About Me (In My Own Words)
I was a newly minted UT graduate continuing my Spanish language emersion in Sámara, Costa Rica. Halfway through my stay, I got very sick. There was only one doctor in this little beach town, but he knew something was seriously wrong. It was more than just dehydration. He referred me to Dr. Manuel Rojas, an internal medicine specialist in the Capital. I went alone with no support. When I got to his practice, Dr. Rojas examined me and told me to immediately check into Hospital Clínica Biblica.
Private medical care in Costa Rica costs only a fraction of what is charged for the same care in the United States, but Clínica Biblica required a cash deposit. I handed over every dollar I brought with me, but it wasn’t enough. I was about to panic. I was almost turned away, but Dr. Rojas happened to be walking by the desk in that same desperate moment. I called out to him in a shaky voice, uncertain of my Spanish grammar. I explained the situation as best I could and asked him for his help. Dr. Rojas replied with a glint in his eye, ‘Anything is possible!’ Then he disappeared to speak with the administrators on my behalf.
After what felt like an eternity, they finally agreed to admit me. The tests revealed that I had a heart tumor. I needed immediate open-heart surgery. It was too dangerous for me to return home, so with my family’s support, I had the surgery at Hospital Clínica Biblica in San José. I was given an On-X aortic heart valve, manufactured in Austin, Texas, by Artivion, Inc.
Being too sick to travel turned out to be a blessing, because I didn’t have health insurance back home. But my recovery was not at all smooth. Half my diaphragm was paralyzed. One of the antibiotics triggered a massive seizure. I needed a second surgery to drain our nearly a liter of blood that had filled my chest cavity. I was fully conscious when they pulled the wire from my heart.
When everything stops, you come back different. All the countless concerns which consume time and energy suddenly become inconsequential. You cease worrying so much about things you can’t control. You realize that the world will keep on turning without you. There is always a greater depth to gratitude, no matter how dark you feel. And, indeed, anything is possible, including a second act in life.
I am first and foremost, an artist. My way of processing my emotional reality is to write songs. My perspective on life, along with all of life’s priorities, all inevitably shifted after my near-death experience in that warm, exotic land. While on bed rest, I had nothing to do but write music, and it came pouring out of me.
I wrote ‘Ribcage’ and recorded it the following year. It tells the story of my grueling emotional journey into and out of that existential turning point in my life. I’m now ready to fully tell this story to the world through the production of the official music video, which begins filming at the end of May. The song ‘Ribcage’ can be streamed on my Spotify channel:
https://open.spotify.com/track/16xLb4HNrDqT2QtKelkKwb
To find out more about my creative journey and the music video I'm producing, please visit www.ribcagefilm.com. Cheers!
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Pflugerville
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My surgery date is:
August 9, 2014
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My surgery was:
Aortic Valve Replacement
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My surgeon is:
Dr. Elliot Garita
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My hospital is:
Hospital Clinica Biblica - Costa Rica
