if you start choking alone? A man explains how to perform the Heimlich on yourself in an emergency.
In a video with over 1.1 million views, TikToker Mint Witch (@themintwitch) kneels on the floor in his kitchen.
“If you are by yourself and you’re choking, what you’re going to want to do is get on your knees like this,” he says. He places his two fists on the ground and leans his shoulders over his wrists.
“This is going to hurt,” he says before taking a deep breath and flinging his arms in front of him. This causes his chest to hit the floor hard.
“What that does is basically the same thing as a Heimlich maneuver,” he explains. “It forces the air out of your trachea.”
Does this method work to stop choking alone?
Around 5,000 people die each year from choking in the United States, according to the National Safety Council. That makes it one of the leading causes of preventable deaths.
Learning the Heimlich, or self-Heimlich maneuver, can help prevent death by choking. There are several self-Heimlich methods, with Mint Witch’s push-up-inspired one recommended in Wonder How To‘s CPR and First Aid guide.
In a follow-up video, Mint Witch explains that he learned the method from a YouTube tutorial after he choked on a piece of chicken—just before making his TikTok.
Commenters thank the TikToker for the tutorial, expressing their fears of choking alone.
“Omg..I live alone and it’s my worst fear!!!! Thank you….what would make you think about that????” a viewer said.
“THANK YOU SO MUCH CHOKING ALONE IS LIKE MY WORST FEAR,” another wrote.
However, other self-Heimlich methods are more frequently recommended by leading medical institutions.
What is the recommended way to do self-Heimlich?
The Mayo Clinic recommends taking your fist in your hand and shoving it into your navel using a hard surface like a countertop or chair. Repeatedly shove into the navel to force air out of the lungs. Call 911 as soon as you start choking.
In the comments, viewers share their scary experiences with choking alone and other unconventional ways they administered self-Heimlich.
“When it happened to me i punched my stomach as hard as I could while at the same time coughing as hard as i could and it worked,” one shared.
“You can also use the corner of your mattress if your bed has no wood corners. from standing, drop your weight so that the corner hits the bottom of the ribs. it doesn’t hurts as much if at all,” another said.
“I actually did choke alone so I knelt infront of the toilet, made a fist and slammed myself against it. It worked,” a third wrote.
Other commenters recommend the LifeVac, a choking rescue device that can be self-administered or used on another person.
@themintwitch #firstaid #choking #eoe ♬ original sound – Mint witch
The Daily Dot reached out to Mint Witch for further comment.
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