Less Than a Year to Live
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Around three in the morning, my room began to fill with doctors, nurses and technicians. The bright lights had been turned on, and some doctor was yelling orders at the rest of the staff. "Dr. Zachary-Arnold, you’re in acute heart failure. Your heart and blood pressure are crashing and we need you to fight!" He continued to bark out orders for meds to be given and to check my blood pressure constantly.
I just wanted to go to sleep. I actually felt quite peaceful and I knew if they would leave me alone, I could just drift off. "Kelly! We need you to stay with us! Kelly! Come on, honey, keep your eyes open!" My blood pressure had dropped into the danger zone. My room was filled with doctors and medical staff, as they tried to stabilize me. My blood pressure continued to drop. Earlier, I remember seeing that it was only 60/31. The thought had entered my mind that that wasn't good. I was literally circling the drain.
“Nurse, get her husband here STAT!” I didn’t know Ron’s cell phone number off hand, but I told them it was on my cell phone. Then, to top off everything, my cell phone wouldn’t work! It was plugged into the charger, but it wouldn’t turn on. I had been having problems with it, but nothing like this. Nobody could find Ron’s cell number! "Do you know any neighbor that could get him?" I didn't know anyone where we lived except for my husband! "Kelly, have you filled out a living will?" Vaguely, I remembered one in Texas, but that wasn't going to help now.
"Nurse, get a crash cart in here! If we don't get her blood pressure up, she is going to code!" The doctor asked me, "Kelly, when your heart flatlines, what are your wishes for resuscitation?” In barely a whisper I managed to say, “If I code, go ahead and try to resuscitate me.” The doctor got the witnesses to sign the form. I couldn’t believe I was having to go through this alone. I didn’t have a living will; they couldn’t get my husband, so with witnesses around, I had to tell them what my wishes were.
Earlier the doctor had ordered a liter of I.V. fluid to be given to me. The doctor barked at the nurse, “Squeeze that fluid in as fast as you can!” The nurse stood by my bed, squeezing the bag as she tried to get the fluid into me as quickly as possible. Still, I continued to crash and we couldn’t get my husband there! I was terrified. “Come on, Kelly! You have to fight! We’re doing all that we can. Come on, honey! Please fight!”
The doctor ordered a fourth liter of fluid to be squeezed into me, but to no avail. “WE’RE LOSING HER!!”
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About the Book
Dr. Kelly Zachary-Arnold was shocked to hear the words
“I’m sorry, you had a heart attack, and you are in heart failure!”
This is the true, medically documented story of a Christian doctor as she is faced with a terminally ill heart and is given less than a year to live. You will cry and laugh and then you will believe and rejoice at the God of all gods.
About the Author
Dr. Kelly Zachary-Arnold has spent most of her life in the medical field. Through the last of her career, she found her calling in forensic medicine, focusing on working with the wounded warriors coming home from the war with PTSD. Dr. Zachary-Arnold has an immense love and respect for our troops, as she spent her life growing up as a Navy Brat and would then marry retired Naval Officer, Dr. Ron Arnold. Between the two of them, they have six children.
Kelly was raised in church by her beloved mother, the church pianist. She began Kelly’s piano lessons at an early age. This skill would lead her to compete in the Miss America Pageant System, but Kelly’s true joy came from playing the piano in the church with her mother. This would lead to a close, loving relationship with Pastors Dr. Jerry and Ann Price. As a teenager, Kelly played for the choir, whom Pastor Jerry Price led, and playing for specials that Pastors Jerry and Ann Price sang.
It was this deeply-rooted Christianity that would see Dr. Kelly Zachary-Arnold walking through the fire, in the biggest fight for her life.