Thirty Seconds is a Lifetime

Thirty seconds. It doesn’t seem like much. But when your heart, which usually beats one to one-and-a-half time a second, decides to take a break and beat once every thirty seconds a lot of things can happen. For me, the cascade of events over a two-day period prompted the insertion of a pacemaker to be sure my heart knows when it is supposed to beat. I have almost no recollection of the events of the two days described below. I am relying on what I was told by family, nursing staff, cardiologists, and neurologists. After thirty years of patient care, being a patient gives a whole new perspective. And I’m not convinced it’s a good one.

It all started near the end of the third quarter of the Super Bowl. We were in Maryland visiting our grandson and his parents and had an early flight Monday morning. I really didn’t care about the game, so I went to bed at the end of the third quarter. Gena came to bed a little later and things were pretty much as normal until about 2:30 am. Evidently, I awakened my light-sleeping wife with rhythmic jerking of my arms and legs. She tried to wake me up but I did not respond. She thought I was having a seizure. She jumped up, had my daughter call 911, awakened her parents and dragged me off the bed onto the floor. I was not breathing (or barely breathing), but had a pulse that was rapid and regular. EMS arrived, they put in an IV, started oxygen, and took me to Calvert Health Medical Center in Prince Frederick, Maryland.

In the emergency department, they thought I had some type of seizure. Blood work was normal and so was a CT scan of my head. They decided to put me upstairs on a monitored floor and have a neurologist see me later in the day. I had a video neurology consult pretty soon after that and an MRI of the brain and EEG were ordered. The MRI was normal, but during the EEG, my heart stopped for thirty seconds, TWICE! All of a sudden, they were not worried about seizures and more worried about my heart. While the tech was administering the EEG, I felt a little sweaty, nauseated, and put my head back to rest. The next thing I knew, they had called a “Stat Team,” the equivalent of what we used to call “Code Blue.” I awakened to a room full of emergency personnel and external pacemaker paddles on my chest. My heart restarted on its own, so nothing else was done except a transfer was arranged to Washington Hospital in downtown DC where I could be further evaluated.

After the transfer process (by ambulance) I was tucked in to my room. I had a couple of cardiologists stop by to discuss what had happened and what they thought. They decided that with the witnessed cardiac arrest a pacemaker would have to be placed and I was put on the schedule for later in the day. During the interim, I had several episodes of twenty-second stoppages, some with me slumping over in bed. Another “Stat Team” was called and they took me straight to the electrophysiology lab for pacemaker insertion. After that, I went back to my room with discharge later in the day.

People who have “near-death” experiences frequently speak of lights, or memories flashing before their eyes. I had none of that. I remember feeling sweaty and nauseated. Then I remember coming to. No “Go towards the light” moment. Hopefully, this will fix the problem.

I am thankful for family and friends and all of the prayers. I am thankful for the first responders, the medical personnel at the community hospital, and also the expertise and specialty knowledge of the tertiary care center. Having little remembrance of the events, I am thankful for family support and understanding. SO, thirty seconds can be a very long time.

24 thoughts on “Thirty Seconds is a Lifetime”

Sherry LeClair March 2, 2021 at 9:38 am

Oh good grief, Reggie!!! I had not been on linkedin for quite a while and just happened on your post. Thankfully you will continue to do well. Thank goodness for Gena’s quick thinking and for her wonderful medical background. Can you send me your email – Will send you a note and we can catch up. Ours is leclairs1@tampabay.rr.com. Send prayers for you and your family!!

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24 thoughts on “Thirty Seconds is a Lifetime”

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