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Paul M pmcferrin@att.net Reynoldsburg, Ohio age 50 married to Linda for 27 years 3 sons and 3 grandsons one dog and 2 cats |
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| Paul M | The Grands! |
I was born in Ohio in 1947 and I was a quiet, skinny kid growing up. After graduating from high school in 1967, I went on to college for a 2-year degree in Electronic Engineering Technology. After I graduated, I started the rest of my life by moving to Indianapolis, Indiana, where I worked for Bell Laboratories. In 1972, I switched my career from electronics to computers. My wife and I had three healthy boys to carry on our namesake during the 17 years we lived in Indianapolis.
In 1987, we transfered to Columbus, Ohio, where I worked for the same company. After 8 years, my wife and I sold our two level home for a ranch home about 6 miles away in Reynoldsburg. This move was necessary due to health problems of our knees and we were down to one kid still living at home. Since April of 1997, it has just been my wife and I living in our house. Oh, what a wonderful feeling to be alone!
When I was 16, I was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. It was controlled via diet only without meds. Around age 35, I eventually went onto Glucotrol for diabetes control and onto insulin around age 47. Around age 43, I was also diagnosed with sleep apnea.
My wife and I were on a roll, really enjoying our grandkids, living alone, saving for retirement and really enjoying living. Around age 45, I went on blood pressure medication. At age 47, I had my first cardiac event, which was a junctional rhythm being caused by my BP meds, which were changed. The doctors could see no evidence of heart damage caused by this event.
In April of 1997, I ended up in the hospital with fluid in my lungs and having difficulty in breathing. My primary care physician (PCP) had recently started running tests to determine the cause of my swollen ankles. During this hospital visit, I was informed that I had CHF due to cardiomyopathy. Six weeks earlier, I had a stress echo performed at a cardiologist's where they failed to send any reports to my PCP. My PCP told me that this group of cardiologists normally does not send anything back if everything is normal. Mine was not normal and they screwed up! Needless to say, I have another cardiologist!
In summary, I have the following conditions and symptoms at present:
| 80mg Lasix | Daily |
| 0.5mg clonazepam | Daily |
| 25mg atenolol | Daily |
| 50mg Cozaar | Daily |
| 600mg alpha-lipoic acid | Daily |
| 10mg Glocotrol XL | Daily |
| 133 u Insulin | Daily |
| 100mg Celebrex | Daily |
| 160mg Tricor | Daily |
My interests include bird watching, listening to music, watching movies, using computers and enjoying nature's beauty. We live just 3 blocks from a metropolitan park where my wife and I can go for walks through beautiful nature areas and see many species of birds. In 1996, my wife and I flew to Washington state to visit such sites as Mt. Rainer, Mt. St. Helens and Victoria, Canada. What a beautiful trip! Washington state is what I call "God's Country."
I also have two cats named Ginger and Fred (yes, named after movie stars) and a Maltese dog named Chris. The cats are brother and sister around 10 years old while Chris is a little over 11 years. The bird (cockateal) died a few year ago even though his chirping is still on my outgoing announcement tape on the answering machine.
January 16, 2002 - As of December of 1999, my cardiologist declared my heart to be normal and healthy! A combination of good meds and the will of God has caused my DCM to disappear. I'm lucky to still be on this earth since I was given a 33% change of requiring a heart transplant in 5 years when diagnosed. My EF at its lowest was 26%.
I'm still not in the best of health. Thirty-eight years of having diabetes has taken a toll on my body. Foot, leg, back, and eye problems has plagued me the past 3 years. I finally had to break down and get a handicapped parking sticker because of my back problem, which limits my walking distance. I am now being treated for a fractured foot. I was really hoping to fully enjoy the "golden years" but this poor old body isn't going to let me enjoy it so much - it's falling apart!
Paul M -- February 13, 1998
All information on this site is opinion only. All concepts, explanations, trials, and studies have been re-written in plain English and may contain errors. No one here is a doctor. No information on this page should be used by any person to affect their medical, legal, educational, social, or psychological treatment in any way. This web site and all its pages copyright © 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 Jon C.