part 2.
3(a). CO ALERT : UPDATE - Tammie's Letter Sparks Additional Interest
and She Also Has Some Good News From The Doctors!
You first met TAMMIE in our second FeN (October 20, 1996) - in the
"Personal Account of CO Poisoning". That article was also placed on
the CO ALERT web site (see next story) and was picked up by two
chimney-industry magazines.
A reprint of the entire FeN#002, including TAMMIE's story, was
printed in the Winter 1996 edition of the New York State Chimney
Sweeps Guild magazine "New York News", and another article on
TAMMIE's story will be printed in the February 1997 "SNEWS Magazine"
- a very popular journal for professional chimney sweeps across
North America. Her story has also prompted some very touching
"thank-you's" from readers and visitors to the web site - and has
really "driven home" the effects and dangers of CO in our homes -
and the lack of "common knowledge" about CO - even among health
service professionals.
I have also received two separate updates from TAMMIE in the interim
- both of which I will post for you here :
(start)
-(Received : December 27, 1996)-
Dear Mr. Bragg:
Sorry, I haven't contacted you sooner. I have really been ill. The
doctors are telling me to be prepared for a double lung transplant
in the near future. They want to start me on imuran, which is an
immunosuppressive. It's an anticancer drug. I am also having a
problem with an enlarged right ventricle in my heart now. My
pulmonary specialist put me to bed weeks ago and told me stay.
there. I go for an ultrasound on my heart January 2. My lungs are
really bad now. I am short of breath even when I speak. The doctors
won't even consider the carbon monoxide. They don't want to talk
about it at all. I have ILD-interstitial lung disease that can be
caused by gases.
Today is the first time, I have been on the computer since November.
I was wondering, if you could e-mail a copy of the newsletter that
you did with my letter in it. I think it is great!!!! that the trade
magazine in New York picked up the article. Do you know the name of
the magazine?
I hope you had a Merry Christmas and Have a Happy New Year. I hope
by telling you my story and you re-telling it that we save many
lives.
Take Care and God Bless, Tammie
-(Received - January 5, 1997)-
Dear Mr. Bragg:
Thanks for the e-mail. I appreciate your concern and everyone elses.
It's nice to know my letter is reaching out and hopefully making a
lasting impression of the dangers of CO.
Friday, January 3, 1997, I had an appointment with a cardiologist. I
received unbelievable news. In December of 1995, when we discovered
the carbon monoxide poisoning, I had an echocardiagram of my heart.
The results of that were my right ventricle was enlarged and my
heart was enlarged to the point that the doctor couldn't calculate
the pressure because he couldn't see that part of my heart. I told
you in the last e-mail that I was having a problem with sinus
tachycardia or rapid heart beat. The cardiologists scheduled another
echocardiagram. He could not believe that my right ventricle was
actually smaller and my heart was not as enlarged. He told me it was
medically unexplainable. Dr. Edmunds said that once that ventricle
is enlarged it's irreversible. I told him about the CO poisoning and
he said yes that's what caused it but still it should have been
irreversible. The rapid heart beats are gone too. The Lord took care
of me and answered alot of prayers. My other doctor was about to put
me on a breathing machine. I was floored. I am not used to hearing
good news. Dr. Edmunds told me my heart overall is in good
condition. My pressure is only slightly elevated and my ventricle is
only slightly enlarged. Now that my heart has healed some. I am
hoping it will take some of the stress off my lungs and maybe they
will get stronger.
This is one of the first doctors that said yes the CO actually
caused something. He also told me it's going to take a while for all
the effects of the CO to go away. He said my body has to make all
new hemoglobin and that takes time. He also said I am lucky to be
here. My other doctors say it didn't help my situation to have been
poisoned by CO.
Thanks again for e-mailing your newsletter. It was great!!
Take care and God bless, Tammie
(end) |
