Excitement in Life!
When we moved into our new old home in December of 1996 we knew we had project in front of us. Take the ranch style home from the late 1930's and make into an old style Santa Fe. Build the "man cave" for my husband and the corral for me. You see the plan was to build the shop or man cave first. The corral and horses that I had always dreamed of having was second.
The man cave was completed in the spring of 1997 and we slowly started clearing the property. The property probably had not been cleared in over 20 years. Living in the middle of a Mesquite Grove certainly had its challenges and we were up for the task. I married the ultimate mountain man. He was and is the ultimate repair man. Oh yes, if he builds something, it will run.
The drawings for the remodel were coming along nicely and our property was shaping up to something respectable when in the middle of night he woke me up and said, "I don't feel very well." I looked at him and he was an ashen color I had never seen before. I started to speak, picked up the telephone and dialed 911. My husband was having a heart attack.
The paramedics were amazing and we got to the hospital in record time. My husband died at the hospital where the Code Team brought him back to life. The doctor was standing next to me explaining everything to me as it was happening.
One Angiogram and Angioplasty later, three or four days in Cardiac Intensive Care, then the Step Down Unit. Wow, we get to go home. We celebrated our anniversary in the hospital that year. My husband was alive!
Six months later my husband asked me what the Code Team was. I looked at him and said what are you speaking of. He said when I had my heart attack, I thought I heard Code Team at the hospital. I told him he had died and that was the cardiac team who brought him back to life.
During the next 10 years my husband was not ever quite 100% although he was living life as best he could. Then in the middle of the night he comes to me and says I don't feel very well I think I am having a heart attack. Again, I dial 911.
The paramedics were amazing in getting my husband to the hospital. This trip caused my husband to have double bypass surgery. He should have had a quadruple bypass and they did not perform that procedure. 10 days after his release from the hospital my husband suffered a heart attack. The doctors stated that had he had that particular heart attack prior to the bypass surgery he would have died instantly.
My husband recovered but it took several years for the chemical changes in his body to catch up. My husband lived life to the fullest as best he could. He kept pushing himself to the limits that his body would allow.
The heart is a muscle, and if it is not working properly the body does not either. You have to take care of yourself and your heart. This past year it all came together when he went into the hospital for another Angiogram and Angioplasty. They found that when the Double Bypass surgery was done originally it should have been a quadruple as part of the heart muscle was damaged from the original heart attack and there was severe blockage. My husband was not receiving enough blood flow through the heart.
Thankfully today he is enjoying life and doing all he can to stay healthy. Diet and exercise are critical when it comes to the heart. You cannot take for granted any day and you have to watch for those symptoms that may be a warning sign: shortness of breath, chest pains, pain the left arm, problems with vision.
As a spouse I regularly take CPR classes so that I stay current on the new techniques and procedures. This could be a life saving action for my husband. The technique may be improved upon so it is critical to stay current. Classes are offered through the Red Cross, University Medical Center and American Heart Association.
Be heart healthy in all things, there is excitement in life!
Remember: know your family history and medications daily. This is critical in the event of an emergency.
This is our story of excitement. Tried and True Forever.
For more information on CPR Classes:
Red Cross: http://www.redcrossarizona.org/site/PageServer?pagename=train_class_listings_professional_rescuer,
UMC:http://ahsc.arizona.edu/node/730
AMA:http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/CPRAndECC/CommunityCPRandFirstAid/CommunityPrograms/Community-Programs_UCM_302444_SubHomePage.jsp)
The man cave was completed in the spring of 1997 and we slowly started clearing the property. The property probably had not been cleared in over 20 years. Living in the middle of a Mesquite Grove certainly had its challenges and we were up for the task. I married the ultimate mountain man. He was and is the ultimate repair man. Oh yes, if he builds something, it will run.
The drawings for the remodel were coming along nicely and our property was shaping up to something respectable when in the middle of night he woke me up and said, "I don't feel very well." I looked at him and he was an ashen color I had never seen before. I started to speak, picked up the telephone and dialed 911. My husband was having a heart attack.
The paramedics were amazing and we got to the hospital in record time. My husband died at the hospital where the Code Team brought him back to life. The doctor was standing next to me explaining everything to me as it was happening.
One Angiogram and Angioplasty later, three or four days in Cardiac Intensive Care, then the Step Down Unit. Wow, we get to go home. We celebrated our anniversary in the hospital that year. My husband was alive!
Six months later my husband asked me what the Code Team was. I looked at him and said what are you speaking of. He said when I had my heart attack, I thought I heard Code Team at the hospital. I told him he had died and that was the cardiac team who brought him back to life.
During the next 10 years my husband was not ever quite 100% although he was living life as best he could. Then in the middle of the night he comes to me and says I don't feel very well I think I am having a heart attack. Again, I dial 911.
The paramedics were amazing in getting my husband to the hospital. This trip caused my husband to have double bypass surgery. He should have had a quadruple bypass and they did not perform that procedure. 10 days after his release from the hospital my husband suffered a heart attack. The doctors stated that had he had that particular heart attack prior to the bypass surgery he would have died instantly.
My husband recovered but it took several years for the chemical changes in his body to catch up. My husband lived life to the fullest as best he could. He kept pushing himself to the limits that his body would allow.
The heart is a muscle, and if it is not working properly the body does not either. You have to take care of yourself and your heart. This past year it all came together when he went into the hospital for another Angiogram and Angioplasty. They found that when the Double Bypass surgery was done originally it should have been a quadruple as part of the heart muscle was damaged from the original heart attack and there was severe blockage. My husband was not receiving enough blood flow through the heart.
Thankfully today he is enjoying life and doing all he can to stay healthy. Diet and exercise are critical when it comes to the heart. You cannot take for granted any day and you have to watch for those symptoms that may be a warning sign: shortness of breath, chest pains, pain the left arm, problems with vision.
As a spouse I regularly take CPR classes so that I stay current on the new techniques and procedures. This could be a life saving action for my husband. The technique may be improved upon so it is critical to stay current. Classes are offered through the Red Cross, University Medical Center and American Heart Association.
Be heart healthy in all things, there is excitement in life!
Remember: know your family history and medications daily. This is critical in the event of an emergency.
This is our story of excitement. Tried and True Forever.
For more information on CPR Classes:
Red Cross: http://www.redcrossarizona.org/site/PageServer?pagename=train_class_listings_professional_rescuer,
UMC:http://ahsc.arizona.edu/node/730
AMA:http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/CPRAndECC/CommunityCPRandFirstAid/CommunityPrograms/Community-Programs_UCM_302444_SubHomePage.jsp)