A mother's well-intentioned effort to ensure her children's safety took an alarming and ironic turn when her four-year-old daughter swallowed a button battery from an Apple AirTag, a device originally purchased for tracking purposes. Lisa Marie had acquired four AirTags to monitor her children during a family trip to Disneyland, Anaheim, California, in April. However, these very devices, which she hoped would keep her family safe, ended up causing significant distress and a hospital visit.

After the Disneyland holiday, Lisa discovered some of the AirTags were broken. She stored them in her car's glovebox, intending to get them repaired. On May 23, while in the car, Lisa's daughter, Lily Grace, made a distinctive 'gulping sound'. Lily then stated she had swallowed what she thought was a quarter. Both Lisa and her husband, Markus, 48, quickly realized the seriousness of the situation, fearing it was a button battery.

The distressed parents, originally from the US but now residing in Vancouver Island, Canada, rushed Lily to the hospital. An immediate x-ray scan confirmed their fears, revealing that a coin-sized button battery had already reached her bowel. The family endured an agonizing four-day wait for Lily to pass the battery naturally, a period fraught with anxiety during which her three siblings feared Lily might die. Lisa described the emotional toll, recounting crying on the hospital floor and her husband having to prepare for a potential scope procedure, which ultimately wasn't required as the battery was moving through her system.

Button batteries pose severe risks when swallowed, capable of causing significant damage to internal organs such as the oesophagus or bowel, sometimes burning through the lining completely to form a hole. The danger was tragically underscored by the 2020 death of two-year-old Johnathan Huff in Greensboro, North Carolina, who succumbed after swallowing batteries from a remote control that burned through his internal organs.

To aid the battery's passage, Lisa administered laxatives and encouraged Lily to engage in activities like using trampolines and vibration plates, and eating prunes. Thankfully, after four stressful days, Lily passed the battery naturally and suffered no lasting side effects. The family expressed immense relief that the ordeal concluded without permanent harm.

Lisa, a stay-at-home mum, revealed that a child swallowing a button battery had always been her greatest fear, and she had repeatedly warned her children about the dangers over the years, with the latest warning issued just two weeks prior to the incident. She highlighted the profound 'irony' of the situation, where a device meant for safety became the source of peril. Now, Lisa is issuing a fervent plea to other parents, urging them to 'throw away' any items containing button batteries and to be 'over cautious' regarding these hidden dangers, noting that even gifts can introduce such risks into a home, making it 'a nightmare that won't go away'.