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Farewell to Ruth Ann H.

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  • Farewell to Ruth Ann H.

    Dennis H. has been my best friend since we were 10 years old, which comes out to about 45 years. I'm an only child and as a result we ended up as close as brothers.

    When he married Ruth Ann 28 years ago she naturally became the sister I never had (my blood brother and sister both died at birth years before I was born). As such our families have always been close and she had baby sat most my children at one time or another.

    Ruth Ann had just one major failing: she was a smoker; 1-2 packs a day since she was in her early 20's. She was also petite; meaning she had a small frame and therefore smaller blood vessels and lungs than women of normal stature.

    About 10 years ago we noticed Ruth Ann was breathing hard and her activity had decreased drastically. As a result she also put on more extra weight than someone of her small stature could handle.

    Try as we might we could not get her to quit. As a result she got progressively worse until one day 5 years ago I took my spirometer to their home to check her pulmonary capacity. Putting it simply; her function was poor.

    In the years since she had come down with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and major circulatory problems, especially in her legs. Eventually fluid started to collect in her tissues, blowing her up like a baloon.

    Just in the last year Ruth Ann had been hospitalized several times for CHF (congestive heart failure) and each time they had used drugs to extract over 60 lbs of water from her system. On her last admission she lost 80 pounds of water.

    Each time the doctors told her to stop smoking but to no avail. She'd go down to 1/2 pack a day for 2-3 weeks then move back to full bore smoking again.

    She was discharged about 10 days ago from her latest admission and had come out with a further diagnosis of sleep apnea (her breathing stopped during sleep). She was given a machine to use at night to improve the situation.

    A few days ago I talked to her on the phone and tried once again to convince her that she had to quit if not for her sake then for that of Dennis and the rest of her extended family. She did the usual "yeah, yeah" and once again did as she pleased.

    Yesterday Dennis went to work on the afternoon shift and returned home at the usual 1:00 AM. When he entered their house he found Ruth Ann laying dead at the base of the stairs.

    She was only 48 years old.

    The medical examiner thinks she collapsed on the 2nd or 3rd step shortly after he left for work and laid there for about 12 hours until Dennis found her.

    Dennis, my friend of these many years, fought in Viet Nam and drove covert re-supply missions into Cambodia for the US Special Forces. He is a very tough man as well as being the best and most loyal friend a man could ever have.

    If someone needed help, there was Dennis.

    If you needed someone to fight for you, he was the first one to arrive and usually the last one standing.

    You have no idea how painful it was to hear this brave man on the phone early this morning, crying like a baby over the loss of the love of his life.

    PLEASE: if you're a smoker STOP, if not for your own sake then for that of your family and friends.

    Better yet, don't even start.

    Dr. Mordrid
    Last edited by Dr Mordrid; 26 July 2004, 10:18.
    Dr. Mordrid
    ----------------------------
    An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

    I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

  • #2
    my condolences
    hope all are coping well.
    Yeah, well I'm gonna build my own lunar space lander! With blackjack aaaaannd Hookers! Actually, forget the space lander, and the blackjack. Ahhhh forget the whole thing!

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    • #3
      My sincerest condoleances to all.

      I smoke, and i'm with the 'Don't even Start crowd'.
      I've been trying to stop now for two years. I turn 30 this year, and am doing everything possible to make it the last year i smoke.

      It is soooo easy to start and take that first toke, but it is an uphill struggle to stop.

      For those people who know people who are stopping/thinking of stopping...support them!
      They need it.
      PC-1 Fractal Design Arc Mini R2, 3800X, Asus B450M-PRO mATX, 2x8GB B-die@3800C16, AMD Vega64, Seasonic 850W Gold, Black Ice Nemesis/Laing DDC/EKWB 240 Loop (VRM>CPU>GPU), Noctua Fans.
      Nas : i3/itx/2x4GB/8x4TB BTRFS/Raid6 (7 + Hotspare) Xpenology
      +++ : FSP Nano 800VA (Pi's+switch) + 1600VA (PC-1+Nas)

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      • #4
        I'm sorry Doc. Please send my condolences to Dennis and Family...
        Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.

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        • #5
          Condolences Doc

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          • #6
            condolences doc
            "They say that dreams are real only as long as they last. Couldn't you say the same thing about life?"

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            • #7

              My dad's been smoking since he was 10 years old, about 2 packs per day.
              A few weeks ago he had a stroke. The doctors say he he's damn lucky as there's almost no visible scar left.
              He tried to stop smoking several times during the years, even stopped for a full year once, but always returned smoking.
              Just before the stroke he was trying to stop once more but now he cut down his smoking from 1-2 packs per day to a few cigarettes per day.
              My grandfather died at the age of 60+ from a fatal stroke due to excessive smoking. My friend's mother died at around 40 and something because of excessive smoking (more than 2 packs per day, lost over 90% of her lung's capacity) yet people still don't learn.
              "For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism."

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              • #8
                My sincerest condolences to Dennis.
                "And yet, after spending 20+ years trying to evolve the user interface into something better, what's the most powerful improvement Apple was able to make? They finally put a god damned shell back in." -jwz

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                • #9
                  Sad, sad story.

                  Sometimes its just soo infuriating to see people you love and care about NOT doing the one thing they need to do - if they want to live.

                  Condolences to You and Your friend.

                  ~~DukeP~~

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                  • #10
                    Yes, a sad story. So sorry.

                    I was a heavy smoker (3+ packs/day) but gave it up cold turkey about 35 years ago: not touched one since. Don't regret it, especially with the price they are now. Have no idea what it has done to me organically. My lungs are OK, thank God, but who can say whether or not my cancer, AV block or 2 strokes may have been worse because of my many smoking years?
                    Brian (the devil incarnate)

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                    • #11
                      Sorry to hear about that Dr.,
                      We got my Father to quit about 8 years ago, he was also persuaded with the birth of his first grandchild. It's great to see him without a ciggy. Better late than never.

                      Also my condolences to Dennis and Family.

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                      • #12
                        This is so sad, sorry to hear that.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Brian Ellis
                          ....I was a heavy smoker (3+ packs/day) but gave it up cold turkey about 35 years ago: not touched one since. Don't regret it, especially with the price they are now. Have no idea what it has done to me organically. My lungs are OK, thank God, but who can say whether or not my cancer, AV block or 2 strokes may have been worse because of my many smoking years?
                          It's very possible, even probable, that your strokes are smoking related. It can cause damage throughout the cardivascular system, among other things. Nasty stuff with a lot of toxins besides the expected nicotine, including some radioactivity.

                          Radioactivity? Yup. Lots of tobacco is fertilized with naturally mined phosphates, which in nature often occur in close proximity to deposits of radioactive materials such as Uranium and its decay products.

                          The most commonly found radioactive isotope in tobacco is Polonium, a decay product of naturally occuring Radon which in turn is a product of Radium and so on until you get to Uranium as the original source.

                          Of course Polonium eventually decays into something non-radioactive, but still toxic: Lead.

                          The US NIH (National Institute of Health) published a document that estimates smoking 30 cigarettes/day delivers the dose equivalent of 2,000 chest x-rays per year

                          Polonium is estimated by some to account for half of all lung cancers in the US, and that doesn't even take into account what happens once it leaves the lungs for the blood stream.

                          Eating mined phosphate fertilized food isn't anywhere near as bad since it passes through in short order. In the lungs, however, the polonium gets trapped in the small airways, becoming the "gift" that keeps on giving for many years. The CDC says that eventually some of it can work its way from the lungs into the blood and cause trouble elsewhere (brain, liver, bladder, leukemias etc.).

                          As for the AV block (there are several types) it could have been caused by medication or damage to your heart from other means interrupting the "wiring" that controls how it beats.

                          Dr. Mordrid
                          Last edited by Dr Mordrid; 26 July 2004, 11:22.
                          Dr. Mordrid
                          ----------------------------
                          An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                          I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            My dad finally quit when he was diagnosed with emphysema. If it wasn't for that he'd still be smoking, but luckily they caught it very early so he's still in great shape.

                            My sincerest condoleances to all.
                            Titanium is the new bling!
                            (you heard from me first!)

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                            • #15
                              Both my parents died of smoking-related illnesses. Sorry for everyone in your circumstances.

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