Jerry's Heart Attack

      September 8, 2017 

Dear Friends,

First of all you should know that Jerry is doing well. Early Wednesday morning Sept. 6th Jerry had a stent put in his heart to remove 100% blockage of his left interior descending aorta. He is at Scripps Memorial Cardiology unit and chomping at the bit to come home. He feels great and is up and walking. In some ways he is better than I’ve seen him in a year.

Here are the details. . .

As many of you know I was scheduled to play a couple of concerts at Rancho la Puerta from September 2 - 9. Rancho La Puerta is in Tecate, Mexico which is about 60 miles from San Diego. We both loved the beauty, the people, the food, and the whole experience. (More on that another time).

For a few weeks Jerry has noticed a bit of pressure under his sternum. Since it went away in a short amount of time we attributed it to indigestion.

On Tuesday September 5, however, while we were at Rancho La Puerta his discomfort started @3PM and lasted into the evening (I had to rehearse for my concert and go to a special dinner and didn’t get back to the room @8). He asked for some Pepto Bismol and it made no difference.

When I asked Jerry whether he wanted me to call the doctor at the Ranch he said yes. Within five minutes the Ranch La Puerta doctor called us back and Jerry told him over the phone about his symptoms (including the pain radiating up his RIGHT arm and into his ear.  I knew nothing about that. )

Within another five minutes the Ranch doctor came to our room. He strode over to Jerry who was in bed, listened to his heart and told us to pack up a few things as we were going to take the Ranch van to the border where we would be met by an ambulance and taken to Grossmont Hospital. Jerry and I looked at each other in shock. The doctor already had arranged to have a wheelchair outside our room and a van outside to drive us to the border.

He went with us to the border where we got in an ambulance to Grossmont Hospital.

At the emergency room Jerry got an EKG and a blood test which showed an enzyme troponin which meant his heart was damaged.  Gulp!

I’m embarrassed to say that it didn't dawn on me at that moment that he was actually having a heart attack. We were told that a cardiologist would see us in the morning and that they would transfer him to a room in the meantime. Since this was around 1:30AM I figured he was safe, I would catch some sleep and come back in a few hours. I took an Uber home.

Around 4 in the morning I was awakened by our toilet flushing in the bathroom. What the. . . ?

Against medical advice Jerry took himself out of Grossmont Hospital emergency room and took an Uber home! His reason was that the hospital was full  (a bed would become available only if somebody died or was transferred out). He didn't want to spend one more minute the ER. I didn’t mention that this night was a full moon.

When he got home he promptly collapsed into bed and fell asleep. Once I got over my shock I realized that we were in a crisis situation. I woke him up, swore at him a little, and we drove to Scripps Memorial La Jolla Emergency Room @ 5 AM.

The place was quiet, we got immediate attention, and soon Dr. Harrington the cardiologist showed up. He was extremely direct and efficient: He told us in no uncertain terms that Jerry was in the midst of a heart attack. We had no time to waste. He had to go through all the DNR directives, explain the angiogram, angioplasty, risks, etc.  Of course Jerry the lawyer read every last word of the consent form before signing it. I made him promise in front of witnesses that he WOULD take meds as necessary. (Many of you who know Jerry’s medicine aversiom will applaud him for this.)

He had the angiogram performed while sedated on a biig dose of valium. In an hour the nurse told me they found 100% blockage in the front aortal artery and were going to insert a stent. In another few hours I was with him in the recovery room. He was pretty woozy.

Since the day of the procedure (which was Wednesday morning) he has gotten better and better. His strong voice has come back (I haven’t heard that voice in about a year) his color is good and he is raring to come home and resume his activities. Dr, Harrington, however, is still tweaking his meds, taking blood tests, and impressing upon us that the odds of another heart event are entirely within the realm of possibility. Jerry is giving him a hard time but respects him for his expertise and communication skills. Against Jerry's nature of butting up against authority figures he is being compliant - lets pray that he continues to follow the “program” because his life depends on it. I understand that in no uncertain terms. 

That’s the story. In reflecting back over the events of the last few days I am grateful for the following:

1) We were at Rancho La Puerta when this happened and a doctor was available and on call. If he had felt the same symptoms at home we might have rationalized our way out of it until the next morning.

2) The doctor on call at Rancho La Puerta was none other than Dr. Rob Masters a cardiologist from Stanford! He acted decisively. We owe Jerry’s life to him.

3) The Ranch was efficient and prepared for the emergency, making the necessary calls to the ambulance, taking us to the border and getting us through expeditiously. I can’t speak highly enough of their staff.

4) Jerry had the right instincts in checking himself out of Grossmont Hospital against medical advice. There was a night and day difference in the way everything was handled at Scripps.  Much as I was mad at him for doing so at the time, he did the right thing.

5) By the luck of the draw we got Dr. Harrington. He is a stickler (even the nurses are a little afraid of him) but he has Jerry’s life in his hands and he won’t be bullied into letting Jerry get out of there until Jerry’s meds and physical strength check out. He also is a no-nonsense clear communicator with a wealth of analogies to help us understand some of the complexities of our situation.

6) Did a mention it was a full moon?

Jerry’s email is gblawyer11@gmail.com and his cell is 619-992-6733. Call him, send him a text, email him. Harass the poor guy with your love and concern. He is at Scripps Memorial La Jolla, room 7128 in the Conrad Prebys Cardio Wing.

All the best,

Mary

            September 11, 2017

Dear Friends,

In my last email (“Rancho La Puerta Saved Jerry’s Life!”) Jerry had a stent inserted in his blocked coronary artery. If you missed that one, let me know and I will send it to you.

The procedure was Wednesday morning and by Saturday he was driving the nurses and staff crazy. He walked the halls untethered to any equipment.

And he got curious about this little box in his room. He started pressing things and accidentally set off a Code Blue. (That alert was sent throughout the hospital as it signifies someone is about to die.) Luckily they caught it right away.

He was checked out of the hospital on Saturday afternoon much to their relief. Now I get him. Uh oh!

Needless to say he is feeling better. We have so much to be grateful for.

Keep harassing him with your love and concern. He might not answer you right away but he enjoys hearing from you.

His phone 619-992-6733 and email is  gblawyer11@gmail.com

All the best,

Mary