As with any story, I guess it is best to start at the beginning. Last Saturday Kristen and I drove the short drive to Roan Mountain State for a four hour trail run. We returned late on Saturday exhausted and exhibiting the early signs of a summer flu. Sunday arrived and we decided to take the day easy by going for a hike since we were both feeling the effects of the prior day's 4hr adventure and the rapidly devoluping flu-like cold. We returned home again exhausted from the hike and ready to for dinner. It was around 4:00pm when the phone rang. It was Kristen's brother, Chris, telling us that we had to get home immediately. Kristen's dad had suffered a massive heart attack and was being taken to the heart ICU in downtown Charlotte. We dropped everything, ran to the car and drove (95mph average) to Charlotte. This was Sunday afternoon.
I have spent the last week in Charlotte, NC with Kristen's family. Kristen's dad suffered a massive heart attack on Sunday following a three hour bike ride. He was walking to the pool when he collapsed on the side of the road and was spotted by a passing cyclist who notified the lifeguards. The lifeguards were able to call 911 and provide CPR until the ambulance (less than 90seconds later) arrived. He was recesitated on sight three times after undergoing cardiac arrest due to a 200% arterial blockage. His body was then immediately cooled down and he was placed in a drug induced coma to preserve neurological function. When we got to the hospital an hour and half later he was in ICU on a ventilator. The doctor told us he had a 5% chance of survival. That pretty much hits the high points. The last week has gone by in a sleepless blur.
I am now back in Boone following what the doctors have labeled a 'miraculous' recovery. Craig Campbell should be dead right now but due to his physical fitness level (47y/o) and the immediate medical attention he received, he is alive and walking the hallways at CMC with no apparent neurological damage. The doctors plan to release him home within the next 24hrs. I will be in Boone until tomorrow taking care of a few affairs before returning to Charlotte for a day. I will then be in Chattanooga, TN for a day to get an MRI and then off to the beach for a much needed vacation over father's day weekend.
Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers over the last week. Thank you to my mother who traveled from Chattanooga at a drop of a hat to be at Mr. Campbell's bedside and to help provide comfort to a grieving family. Thank you to the health professionals for fixing the unfixable.
It is times like these that allow us to take a step back from the pressures of tomorrow and really be thankful for the now. I am exhausted but finally at peace.
