HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1998-02-04, Page 6Vincent's Country Market
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Frozen Foods
You can have the meal you want at the price
you will like
at the convenience of your own freezer
week
Pre-Cooked Italian Style Meatballs
3 lbs. $9.99 reg. $10.99
Prince Edward Medley
Nice blend of green & yellow beans & carrots
2 lb. $3.29 reg. $3.89
Phone 357-4499 Josephine St., Wingham
Drop in and see our country craft line
Walk down aisle a triumph for heart transplant patient
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen staff
Every bridal couple is thrilled to
be standing together on their
wedding day, but none more so than
Michael and Nancy Hak of
Seaforth.
Just over three months before
their May 20 wedding, Nancy, now
37, received a new heart.
The problems began for this
previously healthy mother of two,
(Jason now 16 and Marissa, 12)
some years ago. She recalls
awakening one night in July 1992
with what she suspected was a case
of heartburn. Halfway to the
hospital, she said, the pressure was
so intense she was struck with the
frighteningly surreal idea she may
be having a heart attack. "She had
no previous history," says Mike. "It
was something you would never
think about happening." Nancy,
who had enjoyed a fairly active life,
says that day had been spent
quietly, babysitting for friends.
In addition to discovering a
thyroid problem which was treated,
the doctors told Nancy she would
have to change her lifestyle, coping
with stress, improving her diet and
exercising in moderation.
"Basically, they said just listen to
my body. If I'm tired, go lie down."
While Nancy and Mike resumed a
HeartSmart
cooking tips
• Reduce total fat intake,
particularly saturated fat
• Of the fat you do eat favour
unsaturated fat
• Increase dietary fibre
• Instead of butter and shor-
tening choose a vegetable oil or
a soft, non-hydrogenated
margarine that is low in
saturated fat •
• Use yogurt or low-fat
mayonnaise instead of regular
mayonnaise. Even making it a
half and half mixture reduces the
amount of fat.
• Try substituting lower-fat
meat alternatives, such as
legumes and tofu, for some of
the meat in family favourites.
• Choose whole grain breads
and rolls, whole wheat pasta,
whole grain cereals, brown and
wild rice.
• For recipes with cheese,
select one that is less than 15 per
cent milk fat. Substitute skim or
one per cent in milk recipes.
• Use leaner cuts of meat and
remove skin from poultry and
fish.
• Replace up to 1/3 of the oil
called for in salad dressings or
marinades with an equal amount
of broth, frozen juice
concentrate, vegetable purées or
strong teas.
• Instead of frying grill, roast
or bake. Ridged grill pans and
roasting racks allow excess fat to
drain away.
To get a free copy of Now
You're Cooking HeartSmart
Everyday Favourites!, write:
Becel Heart Health
Information Bureau,
PO Box 9521,
661 Millidge Ave.,
St. John, NB
E2L 4N6 -
fairly trouble-free life for a time,
Nancy did begin suffering from
asthma-like symptoms about a year-
and-a-half later. On Jan. 22, 1995
and now living in Seaforth, Mike
took Nancy to the hospital with
suspected bronchitis, but two days
later she was found collapsed on the
floor of her hospital room, a result
of cardiac
failure.
The story
very much
becomes
Mike's from
this point, as
Nancy says
she has very
few memories
of that time,
even back to
the Christmas
before. Mike
recalls the
shock and
disbelief.
"There were
all kinds of
things rolling
through my
head," he
says. That
morning he
had just
picked up the
couple's
wedding
invitations.
That evening for an uncertain length
of time the heart of the woman he
planned to marry had stopped
beating.
After being revived and stablized,
Nancy was transported to Stratford
hospital where she underwent a
number of tests, yet, by the next day
there was still little explanation, he
says. Doctors didn't know if there
would be brain damage, nor did
they really know what had
happened. "Information was
sporadic. They told us they were
still doing tests and that she had
suffered heart failure, but that was
about it."
Nancy finally gained
consciousness on Thursday morning
and by that afternoon "was asking
for cheeseburgers," Mike smiles.
The recovery was unfortunately
short-lived, as by Friday afternoon
Nancy had taken a turn for the
worse. "Her heart was just not
pumping hard enough to circulate
oxygen through the system. By
Sunday you could literally see how
far she had gone downhill in those
three days."
Mike, who is an accountant, got a
call at work on Monday morning
saying that Nancy had had massive
heart failure and was being taken to
University Hospital in London. That
she would make it, however, was
not certain.
She arrived there about-10 a.m.,
and for Mike the certainty that she
was getting the best care possible
was some relief. "They still didn't
know the history and had to do their
own battery of tests, but they moved
very fast. She was in good hands,
but it was still a waiting game."
That time may not be on their side
was the harsh reality presented to
them that afternoon. "The doctor
called the whole family into the
waiting room and said they were
putting Nancy on a waiting list for a
donor heart. They were giving her
48 hours."
"We never imagined it would be
this extreme," Mike adds.
Often people whose condition is
not as critical, can wait on a
transplant list for a year. One
became available for Nancy by
Wednesday evening. Ideally a
donated organ should be a perfect
match; anything less must fit a
special criteria, such as blood type
and proper size. Even in the best
cases there is always a risk of
rejection, however.
The organ found for Nancy wasn't
the ideal, but she couldn't wait for a
100 per cent match. The heart was
flown from Vancouver then given a
police escort to the hospital. Six
hours after surgery began it was
pumping
blood and
oxygen
through
Nancy.
While her
condition was
critical, the
surgery went
well and after
two more
days Nancy
was on the
mend.
"It was a
long week,"
says Mike.
Moved out
of intensive
care by the
end of
February to
the multiple
organ
transplant
unit, then
later to a
regular
hospital ward,
Nancy was shown how to live
again. "I had to learn to walk. I even
had to prepare a meal for Mike. You
have to do everyday tasks using the
least amount of energy."
May 18, she was released front
the hospital, two days before her
walk down the aisle. Saying that the
weddingchelped inspire her
recovery, she adds, "I had to work
extra hard so I could keep the
Joy Kelly
Reflexology (Certified)
Deep Muscle Therapy
Ear Candling
original wedding date. The nurses
would always remind me when I got
frustrated that I had something to
look forward to, to get ready for."
Since then, life has pretty much
returned to normal. Though Nancy
has problems remembering, though
she had seven toes amputated
because of the circulation lost, and
has some side effects as a result of
the anti-rejection medication she
must take for the rest of her life, she
recognizes their insignifance.
Mike says, "Our wedding was
more special because of what she
went through to get there."
That Mike's support has been
crucial to her recovery is something
Nancy makes a point of
acknowledging. "He did a lot of
things that not too many guys
would do."
For Nancy, there has been
adjustment. Waking to find she had
someone else's heart, was strange,
she says, adding that she has
occasionally had some guilt. "For a
time, I was upset that this person
died and I'm living, but most times
because I woke up and it was all
over, it's not real to me, it's a fairy
tale."
One with a happy ending for this
family. "If someone hadn't signed
their donor card or made their
family aware of their wishes, I
wouldn't have my mother today,"
said Marissa in her school speech
last year. Nancy stresses that even if
the donor card is signed families
should be told if an individual is
interested in donating their organs.
That it is one of the most selfless
acts a person can do is obvious.
"One person's death can save six
people's lives," Nancy says. "As our
slogan states, 'Please don't take your
organs to heaven. Heaven knows we
need them.—
Nelda McEwen
Health Kinesiology
Allergy Testing • Herbology
Nutrition * Iridology
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Open Tues. - Sat. 10-5 Queen St., Blyth 523-9825
is pleased to announce the opening of its
Upstairs Healthcare Co-operative
Presently two practitioners are available to help
you achieve and maintain your health
Practitioners interested in sharing space
please call Sue or Beth at 357-3466
222 Josephine St., Wingham
Matters of the heart
The idea of two hearts beating as one had special significance
for Nancy and Mike Hak seen here at their May 20, 1995
nuptials, with her children Marissa and Jason. Two days before
Nancy had been released from the hospital with a new heart.
Today they are captains for the February Heart and Stroke
campaign.
PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1998.
,SPood lealth