# BVM'ing Yourself



## Alas (Oct 24, 2011)

Anyone done it? Diaphram works all day, thought maybe it could use some rest....


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## Handsome Robb (Oct 24, 2011)

Have you ever been bagged? It's not a comfortable or enjoyable experience.


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## DesertMedic66 (Oct 24, 2011)

I've been BVMed before in training. I hate it. I would rather take an NPA then the BVM.


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## Alas (Oct 24, 2011)

o.... cross that idea.


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## tssemt2010 (Oct 24, 2011)

Alas said:


> o.... cross that idea.



:glare:


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## Handsome Robb (Oct 24, 2011)

firefite said:


> I've been BVMed before in training. I hate it. I would rather take an NPA then the BVM.



Agreed. Took an NG tube in class as well as an EJ, and BVM and a BVM with 10 mmHg of PEEP. It's so uncomfortable to be bagged add PEEP and it was pretty much intolerable.


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## Tigger (Oct 24, 2011)

NVRob said:


> Agreed. Took an NG tube in class as well as an EJ, and BVM and a BVM with 10 mmHg of PEEP. It's so uncomfortable to be bagged add PEEP and it was pretty much intolerable.



Yeesh, things that I would not done to me unless I was less than lucid.

Maybe we need to start bagging those "providers" that talk about how "I can bag someone who's breathing less than 10 times a minute because it's in my protocols." Maybe the idea of having air forced into their lungs at an aggressive rate will put an end to such foolishness.


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## NomadicMedic (Oct 24, 2011)

That was part of my paramedic class. My instructor was a stickler for good BVM technique. He had us do an exercise he called "Bag a Buddy". The name says it all. It pretty much sucked, buy gave me a new appreciation for the bag. I think my instructor wrote one of his EMS Magazine articles about it. Google Mike Smith and Bag a Buddy.


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## medicdan (Oct 24, 2011)

n7lxi said:


> That was part of my paramedic class. My instructor was a stickler for good BVM technique. He had us do an exercise he called "Bag a Buddy". The name says it all. It pretty much sucked, buy gave me a new appreciation for the bag. I think my instructor wrote one of his EMS Magazine articles about it. Google Mike Smith and Bag a Buddy.



I'm about to run a class where we do this, and have done it before-- it involves some deep relaxation/meditation, trust of your partner, and good (learned) BVMing skills, which I know we lack.


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## foxfire (Oct 24, 2011)

We bagged each other while going through respiratory class. It was no fun, but I think it was worse due to the fact that I was paired with a guy ( I flat out did not like him) that kept acting sweet toward me. Found it just a wee bit hard to relax.:wacko:


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## usalsfyre (Oct 24, 2011)

emt.dan said:


> I'm about to run a class where we do this, and have done it before-- it involves some deep relaxation/meditation, trust of your partner, and good (learned) BVMing skills, which I know we lack.


Agree, one airway class I took required us to BVM each other for an hour. At first, very uncomfortable. After being able to relax a bit, not bad at all. 

The gastrointestinal effects of an hour of PPV were ahh, IMPRESSIVE though lol.


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## rwik123 (Oct 24, 2011)

firefite said:


> I've been BVMed before in training. I hate it. I would rather take an NPA then the BVM.



Take an npa instead of being bagged?! I too had to do it as part of training. The whole concept of not breathing and having the bvm do it is hard to get your head around at first. If your calm and have a good partner it's not bad at all


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## Sasha (Oct 24, 2011)

I have never done it and won't willingly. Having a NC at 
2lpm was annoying and uncomfortable to me. I imagine a BUM to be much worse.

Sent from LuLu using Tapatalk


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## 46Young (Oct 24, 2011)

I've bagged myself when I was a new EMT. I wanted to get an idea of squeezing air in vs breathing with someone.

I did for maybe ten minutes, trying different things, but the mask seal was constant the entire time, so I'm sure that 100% of the air I was breahting was from the bag.

I tried not doing anything myself, just squeezing the bag, and it worked. I then simulated assisting ventilations, like when a person is breathing, but it's some combination of shallow and slow, and you time the respirations. You know when you're doing it right because the bag compresses real easy. Just be sure not to hyperinflate the pt's lungs when you're doing this. I also exhaled when trying to bag some air in. It's uncomfortable, so try not to do this to your patients. For example, if the pt inspires, and you're not paying attention and beg just after they finish their inspiratory effort, you'll both hyperinflate them and also prevent exhalation. Do it to yourself, interrupt your expirations with a BVM vent, and tell me how that feels. It's a good educational experience IMO.


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## EMT11KDL (Oct 24, 2011)

I have been bagged during training, and i didnt think it was that bad, as long as your partner is doing it at the same rate your normal resp are.. if the person can keep that pattern its actually really nice and can put you to sleep haha..


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## foxfire (Oct 24, 2011)

usalsfyre said:


> The gastrointestinal effects of an hour of PPV were ahh, IMPRESSIVE though lol.



That is too funny!!!  erase mental picture, erase mental picture.........:rofl:


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## NomadicMedic (Oct 24, 2011)

Here's the blurb Mike wrote on Bag a Buddy...

http://www.emsworld.com/article/10319947/ok-now-what


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## mycrofft (Oct 24, 2011)

*I'd refuse it.*

Also, look up the term "power hitter" in your 1960's psychedelic dictionary.


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