Chapter 4

Victim of Ignorance

A day of celebrating a very happy three years of marriage and a better paying job ended in the Saint Mary's emergency room being a victim of ignorance where the bump in my journey to the unknown began.

The dusk was quickly turning to the darkness of night as I wobbled in the emergency room.    I felt all the waiting patients in the emergency room staring me down whispering in their minds,

"Another drunk." 

Saying in my mind, 

"Only if they knew I am starting a new job Monday and I drank only two  beers in celebrating my wedding anniversary."

I sign myself in and sat down in the waiting room provided in the emergency room .  Using this time to think about going home plying with my dog, Slash.

I grew up with dogs being pets but this dog, Slash was special.  Slash turned me into a dog lover.  Slash was a mutt (Heinz 57) mixed with Collie, Lab, German Shepard and showed off a ton of Austie Shepard fur.  He had white fur on all four paws looking like Slash wore white shoes and keeping those white feet well groomed by licking them constantly.   This pure white fur, cover his lower part of neck to his belly having the rest of his fur looking like a German Shepard's coat except the olden lab look replaced wasn't black hair on the German Shepard.  Working midnights, I would get out of work in the late morning dawn racing home in my car screaming out loud his name at the top of my lungs,

"SLASH!"

 Letting Slash out of the house, he would trot to the backyard do his duties.  Empting his bowels, the mad dash was on to the closest stick in the backyard was picked up on the run continuing towards me because he knew it was time for me to chase him.  Running past me, making a dead stop behind my car in driveway turning around to face me with stick clamped in in his mouth waiting for me to make my move. The objective was keeping him from entering in the backyard.  When Slash got past me ,he would celebrate by running around backyard then setting himself up for another round with same stick in mouth. This kind of play was daily ruteen for us.   This extremely loyal, happy dog never left my sight when we were together and demanded everyone's attention.  When Sheila and I picked up Slash, I never ever thought this dog would turn out to be my pride and joy.

In a very short time, my name was called.  Sitting down rubbing my eyes and holding my head that felt as if my head wanted to leave my shoulders, my wife registered my medical history along with the present symptoms.  I answered the last question about if I had drug or alcohol in my system.

I replied extremely quick to this question but my words slurred with anger feeling as if I stoned and very drunk while looking up and my eyes could not focus saying,

"I had two beers and I'm not drunk!"

In a polite come back it was said,

"A lot of collage students come in here drunk with same symptoms."

Authors note : I was in and out of condition's as the night proceed.  I realized in months ahead, I became the victim of a hospitals  stroke unawareness.  In this hospitals mind, I was 28 years old and too young for a stroke happening therefore I am diagnosed with no test being taken as another drunk collage student.  The hospital kept me waiting in the emergency room to sober up. To this day I believe it was the two beers they smelled on my breath to labeled me as drunk.  I was not drunk, I was having a stroke!

Finally, my name is called to the emergency room for inspection. The floor started to spin so I sat on the closest available object, it was a table.  Good thing because I just could support myself anymore.  I kept repeating to my wife while waiting for a bed,

"I am not drunk and I want to go home to see Slash!"

Still sitting on the table waiting for a bed, I decided to go to the bathroom with a 10 foot span from the table I was sitting on and my wife following me grasping my arm.  It was a good thing she insisted joining me, because in mid stream the right side of my body weaken and falling forward then I smacked my head hard against the ceramic tiled wall.  Holding my head from rolling off my shoulders saying,

"I am not drunk and I want to go home to see Slash!"

Staggering out of the bathroom to make it to the table where I sat to wait for a bed to come available, sitting on the table with elbows resting on my knees and my hands holding my head and rocking back and forth saying, 

"I am not drunk and I want to go home to see Slash!"

Feeling like I'm drunk out of my mind, I finally settled in a bed.  At this point I could not control myself but I did manage to say looking up at my brothers gazing down on me,

"I am not drunk and I want to go home to see Slash!"

Authors note: During this time laying down, my wife was busy trying to convince the ER doctor I was not drunk and needed a MRI.  It was after my MRI the emergency room doctor came convinced I was not drunk and was having a stroke.  The only Neurologist available was at home on call refusing to come in because she had no baby sitter.

I remember getting my MRI.  the technicians transferred me over to the MRI table and I heard one of them say in discuss,

"He's another drunk!"

I heard this and in a angered voice my reply  stated,

"I am not drunk!"

After the MRI  was completed, I am transferred back in my bed and all I remember saying was,

"I'm not drunk."

One of the technicians replied,

"We know that now Mr. Daul."

 Being wheeled back to the emergency room, it was decided I should be taken emitted to the hospitals Intensive Care.  In the Fidel position with drool running down my face saying,

"I am not drunk and I want to go home to see Slash!"

Remembering things that happen during this time to this day, is  remarkable because a stroke of this magnitude  a person should not be aware.  I could remember being hot and cold lying in bed in the ICU and knew the nurse looking over me drilling up question about her son I knew well Niagara Catholic High School..

Authors note  During the time in the ICU, I learned  this sudden condition could been given a shot that would of dissolved the clot in the brainstem which was denying oxygen to my brain in return I could of had minimal paralyses instead of the extreme results of stroke.  I should of been on life support and be given this shot in the first three hours of symptoms but Neurologist on call for this hospital couldn't come in do to not being able to hire a baby sitter.   Because the doctor remained uncooperative most of the night was devoted to getting me out of this ignorant environment.