sob spasm episode: It is an episode in which the child stops breathing involuntarily and loses consciousness for a brief period immediately after a frightening or emotionally disturbing episode or a painful experience.
At what age does it happen?
The first episode occurs at very young ages, as young as 2 months of age, almost always around 2 years of age. Over time they disappear on their own, they do not need treatment, and we can expect them to happen up to 6 years of life, although it is not usual for them to last so long
Types of sobbing spasms
Sobbing spasms differ in causes and in their characteristics:
The cyanotic sobbing spasms They occur when a child stops breathing and their face turns blue. These spasms are usually caused by something that makes the child upset, such as being reprimanded for something. Parents who have already witnessed cyanotic sob spasms know exactly when a new one is about to occur, because the child’s face slowly begins to take on a blue hue, which can range from pale blue to almost purple.
The pale sobbing spasms they are less common and more unpredictable, because they occur when a child experiences a sudden fright or startle (such as being surprised by someone coming from behind). Unlike cyanotic sob spasms, these children turn pale, almost white, during the spasms. . Cyanotic spasms are much more common than pale spasms, and the same child can have both types of spasms.
Symptoms
Both types of spasms cause children to stop breathing and lose consciousness for up to a minute. In very extreme cases, children can have seizures.
After a fall, a blow, a disappointment or an anger, the child cries or tries to cry. Then all of a sudden he stops breathing and slowly starts to turn purple and stiff (cyanotic sob spasm). If the episode lasts more than 10-15 seconds, some jerks, like convulsions, may occur. Eventually the child bursts into tears or briefly loses consciousness.
There are other types of sob spasms, less common, in which children turn pale, not purple (pale sob spasm). They usually occur after a fright or shock.
The sobbing spasms produce much alarm in families. However, children recover in a few seconds, without the need to do anything special.
What should be avoided?
1. Resuscitation maneuvers.
2. Beat or bathe the child with cold water.
There is a risk of aspiration and pulmonary complications.
3. Do not put objects into your mouth as it may injure or cause suffocation.
4. It is very important not to confuse it with other convulsive diseases, avoid the administration of antiepileptic drugs as much as possible.
Causes
The cause is not known, although heredity is closely related with these episodes. 35% of children who have suffered an episode have at least one family member to whom they have also happened. That’s why many parents wonder if it can happen again. It can happen again after a few hours, or it can happen very sporadically over the years, or never, but in the event that it does happen, it will always happen in the same way, so you can immediately identify them and act .
What to do during the sobbing spasm?
Specialists recommend acting calmly, without yelling, hitting or shaking the child during the seizure. It is also very important not to show the child excessive concern about these episodes so as not to generate unnecessary fear, or the temptation to provoke new episodes himself.
You have to be next to the child, accompany him throughout the episode, putting him in a comfortable and safe place to prevent him from hitting himself. In the crying spell, the child has an «abnormal» way of crying that is not voluntary but seems to be due to a difficulty in initiating normal crying in an unexpected situation. As if suddenly starting to cry, the tears were choked in the mouth.
If at the end of crying the child gets what he did not get before, his brain will associate this way of crying with the way of getting what he wants and will more easily acquire the habit of crying like this. If, on the contrary, at the end of the episode, in which the adult has accompanied him and given him the physical and emotional security that nothing is happening, we do not give more importance to the matter, it is very likely that we will facilitate the learning of a normal cry and that these episodes are extinguished before without favoring the appearance of tantrums and tantrums that overprotection inevitably causes.
When to worry?
If the child has spasms spontaneously without any triggering cause, if he has convulsions, if he does not regain consciousness after 30 seconds or if he has these episodes when he is sleeping, he should see a doctor immediately.
Impact
There is no consequence that should worry parents, beyond the scare that can be caused by seeing their children make these movements. In addition, the children recover completely in each episode and there is no association with any disease. Those with sobbing spasms are also not at increased risk of developing epilepsy, although jerks (convulsions) can occur in some episodes, as in these crises.
The only risk with crying spells is that our attitude perpetuates them. This is especially likely when the crying is caused by frustration, that is, the typical tantrum or tantrum because he does not get what he wants. Faced with the morrocotudo scare that parents get, the easiest, most tempting and the most humane response is to give in to the child’s wishes, «so it doesn’t happen again.»