A mother in the US has shared photos of the moment a silicone bowl became tightly suctioned to her toddler's face while she was eating her breakfast.
The woman, Laci Wornick, took to social media to issue a warning to other parents and confessed she was "still shaking" from the ordeal. The Facebook post included four photos of her daughter eating a meal of scrambled eggs from the bowl before lifting it up to her face.
"I was taking photos because she was so cute digging in and had scrambled egg everywhere," Wornick said.
But the "super cute" photos were followed by a final shot that showed the bowl tightly suctioned to the child's face and her arms up in a panic.
Wornick explained how her daughter had "placed her head in her bowl and it suctioned immediately to her face perfectly", adding it left her "without air for a handful of seconds".
She said once she realised what was happening, she leaned over the kitchen counter to pull the bowl from her daughter's face. However, since it was "slick and greasy" from the egg inside, it proved to be a terrifyingly difficult task, Wornick said.
"With ever[y] scream she made, the bowl suctioned tighter and tighter."
She explained she was eventually able to dig her fingers under the bowl and break the seal.
"I shudder thinking of her unable to breathe in there even for the short amount of time it was.
"Maybe I should have already considered this a possibility and maybe there are reports of this already that I was unaware of."
She said she hadn't been "a new mum" in many years and her older children hadn't used that specific type of bowl. She said she often tosses "kitchen stuff" to her babies to play with, such as wooden spoons, cups and Tupperware, to keep them occupied while she washes the dishes.
"What if I had tossed her [this] bowl and I missed this happening?"
She said while her daughter is fine, she has not recovered.
"I feel ridiculously awful that this happened and I didn't consider it when I decided to use these."
She felt terrible for not yanking the bowl away "the minute she brought it to her face", Wornick added.
"We will not be using these anymore!"
Upon being asked in the comments how the silicone bowl works, Wornick explained that it's designed to "suction to the highchair", but as the suction is weak, her toddler manages to lift it off whenever the bowl is used.
It's not known where the bowl was purchased from but several people took to the comments to comfort the mother and thank her for sharing her experience.
"I can't imagine how scared you must've been! I'm so glad she is okay," one commented.
"Anyone who has ever had or been around a toddler knows how quickly and easily they can get themselves into precarious situations, even when you're standing right there," another reassured.
"Thank you for sharing. I never would have guessed this in a million years," a third said.
