Tweet
Dennis H. has been my best friend since we were 10 years old, which comes out to about 45 years. I'm an only child and as a result we ended up as close as brothers.
When he married Ruth Ann 28 years ago she naturally became the sister I never had (my blood brother and sister both died at birth years before I was born). As such our families have always been close and she had baby sat most my children at one time or another.
Ruth Ann had just one major failing: she was a smoker; 1-2 packs a day since she was in her early 20's. She was also petite; meaning she had a small frame and therefore smaller blood vessels and lungs than women of normal stature.
About 10 years ago we noticed Ruth Ann was breathing hard and her activity had decreased drastically. As a result she also put on more extra weight than someone of her small stature could handle.
Try as we might we could not get her to quit. As a result she got progressively worse until one day 5 years ago I took my spirometer to their home to check her pulmonary capacity. Putting it simply; her function was poor.
In the years since she had come down with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and major circulatory problems, especially in her legs. Eventually fluid started to collect in her tissues, blowing her up like a baloon.
Just in the last year Ruth Ann had been hospitalized several times for CHF (congestive heart failure) and each time they had used drugs to extract over 60 lbs of water from her system. On her last admission she lost 80 pounds of water.
Each time the doctors told her to stop smoking but to no avail. She'd go down to 1/2 pack a day for 2-3 weeks then move back to full bore smoking again.
She was discharged about 10 days ago from her latest admission and had come out with a further diagnosis of sleep apnea (her breathing stopped during sleep). She was given a machine to use at night to improve the situation.
A few days ago I talked to her on the phone and tried once again to convince her that she had to quit if not for her sake then for that of Dennis and the rest of her extended family. She did the usual "yeah, yeah" and once again did as she pleased.
Yesterday Dennis went to work on the afternoon shift and returned home at the usual 1:00 AM. When he entered their house he found Ruth Ann laying dead at the base of the stairs.
She was only 48 years old.
The medical examiner thinks she collapsed on the 2nd or 3rd step shortly after he left for work and laid there for about 12 hours until Dennis found her.
Dennis, my friend of these many years, fought in Viet Nam and drove covert re-supply missions into Cambodia for the US Special Forces. He is a very tough man as well as being the best and most loyal friend a man could ever have.
If someone needed help, there was Dennis.
If you needed someone to fight for you, he was the first one to arrive and usually the last one standing.
You have no idea how painful it was to hear this brave man on the phone early this morning, crying like a baby over the loss of the love of his life.
PLEASE: if you're a smoker STOP, if not for your own sake then for that of your family and friends.
Better yet, don't even start.
Dr. Mordrid
When he married Ruth Ann 28 years ago she naturally became the sister I never had (my blood brother and sister both died at birth years before I was born). As such our families have always been close and she had baby sat most my children at one time or another.
Ruth Ann had just one major failing: she was a smoker; 1-2 packs a day since she was in her early 20's. She was also petite; meaning she had a small frame and therefore smaller blood vessels and lungs than women of normal stature.
About 10 years ago we noticed Ruth Ann was breathing hard and her activity had decreased drastically. As a result she also put on more extra weight than someone of her small stature could handle.
Try as we might we could not get her to quit. As a result she got progressively worse until one day 5 years ago I took my spirometer to their home to check her pulmonary capacity. Putting it simply; her function was poor.
In the years since she had come down with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and major circulatory problems, especially in her legs. Eventually fluid started to collect in her tissues, blowing her up like a baloon.
Just in the last year Ruth Ann had been hospitalized several times for CHF (congestive heart failure) and each time they had used drugs to extract over 60 lbs of water from her system. On her last admission she lost 80 pounds of water.
Each time the doctors told her to stop smoking but to no avail. She'd go down to 1/2 pack a day for 2-3 weeks then move back to full bore smoking again.
She was discharged about 10 days ago from her latest admission and had come out with a further diagnosis of sleep apnea (her breathing stopped during sleep). She was given a machine to use at night to improve the situation.
A few days ago I talked to her on the phone and tried once again to convince her that she had to quit if not for her sake then for that of Dennis and the rest of her extended family. She did the usual "yeah, yeah" and once again did as she pleased.
Yesterday Dennis went to work on the afternoon shift and returned home at the usual 1:00 AM. When he entered their house he found Ruth Ann laying dead at the base of the stairs.
She was only 48 years old.
The medical examiner thinks she collapsed on the 2nd or 3rd step shortly after he left for work and laid there for about 12 hours until Dennis found her.
Dennis, my friend of these many years, fought in Viet Nam and drove covert re-supply missions into Cambodia for the US Special Forces. He is a very tough man as well as being the best and most loyal friend a man could ever have.
If someone needed help, there was Dennis.
If you needed someone to fight for you, he was the first one to arrive and usually the last one standing.
You have no idea how painful it was to hear this brave man on the phone early this morning, crying like a baby over the loss of the love of his life.
PLEASE: if you're a smoker STOP, if not for your own sake then for that of your family and friends.
Better yet, don't even start.
Dr. Mordrid
Fractal Design Arc Mini R2, 3800X, Asus B450M-PRO mATX, 2x8GB B-die@3800C16, AMD Vega64, Seasonic 850W Gold, Black Ice Nemesis/Laing DDC/EKWB 240 Loop (VRM>CPU>GPU), Noctua Fans.
Comment