What is CPR?
CPR stands for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation basically, it’s a way to manually keep blood and oxygen flowing to someone’s brain and heart when their heart stops beating and they stop breathing. Think of it as doing the heart’s job for it when the body can’t do it on its own.Why does it work?
When someone goes into cardiac arrest, their heart stops pumping blood. Without blood flow, the brain starts dying within minutes. CPR uses two main techniques to buy time:
1. Chest Compressions (The Main Part)
You push hard on the person’s chest at 100-120 compressions per minute, pressing down about 2-2.4 inches deep.
This does two things:
Squeezes blood out of the chest cavity like a pump, forcing it to vital organs (brain and heart).
Raises pressure inside the chest, which pushes blood through the arteries to where it’s Needed.
The heart has one-way valves, so when you push, blood gets forced out of the heart toward the brain and organs. When you release, the chest expands, blood refills the heart, and the cycle repeats. You do 30 compressions without stopping.
2. Rescue Breathing (Mouth-to-Mouth)
After every 30 compressions, you give 2 rescue breaths by breathing directly into the person’s mouth.This sends oxygen-rich air into their lungs, which then travels with the blood you’re pumping around their body. Each breath should take about 1 second, and you watch the chest rise to confirm the air went in.
The Pattern: 30:2
CPR follows a simple rhythm: 30 chest compressions, then 2 rescue breaths, and repeat.This keeps oxygenated blood circulating until the ambulance arrives or the person’s heart restarts on its own.
Bottom Line
CPR is essentially manual life support. You’re acting as the person’s heart and lungs, pumping blood and delivering oxygen until professional help can take over. Every minute matters—the longer someone goes without CPR after cardiac arrest, the less likely they’ll survive without brain damage.
MBH/PS