My dad was unusual during the “Leave It To Beaver” days of stay-at-home moms. He was the “at-home” parent while my mom worked as I grew up. He would often make me lunch of ham & cheese sandwich with Miracle Whip and Campbell’s Tomato Soup (now Miracle Whip never darkens my refrigerator door, but as a kid I liked it).
He
always encouraged me to go outside to get some Vitamin D when I was sick. He seemed to like unconventional cures over medicine.
He thought he needed to encourage balance in my life so he told me he only
wanted me to get “A” grades in Physical Education. All other subjects I did
well, but I think he wanted me to remember to enjoy being alive.
I could
share more (and no doubt will at his memorial service later this week). For now, I want to share his last email to
me. I think his cholesterol was high for
a number of years but he had lost weight and thought he had a clean bill of
health just a few months prior. This is
how he felt the day before he died. He had
no other warnings or heart problems prior. My dad was gone before the ambulance reached
the hospital.
IF YOU EXPERIENCE THESE
TYPES OF SYMPTOMS – GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM IMMEDIATELY AND TELL THEM YOU THINK IT IS A HEART ATTACK!!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Date: Sunday, September 23, 2012, 8:23 am
From: Bill Rogers
Subject Line: Cashing In The Chips
HI,
God REALLY ANSWERED OUR PRAYER LAST NIGHT...Saturday,
9/22. This kid almost cashed in his “chips”. How? It had been happening for about two days. I
have/had high blood pressure. But I lost 22 lbs, and the blood pressure went
down to normal. So, all was well and good. Then, I went to the grocery store,
Friday, and some guy came up behind me in line talking about shooting birds, and
his cat eating one a day. I was feeling
very angry at him and in myself. But, I said nothing to the guy. I simply thought someone had wrapped my chest
and arms in a very tight cloth.
Then, yesterday,
Saturday I started to get the same feeling in my chest. I took some aspirin,
and a couple other pills, and it got worse. I went to bed but tossed and
turned. Donna is SUCH a great helper. She knows exactly what to
do. We tested my blood pressure and it was 195/ (something). WAAAAAY to
high. I could not go to sleep. My chest and body kept aching. So, about 4 AM I
got up and Donna found some blood-pressure pills that I had forgotten about. I
took one and then did go to sleep. I awoke TIRED, but the blood pressure
reading is now 130/87/96. I will rest today. We have to find out
what caused it to zoom up. WHEW...DO NOT WANT THAT FEELING
AGAIN!!!!
Talk with you later.
Love and hugs,
Loren, first, my sincerest condolences to you and your family on the sudden loss of your father. This is such a touching story; you're so courageous for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteYour warning to others to be aware of the early signs of heart trouble and to see a doctor immediately is something I can relate to and can't stress enough as well. High cholesterol and blood pressure are clear signs of a problem that's growing and need to be taken seriously. In my own case, I did not take my high cholesterol serious enough which ultimately lead to my having a mild heart-attack last year followed immediately by by-pass surgery. Thankfully, I was able to get to the hospital when I started having mild chest pressure and an "ache" in my chest and some pain in my left wrist. ANY of these types of symptoms with a history of high cholesterol or blood pressure need to be taken very seriously. More importantly, a healthy diet and daily exercise are critical to maintaining good health and avoiding serious health risks.
Thanks again for sharing your story.
Best wishes,
Don Palmer