Hello my forum friends….
My father, Oliver Edmund Martin, Jr. “Ace”, passed away yesterday… The pneumonia was just too much on his heart & his lungs. His oncologist said that the Trisenox was working & the leukemia had stablized, though I feel it definitely had some affect on his being able to heal… The operation was a risk, but he was a fighter. He wanted to do everything he could to live. He was a very very compassionate & gentle soul…So strong & brave…A wonderful musician, father & best friend…. Though my heart is aching horribly, I am given a sense of peace knowing that he is free and in a beautiful place.
Two things I learned from this that I find important enough to share are:
*To have a living will. Be very explicit what YOUR wishes are. My father made his very clear, which made the decisions we were forced to make that much easier.
*My dad was coded. His heart went haywire and they had to use the paddles/crash cart to get it back into a regular rhythm. His nurse later on was quite afraid about him going into a code situation again. We found that when a patient’s platelet count runs very low they run the risk of a “bleed out” if paddled. This wasn’t the case w/ my dad, but they only used them once… maybe it would have been different had they needed to use them more. At that point, it was decided that that my dad would only be a chemical code; they would use a medicine injection to revive his heart.
Everyone, this forum of wonderful, caring people has been such a life saver for me. Since joining, there hasn’t been a day that I haven’t thought & prayed about you and felt comfort knowing that you were doing the same for me…. Words don’t sufficiently express my sincere appreciation and admiration for you all. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart for all the kindness, encouragement, prayers, information & support you have given me over the months. I will continue to be an active part of this forum, hopefully giving you at least a portion of what you all have given me these past months.
W/love & my very best wishes… and a HUGE hug,
Kathryn
P.S. I met Nicole yesterday. What a sweet sweet person… Her father needs your prayers… as does Nicole & her family. Please keep them in your thoughts.
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