A letter from Al Abrams wife

[ralpht]

TO: Motown Forum Members:



Al had a massive heart attack in January and barely made it to the ER as all his organs were shutting down. He was placed in an induced coma in order to stabilize him. He was placed on a ventilator, dialysis machine and had surgery for placement of a heart balloon to alleviate the stress on his own heart. All of these were essential to get him to open heart surgery. His damaged Mitral Valve was repaired and a by-pass performed. His other organs are in the early stages of also recovering. He has four specialists – Cardiac Surgeon; Cardiologist; Nephrologist; and Pulmonologist.



In an induced coma, the patient is unable to speak or interact, but can oftentimes hear people as they drift in and out of consciousness. The danger with an induced coma is that sometimes the patient never wakes up or is unable to have the machines keeping them alive tuned off.



His prognosis for survival before/after the surgery was not favorable due to the overall collapse of all the organs not functioning. I was informed that it was best to pre-arrange alternative plans and contacted a Rabbi and made tentative plans for a memorial service in Detroit.



It is a surreal experience and one that places many lives on hold until there is an outcome.



Fortunately, Al’s doctors state --- Al is one of their best success stories --- ever. He walked in; and was able to walk out.



Al feels so blessed and is grateful to finally be home again after a lengthy hospital and rehabilitation stay. He has plenty of restrictions; an in-home personalized pharmacy; doc appointments; outpatient labs; physical therapy three times a week and plenty to catch up with in terms of what he feels he left behind before he got ill.



He is allowed to be on the computer up to two hours throughout the day but attempting to do that has proven to be futile since he is exhausted from all the above activities. And the scripts don't help as they tend to cause drowsiness. But, as he heals, this will pass.



It was really a near death experience. Even his cardiac surgeon went on vacation after saving his life. Hmm!



However, his prognosis is now good and he is expected to resume normal activities in about 6-8 weeks. But, there is a tradeoff. As with most open heart patients, medication will always be part of the routine.



The cost of saving Al’s life is not without major financial repercussions even with Medicare and insurance.



The out-of-pocket expense for a catastrophic illness is why people sometimes won’t and don’t seek medical help. It becomes an unbearable burden to the patient and family.



A near-death experience truly gives one time to reflect upon what they need to finish during their life. It's a game changer. And Al is going to give back what he can because God granted him a temporary reprieve to accomplish even more.



Al refers to his second opportunity at life as TIkkun olam. It is his chance to “repair the universe” or “fix the world in whatever direction he is needed.



With the help of a few great Motown individuals, I’m putting together a fundraiser at a Detroit venue to help raise funds to help alleviate the financial burden. If anyone wishes to help, participate or donate something, they can contact me via sending a private message to Al.



Sometimes reaching out and asking for help becomes a necessity in life.



On another note, if anyone wishes to personally contribute, they can send him a private message through the forum. He will personally respond.



Thank you.

________________________

[marv2]

Ralph, I am shocked. He and I communicated pretty regularly. I am going to do my part.

Marv

[rrussi]

Saddened to hear this, but sounds like he is on the road to recovery. I need to contact him soon.

[stephanie]

Ralph I would like to contribute please let us know how to get in touch my email is

stephanie_20904@yahoo.com

[ralpht]

I'll see what I can find out, Steph.

[marv2]

I just spoke to Al a few minutes ago and he is doing somewhat better. He is in rehabilitation now. I will be speaking with him again later this evening.

Marv

[juicefree20]

I'm sorry to hear this news, but happy to hear that he's on the mend.

God Speed Al Abrams!

[marv2]

I just saw Al and his beautiful wife at their home. Al is doing better, thank God! He is going to be alright. He is tough! Built Detroit Tough!!!

Marv

[robb_k]

Good news!