Monique Ruppel was awaken to screams coming from her small baby girl, which was strange because she usually sleeps peacefully throughout the night. When the child wouldn’t stop crying, her mom went to see what was going on. As she got closer and closer, something struck her, causing her to fall to the floor.
Via a Facebook post detailing the incident, Monique Ruppel said that her daughter Celia usually wakes up each night with a faint whimper, indicating she may need a bottle or just wants to cuddle. However this time was very much different — she was crying an strange inconsolable scream. Monique woke up and walked towards the baby when she was overwhelmed with vertigo and fell to the floor. Her husband Kyle woke, sensing something was wrong.
Both parents described feeling nauseous, dizzy, and that their eyes burned so bad that it was hard to see. They made it to Celia’s room down the hall, right in time to pick her up before she began vomiting. As Monique held her sick daughter, the cat collapsed at the mother’s feet, and Kyle was in the other room packing a bag and calling his parents, IJ Review reported.
Kyle’s parents arrived at the home to help, calling emergency services in their Canadian town, which the father should have done, but apparently, he couldn’t think straight. The parents and their baby girl were rushed to the hospital after it was determined that they had all suffered carbon monoxide poisoning. If Celia hadn’t begun crying right when she did, all three would have been found dead.
After spending 7.5 hours across three sessions in a Hyperbaric Chamber, the Ruppels are back to better health, and all are expected to make a full recovery. Little Celia may never fully understand the extraordinary thing she did late that night, but she saved her entire family by simply crying.
According to Monique Ruppel’s Facebook post about the incident:
This precious little angel did something extraordinary. Something she will not fully understand until she is grown. She literally saved our lives.
Celia typically wakes once per night. We always get up with her and help her back to sleep. On Friday at 3 am she stirred for the second time. I attempted to make my way to her room but only made it a few feet before being completely overwhelmed with vertigo. Kyle immediately woke and we quickly realized something was wrong. We both suffered from dizziness, headache, nausea, and burning eyes. We packed a bag and woke Celia. She began vomiting and as I held her my cat collapsed at my feet. Luckily Kyle’s parents arrived to help right before he collapsed. He came to right away and 911 was called. We were all taken to the hospital.
We were promptly treated for Carbon monoxide poisoning by wonderful doctors and nurses. They took every precaution and airlifted us to Vancouver for treatment. We underwent 3, 2.5 hour dives in a Hyperbaric Chamber. We are all feeling very well and expected to make a full recovery.
The support we have received this weekend has been incredible. We thank all our friends and family for helping us through.
Please ensure you have a Carbon Monoxide detector and that it works. We are so thankful Celia woke us. We often wished she would sleep through the night but we do not feel that way anymore. Our sweet sweet baby saved us all.
The mother hopes that their incredible story serves as a reminder to be sure that your home’s Carbon Monoxide detectors are all in working order, unlike theirs. This family was exceptionally fortunate to have been saved by a baby’s cry after God used the smallest one in the house to perform a miracle.
