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LOS ANGELES — Actress Elizabeth Banks has recalled how she faced her “first choking incident” while she was alone in her vanity van during the break from shooting of her movie 'Skincare'.
She shared that the “scary” ordeal happened when she was enjoying lunch and a “little green pea” got lodged in her throat.
“I threw the door open – couldn’t make any noise, was so afraid. It was terrifying,” Banks told Good Morning America.
She was spotted by a crew member who came over and asked “Are you choking?” before she was able to croak “Yes” – prompting him to “very calmly” give her the Heimlich manoeuvre also known as abdominal thrusts, a first-aid method for choking involving thrusting into the abdominal area, reports femalefirst.co.uk.
Banks added: “He had to do it twice. His name is Julius. He is my guardian angel. Julius, I love you.”
She said that after he “saved (her) life” she wanted to use her platform to encourage people to learn how to do the Heimlich.
She went on: “Make sure you know how to do it. Talk to your friends and family about it.”
The first aid technique consists of an individual applying pressure against the abdomen of the choking victim to force out the object blocking their airway.
The actress added that the world is full of misconceptions about the method, including worries it could crack people’s ribs.
She said: “They’re dying, so crack a rib if you have to. I would’ve been fine with a cracked rib. I literally couldn’t breathe, and it was super scary.”