911 What is Your Emergency?

I was working on a door lock and a painting project on Monday. The order I decided to tackle my tasks put me in the right place at the right time to save my neighbor's life with CPR.

Tuesday I told my IV nurse what happened, and she said in all her years of nursing, she had never given a person CPR. I am sixty and have probably taken the CPR training a dozen times. I found the banner picture of people training on CPR dummies in a dive shop. That struck me as the obvious choice because my last renewals for  CPR class were with Hollywood Divers and LA Water Keepers when I qualified as a Rescue Diver and subsequently volunteered to work on the Water Keepers kelp project. I first learned CPR in the boy scouts 50 years ago and how the process has changed. There is even a new device mounted on the wall in many public places called an AED that anyone can hook up to a person with a stopped heart to give them a jolt.

"Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. But not always in that order." |Flannery O'Connor

On Monday morning, I decided to run to the hardware store before starting my painting project. That got me home in time to hear my neighbor Jan frantically calling me to help. Her Brother Larry had stopped breathing. Larry had a pacemaker and suffered a few previous heart attacks. I hurried into their apartment to find Larry sitting on his sofa, looking dead. His face was grey, his eyes half open with no movement, and he was not breathing. For a moment, I lost hope and wanted to close his eyes.

Not so fast, grim reaper. I googled called 911 on my cell phone as I plopped Larry's limp body down on the floor and started chest compressions to the tune of staying alive, which is the perfect cadence for chest compressions. I sang it in my head as I announced for the 911 operator to hear me say 1, 2, 3, 4. I got some ragged breathing, and then the blood rushed into his face.

I felt hopeful and told Larry so.  "Larry, you are doing it; stay with me." Then he convulsed, which I later recalled was probably his pacemaker kicking in. I had been pumping on Larry for about 5 minutes when his eyes came back to life. I started to consider that if the paramedics did not show up soon, they would have to take us to Rampart Emergency.  I tell you, CPR is hard work. 1, 2, 3, 4, Staying Alive - Staying Alive, Larry's ribs cracked with each contraction. In the background, I could hear the fire trucks coming up Vermont Avenue. I let the operator know Larry was flush and breathing raggedly. I kept on pumping until the paramedics pushed thru the door. Within a few minutes, Larry was on his way to the hospital, where he is recovering now.

Fifty years of training finally paid off. I was glad I was home at the right time in this story to make a difference.  I could have easily been out running errands and missed the call for help.

Update Late Thursday, Larry is already home and resting up.