By THERESA PATTERSON
Guest Columnist
On the morning of July 12, I was awakened at 3:30 in the morning by the sounds of my husband struggling to breathe. At first, I thought he was having a bad dream, but his agonized wheezing just didn’t sound right. When an elbow to the ribs didn’t stir him, I jumped out of the bed and flipped on the lights.
Whether or not I was ready, my world had changed.
He was blue and not breathing. I don’t have words to describe the terror I felt in that moment, but I can tell you that to this day it hasn’t really gone away. Thankfully, my training as a nurse kicked in and propelled me to action. I called 911, put my phone on speaker, and set it on the bedside table. I hefted him to the ground, thumped his chest, and began chest compressions. The 911 operator helped me count and do CPR correctly for five of the longest minutes of my life.
CPR is hard if you haven’t ever done it, and I was terrified that if I didn’t do it right or couldn’t do it for long enough, I wouldn’t give him his best chance to survive. Brain death sets in with in four to six minutes of oxygen deprivation. I HAD to keep going.
The first responder to arrive on the scene was a Carmel Police Officer. He ran in with an AED, a portable automated external defibrillator, sidestepped my terrified, barking dog, and shocked my husband from v-fib (very bad) to a-fib (less bad). EMTs arrived and I was booted from the scene as they worked. They were able to get a pulse and had him breathing before they left our house. Larry was taken to IU North Hospital and was in very critical condition. He was in the ICU, on a ventilator, and heavily sedated.
When we first arrived at the hospital, we had no idea what caused this. Hours and then days passed before we knew for sure. It turns out that his right coronary artery (RCA) was completely blocked and caused him to enter cardiac arrest WITH NO WARNING.
Let me underscore this: Larry had ZERO signs that trouble was afoot. He is normal body weight, eats very healthy food, does not have high blood pressure, and his cholesterol levels are just fine. There were literally no signs he was about to die.
A very talented cardiologist was able to place stents and the team of doctors and nurses in the ICU skillfully cared for him. He came home after about a week and slowly recovered. During the course of the hospitalization and more recently at a recognition event for the first responders, we learned that the course of events – specifically that my husband lived and has ZERO lasting effects – is extraordinarily. He has no brain damage, is flying through cardiac rehab, and feels better than ever.
The statistics on survival after sudden (cardiac) death outside of the hospital are grim. We have heard over and again from the hospital staff, his cardiologist, and the EMT team that they have never seen anything like his survival and amazing recovery. We learned that in Carmel, 40 police cars are equipped with portable defibrillators. This is a result of the forward-thinking leaders in our community who invested in making certain that our first responders are equipped and trained to handle emergencies with state-of-the-art tools and technology.
Last month, we held a recognition ceremony for the first responders. I needed them to know that they saved my husband, my family, and our life as we knew it. It was such a pleasure to be able to share this moment of celebration for the amazing men and women who came to our aid and to give thanks for our amazing community and its leadership.
It is easy take for granted all that this community affords to our way of life, I am as guilty of this as anyone. We learned the very hardest way this July how critically important it is to have experienced leadership focused on health and safety, lead our city. YOUR life could depend on it.
Ironically, when Money Magazine named Carmel the best place to live in September of 2012, my family was featured on the cover. Little did we know that living here would save my husband’s life.
P.S.: Think twice before you pull on your ratty old PJs. You never know when your bedroom will be filled with 10 of Carmel’s best and brightest first responders, or that you may spend the next 48 hours wearing those hole-riddled rags in public.