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as told by Jerome Johnson I feel lucky to be here today. Four years ago, at the age of 76, I died during surgery to replace a valve in my heart. Thanks to the skill of my surgeon and his team, they brought me back. But then I faced excessive bleeding, a collapsed lung, kidney problems and an infection. Once again, I owe my life to the doctors, nurses and staff at Gundersen Lutheran and the love and sheer will of my family.
 I had a leaky heart valve for years. My primary care physician, Dr. Daniel Ecklund, had been watching my condition carefully for years. At his encouragement, my wife, Joan, and I exercised regularly. We walked hand-in-hand around La Crosse or at the mall. But then the day came when I found myself having to stop frequently to catch my breath. I told Joan that I thought I’d better get in for a physical.
Tests showed not only was it time to repair or replace my damaged heart valve, I also needed triple bypass surgery. My heart surgeon, Dr. Christopher Leach, was able to repair the valve and open up the blocked arteries. The surgery seemingly went well.
A few days later, while at home getting ready for the holidays, I started to feel ill. The prescribed nitroglycerin tablets would help for a while but something wasn’t right. At one point, I could hear my dad…who had passed away! My son, Tom, who had been visiting for the day, later told his wife, “I predict that I’ll get a call sometime in the night.” Unfortunately, his prediction came true.
At the hospital, they found that my valve had torn, so Dr. Leach went back in and put in a replacement valve. It was during this procedure that I died…briefly, I’m happy to say. Despite all the complications in the days that followed, I survived.
As part of my recovery, my doctor prescribed the Gundersen Lutheran cardiac rehab exercise program, Movin’ and Improvin’. The therapists there are wonderful…so much so that even after I “graduated,” I opted to continue going twice a week. Four years later, I’m still going and Joan goes, too. I think she’s as good for my heart as the exercise!
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