An update on Hal Turner

I thought I would bring an update on the situation of Hal Turner, who has had a second major heart attack.

Listening to his radio show from today he has shown himself too be a better person than I thought he was 

I Chose to Sign Out of Hospital

 
 

Hal Turner,

25 October, 2020

This afternoon I chose to sign out of the hospital.  They told me it was a very dangerous decision, and urged me to remain for observation until tomorrow morning.  I left anyway.

I did, in fact, suffer ANOTHER myocardial Infarction heart attack. A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when a portion of the heart is deprived of oxygen due to blockage of a coronary artery. Coronary arteries supply the heart muscle (myocardium) with oxygenated blood. Without oxygen, muscle cells served by the blocked artery begin to die (infarct).

In order to confirm a heart attack, Doctors test blood for the presence of something called Troponin.  Troponins are a group of proteins found in skeletal and heart (cardiac) muscle fibers that regulate muscular contraction. Troponin tests measure the level of cardiac-specific troponin in the blood to help detect heart injury. Normally, a person will have a zero reading.  Yesterday, my Troponins levels went from 2.99 to 8 to 11 to 17 then to 23, confirming the death of cardiac cells.

Because the reading kept increasing hours apart from each prior test, the damage to my heart was ongoing. So I ask the Doc, what has to be done.  He says, "Cardiac Catheterization" and I replied that I'd undergone one 17 months ago, and got thru it fine, and said "let's do it."  To which he replied, "well, were going wait until Monday."

He must have seen the INSTANT pissed-off look on my face because he asked "What?"  I replied, you know Doc, you're starting to sound like a fucking used car salesman.  Bait me with one thing, then switch to another."  He asked "What do you mean?" I replied "You just told me I'm in real trouble and the only way to find out what's wrong is go in, right?"  He answered "Yes." Then you tell me it's so bad that . . .  what . . .  I can wait until Monday?"  "What kind of fucking logic is that?  I'm not stupid Doc.  Stop treating me as if I'm an idiot."  

He seemed quite taken aback that I talked to him that way.  He replied, OK, I'll call the staff in and we'll do it today.

They performed a cardiac catheterization, where they inserted a small camera into an artery at my right groin.  Once they got the camera to my heart, they told me the trouble was instantly clear:  One of my cardiac by-passes, which were installed just 17 months ago, (the one handling the left circumflex coronary artery) had completely clogged with blood clots and plaque.  

They saw that the reason surgeons had bypassed the left circumflex artery originally was because it had a serious blockage at the mouth of that artery.   So what they did -- and this was EXTREMELY DANGEROUS -- was insert a stent over that blockage to re-open my original (natural  . . . the one I was born with) left circumflex artery.

The reason this is so dangerous is because by placing the stent on top of the blockage which was so near the mouth of that artery, it was possible a chunk would break loose, and hurl itself into my heart, or lung, or brain, killing me.

Immediately after the stent was installed, I went into Ventricular tachycardia.  Something went wrong. 

Ventricular tachycardia (VT) is a fast, abnormal heart rate. It starts in your heart's lower chambers, called the ventricles. VT is defined as 3 or more heartbeats in a row, at a rate of more than 100 beats a minute. If VT lasts for more than a few seconds at a time, it can become life-threatening.

I was able to draw breath in, but not in sufficient quantity to survive.  I felt and KNEW I was dying right there in front of them.  Let me tell you, THAT is a feeling any person will know, immediately,  I've never experienced almost dying before . . . but I knew exactly what was happening right then and there.

Docs administered clot busters and other meds.  The breathing got easier.  In a few minutes, I felt washed out and totally tired, but I wasn't dying.  Off to recovery I went.

Overnight was uneventful except for the friggin machines beeping every five seconds, that kept me awake most of the night.

Today, they drew more blood and the test results were all good.

BP 123/77  Pulse 84  Blood Oxygen Saturation 97%

 

I shared a hospital room with some guy who was very old and frail.,  He could not get up to go to the bathroom.  So every time he had to crap, he used a bed pan.  The whole room stunk.

The first time, I got up and walked out into the hallway.

The second time I was just too tired.

The third time, I'd had it.  I told the nurses to make up the "Leave against medical advice" and I left.

If I'm going to die, it won't be while I'm smelling some other guys shit.  I'll die at home with my family around me.

Now, I don't feel as though I'm dying.   Now that I I actually KNOW what dying feels like . . . . and there's no doubt about it when it's happening . . . Then I'll head out to a local hospital.

Before I left, I asked the doctor "How is it that I could have accumulated all this plaque and blood clots in the replacement artery in only 17 months?  What am I doing that would cause that?"  His answer: Stop eating fast food.

He didn't mention anything else.  Didn't talk about cholesterol, triglycerides, weight ...... just "stop eating fast food."

I thought you'd find that interesting.

I'm gonna rest now.  I'm really tired.

Listen to his radio show today HERE

I got a good night's sleep last night.  I woke up!  Thank You Almighty God!

It may sound corny, but there was a real question in my mind as to whether or not I was going to wake up today.  I actually wondered if the reason I was home early (against medical advice) was a small gift of time from God for me to say Good-bye to my wife, son, and mom.  Believe it or not, I was actually afraid to go to sleep last night for fear I wan't going to wake up.

This new incident with my heart was a VERY big deal.  A SECOND heart attack just 17 months after the first heart attack and quadruple cardiac artery bypass surgery?  It's almost unheard of.  But it happened to me.

Blood clots filled one of the bypasses (left circumflex) and stopped the blood flow to a big part of my heart.

I knew something was wrong.  I had the sensation of a leak a few weeks ago.  Everyone told me I was nuts.  They said if I had a leak, I'd have been dead already.  It was all in my head, they said.

Yea.  right.  

When Docs did the second cardiac catheterization and found the bypass was blocked, they inserted a stent into my original circumflex artery to re-open it 100%.  But it was super dangerous to do that because the type of blockage in that original artery was such that a stent could cause part of the blockage to break off and travel into my heart, lung, or brain and kill me.

In fact, it was just moments after the stent was placed that my heart went into Ventricular tachycardia.  Something had gone VERY wrong.

It was a horrifying feeling to breath in, but feel as though I was not getting enough air.   So I breathed faster, still not enough.  I broke out in a profuse sweat, tried to breathe deeper but couldn't.

The surgical team called for the "Fast Response Team" . . I was getting worse, very fast.

The PA system in the hospital "Fast Response Team to Cath Lab ...whatever number"   OMG, that's for me.

They took a snap x-ray of my chest - no film, just a digital x-ray which popped right up on the computer screen.  No fluid collecting my lungs.  No immediately visible clot.  So WHY was I going downhill in front of their eyes?

Doctors of every age, every race, both sexes, firing off thoughts to each other in rapid succession.  On-the-spot consultations, decades of friggin experience at one of the best hospitals in the New York City/ northern New Jersey region.  An absolutely terrific hospital, all coming to bear on . . . . me.

They gave me nitroglycerin to at least relax my blood vessels so if it was a flow problem, that would ease it and give them time.  They shot me full of blood thinners for the same reason.

Whatever they did, things started to get better.  My breathing eased.  My color returned.  My sweating stopped.

WOW.  That was effin scary.   I mean actually scary.

I had been dying right then and there.  I knew it.  Doctors knew it.  Nurses knew it.

I'm 58 years old this isn't supposed to happen to guys my age.  Well, it did.

So I go to sleep as best as possible given the beeps, blips, and buzzes of the equipment in the room

The next day, still OK, but the guy in the bed next to me, an old timer, couldn't use the toilet and every time he had to crap, he used a bed pan.  The stink.  Uhhhhhhhh.

So yesterday afternoon, after his third bout of crap that day, I left the hospital A.M.A.

I got home and wondered if I made the big mistake everyone told me I was making?

I prayed earnestly last night.  I mean, I REALLY prayed.  On my knees.

I repented  the sins I've committed.  

I didn't pray for life, or for health.  I REPENTED.  I earnestly apologized to God for the sins I committed and asked Him to forgive me.

I'm crying right now just writing this because I was so earnest; truly sorry for the sins I've committed.

And I am.

I went to sleep around 8:30 last night.  Woke up around 11.  Went right back to sleep, woke up around 2:25.  Went right back and woke up around 4:40.  Went right back and now, around 8:15,. I'm up.

Alive.  

Wow.

This was a big, BIG deal.   Very serious.  

I went from being a reasonably productive, reasonably healthy 58 year old, to a literally dying weakling within seconds.

Life is truly a gift.  I took it for granted for a long time.  No more.

Thank you Almighty God YHVH for this chance at life again.

Amen