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Multigenre Project Shelley Burton ELED 3226

Shelley burtonmultigenre

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Page 1: Shelley burtonmultigenre

Multigenre Project

Shelley BurtonELED 3226

Page 2: Shelley burtonmultigenre

18 September 2012 

Nearly four years ago, in October of 2008, my dad suffered from a massive heart attack. He was only 45 and had no prior health issues, so this was completely unexpected. He spent a total of twelve days in the hospital; six of them in a coma. It all began when my dad started having chest pains in the middle of the night. My mom was worried, so she drove him to the hospital.

 When they got to the emergency room, the doctors wanted to see my dad

immediately. After running several tests, they decided to do a heart catherization. This revealed major blockage in two arteries and required stints to be put in. While the cardiologist was putting the stints in, a blood clot broke loose and went directly to his heart, causing sudden cardiac arrest. He had no vitals for twenty minutes before being resuscitated. For my dad’s safety, the doctor had to induce a coma.

 After being stabilized, he was transported by ambulance to the downtown hospital.

While on the ride over, my dad went into sudden cardiac arrest again. This was the second of three times that this would happen. As my mom watched from the front seat, they desperately tried to keep my dad alive.

 This marked the beginning of my dad’s two week stay in the hospital. This whole

experience went by in such a blur and I have only recently begun to process it and reflect on it. Over the next couple of months, I would like to finally come to terms with an event that completely changed my life.

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I remember pacing the halls back and forth so much that my surroundings became a blur. There is only so much you can do to occupy your mind in a place where so many people spend the last days of their lives. Its unnerving, really, being in the Critical Care Unit at the downtown hospital. There is so much chaos and confusion. Its so loud and yet so eerily quiet.

As soon as the ambulance arrived at the hospital, my dad was immediately admitted to CCU and we were told that he was in critical condition. As an eighteen year old girl, my dad was the center of my universe. I could not handle seeing him resting peacefully in a hospital bed hooked up to at least a dozen machines. All I kept thinking about was how I wasn’t ready to let go. Eighteen year old girls shouldn’t have to think about losing their daddies like this.

I remember hating all of his doctors and nurses; I felt like they weren’t working hard enough, weren’t moving fast enough. I can look back now with clarity and know that is not the case. In fact, it’s just the opposite. It’s because of the amazing hospital staff that he is still alive. Its amazing how dealing with the stress of possibly losing someone you love can make you an entirely different person. I am pretty sure I cried relentlessly for two weeks. I had never in my life felt so miserable and helpless. Even though I was always surrounded by a lot of familiar faces, I had never felt so completely alone.

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When I look back now, its hard to place all of the events and conversations in any kind of sequential order. I struggle to remember everything that happened during the two weeks my dad would end up spending in the hospital. The six days my dad spent in a coma were very discouraging. The doctors had to make several attempts before finally bringing him out of it. The neurologist had pretty much assured us that if and when my dad came out of the coma, he would have severe brain damage. I was so torn; I wanted my dad to wake up but I selfishly wanted him to be exactly the way he was before. I wanted to have my dad back, the way he had always been.

On day seven of his two week hospital stay, after several days of trying to wake him up, my dad finally came out of the coma. I was so elated just to see his eyes open. It made me feel like everything would be okay, even though there was still so much uncertainty. When my dad finally spoke, I completely fell apart. I had missed him so much. Now, almost four years later, my daddy is the same exact way he always was. I don’t understand why this had to happen to him or why my family had to go through this. I guess I’m not supposed to understand it. I appreciate my dad so much more now and I cherish the time I get to spend with him.

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Sudden Cardiac ArrestSudden cardiac arrest occurs when the heart abruptly stops beating without any warning. Most people

who experience SCA die within minutes. My dad went into sudden cardiac arrest three times within two hours.

Since my dad spent six days in a coma, he was at a very high risk for severe brain damage. To reduce and possibly prevent brain damage, the doctors employed a method referred to as “Code Cool.” According to an article in the Charlotte Observer printed two months after my dad was in the hospital, this method involves cooling the body by pumping cold salt water into the veins. Ultimately, it induces hypothermia.

According to the article, “of 58 patients treated at CMC in the past year, about half survived.” Even though “Code Cool” has been proven to bring many patients back from what was once considered to be certain death, it is still extremely controversial. Since this method requires patients to literally “freeze,” it is a very high risk procedure.

My dad is one of the 58 patients who was successfully treated with this procedure. After several attempts to wake him over the course of several days, my dad came out of the coma on the sixth day. The doctors had no way of knowing if the “Code Cool” procedure would be a success, but we were all very hopeful.

Remarkably, my dad did not suffer any brain damage. He is as healthy today as he ever was. My dad’s cardiologist even told us that in his thirty years of practice, he had never seen anyone so sick become so well.

Garloch, Karen. “‘Code Cool’ saving cardiac patients.” Charlotte Observer 27 12 2008, 9A. Print.

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Dear Dad,

Most people never have the opportunity to really envision what their lives would be like without someone they love, but I did. For almost two weeks, I was able to experience what my life would be like without you. I was truly trying to prepare myself to let go, to say goodbye.

I was eighteen years old when you had your heart attack. An adult by society’s standards, but not by my own. I was still a child who could not handle the thought of losing her father. God has never given me a bigger challenge than this.

God still had work to do through you. He needed you to guide and inspire young people with your story. He led you to the high school ministry at our church, to use your story to encourage His people. Isn’t it amazing how God makes it clear He has a purpose for everyone, to use them in ways they never thought possible?

I am a stronger person because of this. I now understand that everyone has a story to tell, and you never know just how badly someone needs to hear it. We all have a much bigger purpose than what this world tells us. Yes, God challenged me. But He gave me parents who prepared me to meet all challenges through trusting in Him.

 I love you, I love you, I love you.

 Shelley

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Father’s Day 2011

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Every doctor my dad encountered over the course of his two weeks in the hospital was unable to explain how he was still alive. My dad left that hospital was a new passion, an urgency to discover his purpose. Most people will never have to go through what my dad experienced. Unfortunately, most people are never truly motivated to find their purpose and pursue it.

My dad’s experience reminded me that nobody is guaranteed another second on this earth. It’s really hard to appreciate that truth unless your life has almost been taken from you. It is so easy to get caught up in our everyday routines and forget that life is about so much more than that.

I fervently believe that everyone has a purpose. My dad’s purpose is working with young people; more specifically, the high school ministry at our church. My purpose is loving animals through being a vegetarian and a passionate voice for their rights.

Not everyone receives a second chance, or even a warning before they die. Embrace the life you are given and live it in a way motivates and inspires others.

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Author’s SlideMy name is Shelley Burton and I am a Junior at UNC-Charlotte. This Multigenre Project is for my dad. It has helped me to reflect, process, and heal.