Survivor stories

Terry Whitney

 23 Nov 2007
Submitted by: Terry Whitney
Minnesota

When Terry Whitney woke up feeling sick the night after Thanksgiving 2007, he thought it was post-turkey indigestion. But when he didn’t feel better two hours and a few antacids later, his daughter, Erica, 22, wondered if it was more than an upset stomach.

Erica called a pharmacist to make sure she wasn’t overlooking a heart attack warning sign. The pharmacist agreed with her dad: indigestion.

“As soon as I hung up the phone, my dad said ‘Erica,’ and just dropped,” she said.

Erica called for her mother and dialed 9-1-1. She and her fiancé, Josh, took turns performing CPR until an ambulance arrived with an AED. After four shocks, paramedics detected a slight heartbeat and rushed Terry to the hospital.

Fearing brain damage, doctors put Terry into a medically induced coma and a hypothermic state, lowering his body temperature to 70 degrees. They prepared his family for the worst: Terry’s heart was fine, but he might have brain damage.

After four days, the doctors decided to begin raising Terry’s body temperature. They began the warming process at midnight, and by 8 a.m. Terry was sitting up and talking.

In July, less than a year later, Terry walked Erica down the aisle.

“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her,” he says. “I just feel so fortunate.”