I Helped a Neighbor Earlier Tonight

[Hostile]

I have a neighbor who is a big lady. I'd guess about 320 pounds. Her daughter came running to my place and said they needed help with her Mom.

She had suffered some kind of seizure (she's diabetic) and was upper torso across the bathtub and it was basically choking her.

Imagine 320 pounds of dead weight pressing a throat across the bathtub.

I got her other daughter to pull her head away while I called 911. Why they didn't do that before they came for me I will never know. What if I had not been home?

911 operator tells me I have to get this woman on her back. 320 pounds of dead weight, partially on or in a bathtub and I have to get her to the floor and then turn her 180 degrees in about a 3 foot wide space.

When I was in my 20's or 30's no sweat. I bench over 300 but dead weight is different.

So I lift her upper torso off the tub and tell her daughters to pull her by her legs off the tub. They couldn't budge her. I thought I was going to break this woman's back wrenching her off the tub.

Then she is face down and making gurgling noises. I had to turn her up against the wall. Her weight was basically crushing her right arm behind her back. So I had to stand up and pulling on her left arm, lift her upper body off the right arm so her daughter could pull it out.

Then I had to hold her airway open. I was sweating all over this poor woman. It was literally dripping off of me.

The Fire Department finally arrived and took over. My back between my shoulder blades feels like it used to when we had to stack hay bales on the ranch.

I hope she makes it. They had a tube in and she was on oxygen when they left her but she ever did respond to stimulus of any kind.

Her name is Toni if anyone wants to say a prayer for her or her kids. They are 19 and 13.

 

[Signals]

I'll pray for them, Hos.

 

[Shuttemdown41]

Said a prayer for her and her kids, hope she pulls through.

 

[Anjinsan]

I have a neighbor who is a big lady. I'd guess about 320 pounds. Her daughter came running to my place and said they needed help with her Mom.

She had suffered some kind of seizure (she's diabetic) and was upper torso across the bathtub and it was basically choking her.

Imagine 320 pounds of dead weight pressing a throat across the bathtub.

I got her other daughter to pull her head away while I called 911. Why they didn't do that before they came for me I will never know. What if I had not been home?

911 operator tells me I have to get this woman on her back. 320 pounds of dead weight, partially on or in a bathtub and I have to get her to the floor and then turn her 180 degrees in about a 3 foot wide space.

When I was in my 20's or 30's no sweat. I bench over 300 but dead weight is different.

So I lift her upper torso off the tub and tell her daughters to pull her by her legs off the tub. They couldn't budge her. I thought I was going to break this woman's back wrenching her off the tub.

Then she is face down and making gurgling noises. I had to turn her up against the wall. Her weight was basically crushing her right arm behind her back. So I had to stand up and pulling on her left arm, lift her upper body off the right arm so her daughter could pull it out.

Then I had to hold her airway open. I was sweating all over this poor woman. It was literally dripping off of me.

The Fire Department finally arrived and took over. My back between my shoulder blades feels like it used to when we had to stack hay bales on the ranch.

I hope she makes it. They had a tube in and she was on oxygen when they left her but she ever did respond to stimulus of any kind.

Her name is Toni if anyone wants to say a prayer for her of her kids. They are 19 and 13.

Said a prayer. Let us know if you hear anything.

 

[Hostile]

Thank you guys. Nothing so far.

 

[silverbear]

Her name is Toni if anyone wants to say a prayer for her or her kids. They are 19 and 13.

Will do, Hos... hope she recovers...

I know that feeling in the middle of your back, I've stacked a few hay bales in my time too... I hope it's nothing long-term for you...

 

[Bigdog]

My prayers go out to her and her daughters. Hope she pulls through.

 

[Teren_Kanan]

Good job sir. Hopefully all is well.

 

[Eskimo]

Sad to hear about this - will be very tough for those kids and it sounds like another life has been claimed.

I lost a patient in a code blue this week, too. We tried for 35 minutes but no luck in regaining a heart beat. It is quite a helpless feeling to go through it and realize nothing is working no matter how hard you try.

I don't mean to hijack this thread but one thing that bothers me a bit in this day is the risk of injury imposed on others by the morbidly obese. We have had to move towards mechanical lift transfers on many overweight patients in rehabilitation as the risk of injury to health care workers is too high. This will ultimately slow down their rehab and return to functional independence as they get less practice and exercise. However, it is just not safe to move some of these people unless you are highly trained and very strong or have a helper (or two).

I do hope you are feeling better soon, Hos. That was quite a strain on your body.

 

[Hostile]

I talked to the older daughter a few minutes ago. Toni is alert. The seizure was brought on by a drastic drop in her blood sugar that they can't explain right now. They had just come back from going out to lunch. Sounds like she will be okay. Her ribs are very sore from the crash into the bathtub and probably from me jerking her off of it trying to get her flat on the floor.

Thanks all.

 

[Hostile]

Sad to hear about this - will be very tough for those kids and it sounds like another life has been claimed.

I lost a patient in a code blue this week, too. We tried for 35 minutes but no luck in regaining a heart beat. It is quite a helpless feeling to go through it and realize nothing is working no matter how hard you try.

I don't mean to hijack this thread but one thing that bothers me a bit in this day is the risk of injury imposed on others by the morbidly obese. We have had to move towards mechanical lift transfers on many overweight patients in rehabilitation as the risk of injury to health care workers is too high. This will ultimately slow down their rehab and return to functional independence as they get less practice and exercise. However, it is just not safe to move some of these people unless you are highly trained and very strong or have a helper (or two).

I do hope you are feeling better soon, Hos. That was quite a strain on your body.

I iced down my back last night and took some ibuprofen. I do feel better.

It seems like Toni has escaped this. It sure motivated me to drop some more weight. I hope it will her too. I am down to 285 from 315, but I need to get under 250. I played at 225. That would be ideal again. I can do it. I need to do it.

 

[Kilyin]

Way to be a hero man. I bet there isn't much that makes you feel better than that, knowing you directly saved someone's life.

 

[Signals]

Thanks for the update, Hos. Glad all appears to be well.

 

[Eskimo]

I iced down my back last night and took some ibuprofen. I do feel better.

It seems like Toni has escaped this. It sure motivated me to drop some more weight. I hope it will her too. I am down to 285 from 315, but I need to get under 250. I played at 225. That would be ideal again. I can do it. I need to do it.

Well congrats then on saving a life - did better than me. :

Glad to hear you are feeling better.

Not sure if this is what happened but hypoglycemia can provoke seizures and coma in diabetics. The best solution is intravenous glucose but a better solution for the in-home solution is they make a paste that can be smeared in the inside of an unconscious diabetics mouth to get sugar in their bloodstream.

Good to hear you are making some major gains on the weightloss front as it does make a big difference. Much of the benefit healthwise comes from the first 10% bodyweight dropped.

The trouble that people run into is that the body will fight with you to bring you back to your own weight. It tends to stabilize if you can maintain the lower weight for a year.

 

[arglebargle]

You are the good neighbor, Hos!

Hey, there's a house for sale down the block, and you'd be lots closer to Cowboys games... Just sayin'...

 

[Hostile]

You are the good neighbor, Hos!

Hey, there's a house for sale down the block, and you'd be lots closer to Cowboys games... Just sayin'...

Help me find a job and I will buy it. We'll BBQ a lot. DallasCowpoke likes me sometimes and he can cook.

 

[CanadianCowboysFan]

I hope she realizes she needs to lose at least 150 to be healthy.

It is atrocious to put others at risk just because you can't stop eating. I feel badluy for her children.

 

[SkinsandTerps]

It feels good to be able to help others when you can. The slight inconvenience at times is outweighed drastically, by the help and happiness provided.

Nice job, Hos.

I helped a poor young lady last week when I looked in my rearview and saw her pushing an F-150 to the side of the road. I also saw a guy sitting in his truck right behind her just watching. I wanted to yank him out of his truck and off of his phone. I digress.

I pull over and get out and have my lady take the driver's seat. She had apparently run out of gas and was going to meet a friend that was going to give her some gas money. I talk to her for a minute or two and tell her not to stress that I would help her. She was so worried that I wouldn't return. I went to the gas station put a few bucks in the gas can. The poor girl was in tears when I got out of the car and put gas in her truck. Offering me her last 2 bucks. I declined the offer, smiled and left feeling like I had done something that I would want someone to do for me or my lady in that situation.

It's gratifying. Thankfully, I didn't have someone's life in my hands like you did. But the way, I am I probably would have still responded and helped as much as I could (I have some medical knowledge, and such).

Hope your neighbor is okay Hos. Again nice job.