Mom puts healthy baby to bed at 7 p.m., horror at what happens two hours later

A Florida mom put her son down for the night, but nothing could have prepared her for the terror that would unfold two hours later. 

Klaudia Dunn and her 2-year-old, Ethan, had spent the day decorating their home for Christmas, while her husband, Bryce, was at work.  

At around 7 p.m., the parents gave him a bath and put him to bed as usual. 

Two hours later, that normalcy fractured. “At 9:05 p.m., he woke up gasping for air,” Dunn told Newsweek. “My husband woke me up and I told him to call 911 immediately.” 

In an ambulance, Dunn’s mind was whirring. “I was just thinking about what could have caused this,” she said. “Initially, we were convinced he was having an allergic reaction to something because we have never heard of croup happening so suddenly.” 

Croup is a viral illness which causes swelling in the upper airway, narrowing the passage toddlers rely on to breathe. It can stem from viral infections, allergies or even acid reflux. 

Most parents recognize it by sound: a harsh, barking cough, often accompanied by stridor, a high-pitched, labored breathing that signals the airway is inflamed. 

Ethan presented nearly every classic symptom in rapid succession—congestion, a barking cough, sudden fever and that unmistakable stridor. 

“Once the doctors at the ER diagnosed him with croup, I was terrified that my 5-month-old who was asleep at home would get it too,” Dunn said. 

Inside the ER, the medical team moved quickly. Ethan received ibuprofen, steroids (prednisolone) and a breathing treatment with albuterol.  

Within about 20 minutes, he was noticeably more comfortable. Tests for COVID-19, flu, RSV, and strep all came back negative, eliminating the usual viral suspects. The family left with a week-long steroid prescription and instructions to continue breathing treatments as needed. 

The turnaround was fast—astonishingly so, given the terror of the night. “He is back to his normal healthy self,” Dunn reported. “He started to feel a lot better on day three.” 

Dunn, who is also mom to 5-month-old Grayson, documented how her eldest son went from being “completely fine” to being rushed to the emergency room in a clip on TikTok. 

The short video has garnered 2.3 million views and hundreds of comments from concerned parents. Many shared their experiences with a case of croup in their households. 

“Had to call the ambulance who rushed my at the time 1-year-old to the ER with croup that was so bad he was turning purple. It’s terrifying and not talked about enough,” one mom wrote. 

“My baby got croup twice. I hated seeing [them] this way,” another added. 

In her caption, Dunn implored others to consider approaching children if they’re sick. “Something that is small for you can be extremely dangerous for them,” she wrote.