A MUM says her teenage daughter’s quick-thinking saved her life when she suffered a severe allergic reaction while driving home.

Dunbar Grammar School pupil Carli Richardson, who turned 16 yesterday (Wednesday), played a vital role in getting medical help for mum Stacy Coates when she went into anaphylactic shock while driving home to Dunbar from a tanning shop in Musselburgh.

Stacy, 33, fell ill in the car when she felt her sinuses block and her eyes and throat start to itch.

When she began to lose her vision, she pulled over near Musselburgh Racecourse and she called an ambulance.

As they waited for the emergency services to arrive, Stacy’s condition worsened and she started to panic. . . so Carli took control and phoned 999 to alert them of the seriousness of the situation and urge a quick response.

'She was so calm'

Stacy said: “I think if she hadn’t called them a second time then I might not have made it. Her quick-thinking saved my life.

“When I was lying there, the urge to close my eyes and sleep was unbearable, but I kept telling myself that if I did that then Carli would be alone.

“She kept telling me to stay awake and keep talking as best I could. She was just so calm and cool, her soothing voice got me through it.”

Carli said of the incident a fortnight ago: “She was struggling to breathe and her tongue was really swollen. It was really scary seeing her like that.

“I just knew that I needed to call the ambulance again and tell them that they needed to come quicker.

“It was just an instinct. I knew she needed help and I knew she needed it quickly, so I had to call and speed it up. It’s pretty scary when you see your mum like that but I knew it was important that I kept calm.”

East Lothian Courier: Stacy Coates after the reaction

Stacy after the reaction

Carli said it took between 30 and 40 minutes for the first responder to arrive and Stacy was given an injection of adrenaline. She would then need a further two to fully recover.

It is still unknown what caused the reaction but Stacy was given two EpiPens.

And she was forced to use one for the first time on Saturday when she had a second reaction at home.

She said: “We had been out celebrating in Edinburgh ahead of Carli’s birthday and it was when we got home that it happened.

“Again, Carli was really calm and told me to go outside and get some air before my stepdad brought out the EpiPen and gave me it.

“We still don’t know what caused it. I don’t know if it’s airborne or if I ate something, but not knowing makes me really nervous.”

East Lothian Courier: Carli Richardson, 16, and Stacy Coates, 33

Carli with her mum Stacy

Stacy is hopeful doctors can diagnose the cause.

She said: “All I’ve been told is that my case has been marked as urgent and that they will try and look into it as soon as possible.

“Until then, I’m living on the edge as I’m scared to go out alone or be left alone with my two-year-old in case something happens.”

Stacy, who works in the kitchen at Hallhill Sports Centre, plans to train Carli to use the EpiPen – and believes such training should be taught in schools.

“It could save someone’s life,” she said, from their Wingate Crescent home

Carli is the oldest of six siblings and has three brothers and two sisters. She is studying Highers in English, maths and modern studies, and does not know yet what she wants to do after school.

'Not all heroes wear capes'

Carli’s heroics were praised by Dunbar Grammar School (DGS) headteacher Claire Slowther.

Mrs Slowther said: “Not all heroes wear capes. This hero wears a DGS uniform!

“We at DGS are all immensely proud of Carli.

“To keep a cool, calm and composed head in an emergency situation is far from easy. It is even trickier when the person involved is a loved one.

“We are blown away with Carli’s courage and confidence, which ultimately saved her mum’s life. She is a hero and role model for others.

“Carli is such a hard-working and humble pupil. I’m amazed how calm she is about it and what she did.”

There are plans in place for some first-year pupils to interview Carli, an S5 at the school, about what she did to learn about staying calm in emergency situations.

Mrs Slowther also supported the idea of teaching pupils to use an EpiPen.

She said: “We run a programme where staff are taught to use them and I think it would be a good idea to teach pupils too.”

Special recognition will be given to Carli at next Friday’s (November 11) school assembly and she is already being considered for a special award at next year’s awards ceremony.