Life-saver Erin (7), honoured by Gardai

A SEVEN-YEAR-OLD Longwood girl whose quick actions in getting help saved her mother's life when she suffered a stroke last year, has been honoured for her bravery.

Erin O'Mahony was just six when one morning in July last year, she saw that her mother couldn't move or talk and knew immediately that something was wrong.

Although terrified, brave Erin managed to get the keys to the door, unlock it and alert their neighbour.

If it wasn't for her quick actions to get help, her proud mum Dee Dixon said she wouldn't be here today and thankfully their story has a happy ending.

At the Trim Garda Station Open Day last Saturday, Superintendent Martina Noonan and Community Garda Edel Dugdale presented a bravery award and flowers to Erin in recognition of her bravery and quick reaction. It was a lovely acknowledgement of Erin's bravery as well as being something positive to come out of what was a very traumatic ordeal.

"It's nice to have a good ending so that Erin doesn't always look back at it and just remember how traumatising it was. She really was affected, seeing her mam carted off in an ambulance," said Dee.

"I try to tell her about the positives and how by making other people aware, her quick thinking might help someone else have a happy ending."

Dee was just 40 when she had the stroke and recalls waking up at around 7.30am and feeling a rush of dizziness.

"I remember feeling a rush of dizziness and I couldn't move. I realised I couldn't speak and I couldn't move my body. I must have been in and out of consciousness. I woke again and Erin was on top of me crying. It was terrifying, as a mother, I couldn't do anything and I was terrified about what was going on. Erin got the keys and unlocked the front door. She went next door to my neighbour Nuala Brannigan to get help."

Dee doesn't remember much about the morning but when the paramedics came, she said they knew straight away that she had had a stroke. "They brought me to Connolly Hospital where I had another stroke and I was then transferred to the Mater."

Further tests revealed Dee had a hole in her heart and she told how a blood clot had travelled through the hole and to the back of her brain which caused the stroke.

"It was very traumatising for both myself and Erin. I am a single mum and there's just the two of us. It was so, so terrifying that something like that could happen. I gave them all a big fright."

Dee lost her speech for a while, but it came back and she had slight numbness down her left side for about a month. She spent a few weeks in hospital before undergoing heart surgery to repair the hole in her heart and has paid tribute to all the doctors and nurses who looked after her, and also to her local community in Longwood for their support.

It took Dee about six months to fully recover and she is now back at work, running a recruitment agency in Maynooth.

Dee is keen to raise awareness among parents to speak to their children about what to do in an emergency.

"No one knows what can happen and parents need to teach their kids what to do in an emergency. I never expected that something like this could happen at such a young age. To me a stroke was something that happened to people in their eighties. I was active and healthy though that did all stand to me in my recovery."

Supt Noonan paid tribute to Erin for her bravery and told how Gardai intend to use her story as part of their schools programme.

"We were delighted to make a presentation to Erin in recognition of her saving her mam's life and going forward we are hoping to incorporate her story into our schools programme when speaking to young children about what to do if a parent becomes unwell or other emergency."