My Friend the Friar
A podcast where we learn about our faith and share what it takes to live a Catholic Christian life through conversations and contemplations with my friend the friar, a Discalced Carmelite Priest.
My Friend the Friar
Dead for Seven Minutes with Robert and Steven Dominguez
Prepare yourself for an emotionally charged episode as the co-hosts from the Bigfoot Club podcast, Robert Dominguez and his nephew, Steven Dominguez, step in for Father Stephen Sanchez.
Robert recounts his terrifying health ordeal — from severe weight loss to a critical diagnosis which led to surgery. We explore the emotional rollercoaster faced by Robert and his family during his recovery, culminating in a life-threatening situation where Robert's heart stopped for seven minutes. With Steven providing additional recollections, we delve into the confusion, distress, and eventual cautious optimism as Robert was revived. This segment is a raw and poignant journey through medical crises and the power of familial support.
As the episode progresses, we delve into Robert's battle with Guillain-Barre syndrome. The latter part of the conversation emphasizes resilience, recovery, and the spiritual awakening that followed Robert's harrowing experience. We touch on near-death experiences and the transformative power they hold, highlighting the importance of forgiveness and second chances. This heartfelt episode is a must-listen for anyone intrigued by the triumphs and trials of the human spirit, offering a profound look into personal transformation, recovery, and perseverance.
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Speaker 3:Welcome to the podcast. Thanks for joining me and my friends Robert Dominguez and his nephew, stephen Dominguez. Hi guys, hey, hello. Y'all are not Stephen. You're not my Stephen, so you're not Father Stephen.
Speaker 4:No.
Speaker 3:I was hoping, and Robert and I were. We're really hoping for like a Steven battle Royale to the death. See, yeah, see who comes out on top, kind of thing.
Speaker 4:Um, Steven, Steven, Steven with a V versus Steven with a pH right, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yep, yep, see, it was fist to cuffs. It was bound to happen.
Speaker 2:You don't. You don't want to have my name with a Ph on it, because I would have a PhD.
Speaker 3:Oh goodness.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 3:So, father Stephen, he had to go out to the castle, which is what we call his monastery out in Arkansas. So he had to go to the castle this weekend what we call his monastery out in Arkansas. So he had to go to the castle this weekend. Um, and he was cleaning, and, uh, he was cleaning around some moldy window and he started feeling really bad.
Speaker 3:I think he's turning into like a spore zombie and I hope actually, I mean, I hope not, but I kind of hope so too, cause it'd be kind of cool, um yeah, and I don't know, but anyway, so he's not feeling well, so he's not joining us tonight.
Speaker 4:Oh, I hope. Hopefully we'll hear from him. Yeah, sure, hope he feels better yeah, um cool.
Speaker 3:so, robert and steven, you guys well, steven, actually it's like I've known you longer than you've known me, because I listen to y'all's podcast. Yeah, but, robert, what did we say earlier? We've known each other like four years, About four years yeah, yeah, all right. So our listeners who don't know anything about you, tell us a little bit about you. Where are you from? What are you interested in? Tell us about your amazing podcast, of course, so people can check y'all out.
Speaker 4:Right, Um, thanks for the for the platform. Um, yeah, uh, my name is Robert Dominguez. I grew up in Oak Cliff, uh, and like in the eighties, and Steven that's here in.
Speaker 3:That's here in Dallas right, it's in Dallas.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's in uh Dallas area. It's a a they used to call it a suburb of dallas, but it's just now part of dallas now. So, uh, steven, my nephew, uh, he, you know, he grew up, you know, I've been in his life, his whole, you know his whole life, and so, um, we've always been together. And uh, back when I was doing uh bigfoot stuff because I was interested in bigfoot, in the paranormal, but mostly at this time when he was little, I was into bigfoot and whenever we had these meetings or we would go on these outings, I would take him with me. And uh, steven, how old were you at the time?
Speaker 2:you always, I know, but then the listeners don't know. I know, I know I don't.
Speaker 4:I'm gonna say six or seven years old, yeah so you would go out, you would go out to the field with me or go to meetings and stuff and you would hear all this stuff. I wouldn't say that you were a big footer, cause like people who do big foot stuff, we read the kind of call them, they call, they call them big footers. Would you consider yourself a big footer?
Speaker 2:At the time or now? No, at At that time or now? No, at the time. At the time, no, I was just along for the ride. Okay so Because, if I'm being totally honest, at that time I was terrified going out there and I'd rather not have gone, but I was with you. So I mean, you wanted to be with me, I just wanted to be with you at the time. So I was Such love. I was like well, I want to spend, this is what he loves, I guess. I guess I'll just spend time with him, you know.
Speaker 4:So so at that time, john, we were you know, I would I was a part of a Bigfoot group called the Texas Bigfoot Research Center, and this was in the late nineties, early two thousands, and it was formed by this gentleman by the name of Luke Gross, which is a mentor of mine and he's a great man. So at that time we had formed this group, and so what we wanted to do was help people in Texas and surrounding states who had, like, an incident with, or eyewitness, a Bigfoot. And I know some of your listeners say, bigfoot in Texas, yeah, there's Bigfoot in East Texas.
Speaker 3:Lots of trees out there.
Speaker 4:Yeah, lots of trees. There's lots of areas that doesn't have any houses or any communities where these potential creatures can roam and move freely without being seen. So at the time I was with this group, I left the group in 2003 cause I just didn't like its direction. I then became a uh independent researcher so I was doing stuff on my own says like, whenever you're with a group, you you kind of get tied into um rules and regulations of what you can't say to the press or whatever. And so, uh, I was, I was tongue tied, I couldn't say a lot of things. And so, as I became uh free from the group I was, I was able to say what I want or how I felt about certain things. And then that kind of progressed me into the paranormal. I was recruited by, uh, kendall lamb. Um, did I say her name right? No, can, kendall Rubio, I'm sorry, yeah, kendall Rubio. And so I was recruited by her. She was looking for a seasoned researcher, and so I became the case director for Paranormal Investigations of North Texas. So I got a lot of cases paranormal-wise and I would distribute them out, them out to other researchers that at times I would go out and research as well, so I've kind of been interested in the paranormal encrypted. So that was kind of the the area way that I that I was kind of going into and probably like in two, this was probably like 2005 and I did it all the way into probably like 2017.
Speaker 4:And then I, from 2017 to 2019, I I kind of took a break and from doing anything. So in 2019, I just had the idea of doing a podcast and at the time, you know, uh, steven was, he was, he was a parent and he had very young boys and he was my number one draft pick to do this podcast with, because, number one, he's been with me in the woods, he knows all the key components, all the key players in the field, and so I liked his perspective on stuff because I would always show him a picture or a video of a Bigfoot or the paranormal and I would always ask him so what do you think? And he would give me his honest opinion and so, uh, so we ended up, I ended up starting Bigfoot club. I had to pick two different co-hosts at the time. Uh, we started off in October of 2019 and it was, it was, uh, it was rough going cause I didn't know anything about podcasting or editing audio or anything like that. So it was tough going at first and then I'm sure we'll probably get into it Up until current time I think in 2021, it was just me and Steven, and so since Stephen and I have been doing the show, the show has, you know, tripled in downloads and participation and people you know, emailing us and sending us messages, and so it's, you know, at this time, you know we don't do a lot of active stuff anymore.
Speaker 4:We don't do stuff in the field, we don't research, we don't. But if someone were to reach out to us, we would try to help them. Know, like the best of our camp, you know best that. You know that that we can. So at this time, right now, I I we don't really call us ourselves podcasters anymore. We call ourselves cryptic sports entertainers, so, uh, so we're kind of like the sports illustrated for people who do cryptid and paranormal investigations. So we kind of critique them on some of the stuff that they're doing, because I've done a lot of stuff in the field and I've seen a lot of stuff. So that's where we're at right now.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you guys, I love you. Lately, too, it seems like you guys get it. You're a platform that allows people to share their stories, right, and that's good. And again, that's that's one of the beauties of podcasting is because the more we talk, the more we share, the more connected we are and the more you realize well, hey, that weird thing that I experienced is maybe not that weird because somebody else experienced it.
Speaker 4:yeah and I, I think it it gives people the, the I, the idea that they're not alone. Because, like you know, most of the time that I would talk to people, whether it was paranormal or like uh, uh, cryptic stuff or you know, bigfoot stuff, uh, some of the people would go to their spouses or their uh, or their wives or something, and they would talk about it and they wouldn't feel comfortable or they they were kind of reluctant to go talk to, um, someone at at the, at the church, or maybe someone in law enforcement, and so they are afraid of being ridiculed. So this platform, you know, lets them know that, hey, they're not alone, this stuff happens, and so they're able to. You know, if their people are willing to come out and reach out to us. Uh, you know, we love to number one, we love to hear the story, but at the same time and I know a lot of podcasters don't do this, and Steven can back me on this that whenever we do talk to someone, we ask them how are they doing? That's really important to us, because some podcasters will just get the story they're excited, all right, this is a great story. And story they're excited, all right, this is a great story and then they'll just take off. But we like to ask the question like off air how are you doing? Do you need to talk?
Speaker 4:And so some of the people we've actually continued to talk to, uh, and counsel and it's like some of the people that, uh, one of the guys we did and I think season two, season three, he was having like night terrors constantly and I, to this day, I still talk to this guy and, uh, he doesn't want to, he doesn't want to know, he doesn't want anybody to know who he is. But I still talk to him and I counsel him and I explain to him why he had his incident and it made better sense to him after, you know, after we've talked like six times and uh, so now he's, he's living a bet. I think he's living a better life now since he had this incident that changed his life. So, but we do ask that question, john, we ask people if they're OK because, like a lot of times, these people who have these incidents, they're not, they're not looking for it, it just happens and it changes their life and they they have nowhere else to talk to or no one else to, you know, to grieve upon.
Speaker 3:But anyway, yeah, yeah, yeah, no, no, and, and that's good, and like, if I can say anything. So, uh, I don't know, y'all are way bigger than we are, but we've. The one of the beauties of the internet, right Is, is our little podcast has been downloaded in 47 different countries around the world.
Speaker 4:I don't even think we have that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so it's like I mean, we've got listeners from Europe, africa, asia, right, like literally everywhere. So if anybody who's listening to this, not just a you know cause, cause there are, I guess, how you saw, like Bigfoottype encounters around the world, right, there's a lot of different places. In Australia they've got a version. In Asia they've got a version, kind of thing, right, yes, South.
Speaker 4:America.
Speaker 3:So there's these kind of experiences around the world, yep, yep. So, even excluding Bigfoot, like there's supernatural experiences around the world. And again, you guys are a great place for people to share their stories and feel heard and all that. So, man, if anybody is listening, you got a story, you got something. Y'all's email is BigfootClub1. Not typed out number one, but then the number one. So, BigfootClub1 at gmailcom.
Speaker 4:Absolutely.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So anybody you got a story you want to share, um, and shoot these guys an email because it's always good to. It's better to to feel heard than to feel crazy right, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4:Yeah, absolutely, because, like at that, at the same time I've I've networked with a lot of people, different people, because different people in different, uh, denominations will have incidents and that makes it even. You know, they're reluctant to come out, but I've networked with so many people, so if I'm not able to help them, I can find someone you know that's available to help them. So, whether it's myself or you know someone from the church or someone from their background that they're more comfortable with. You know, we were able to do that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's great. That's great, um, well, cool. So let me, let me set the stage here on why we've got you on our show and I'd love to talk about Bigfoot. Maybe we will later, maybe we'll just do another episode and just talk about stuff, right, um, but uh, so I've known you, for what did we say about four years Four?
Speaker 2:years.
Speaker 3:So I guess a year or so after like time is really bad in my brain, so it's hard for me to keep track. But, a year or so, maybe a year and a half or maybe two, I don't know after I got to know you, because we used to work together- you started having some digestive issues and I remember you like you can only eat bananas and white bread or something like that.
Speaker 4:Correct. Yeah, yeah, that was go ahead, I'm sorry.
Speaker 3:No, no, no, no, no. Um, I was just saying you went to a doctor and they recommended the surgery. And this part I can't cause. It all gets kind of blurry in my head Right. I don't remember if there was like a concern for potential cancer, or it was for sure cancer or I don't know something. But they, you know what was going on. What was just that little part.
Speaker 4:So this happened like in December of 2020, and it led over to January 2021. I was, I was, I was not able to hold food down and I was losing. I think I lost like 30 pounds in like a month and a half, right, steven, like a month and a half. I wasn't, and like, whatever I ate, it would not stay down. I would just, I would just lose it. And so I I went to a doctor and I went to a gastrologist and they did um, an endoscope and uh, what's it called when they Colonoscopy?
Speaker 3:Colonoscopy yeah. The other side yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4:So I got in from both ends and they found that I had four huge polyps in my lower intestine and they were pretty big, and so they advised to have surgery to have them taken out, and so they advised to have surgery to have them taken out. So this was like in, I think, april or March, I had that procedure done and so I was going to be out for a month.
Speaker 3:because they said yeah, because I remember you took some time off from work.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:And that's like I remember, and I don't know how long you had been off yet, but you just hadn't come back and so but it was relatively soon after you had left. And so I just remember where we used to work. I was at the receptionist area and there's a couple of people standing around and we all kind of worked together. So I was just like hey, has anyone heard? You know how, Robert, how Robert's doing, and like I just it didn't register in my brain what they said. I and I still like, even now, I just can't believe what they said. They're like they're like robert died and I was like what, like whoa, what? And then whoever it was and I can't remember who it was because there's a bunch of us all standing around but they, you know, they explained you were like resuscitated, but you're in the hospital still and it's not good. And after that, like it's just like a blur, right.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Some point in time I got a chance to talk to you. I remember talking to you on the phone and you were still relearning how to talk. Yeah, and like it was just wild, so okay, so take me back after or in in, steven too. Steven's going to help fill in the blanks, cause, cause, Robert, you got some blanks right.
Speaker 4:So like you had the surgery or you're getting ready for surgery, like just start us off there, and like so, yeah, so they, they removed like six inches of my large intestine cause that's where these bulbs were at, and so they had to reattach it, and so they told me it would take a month to recover and, to be honest with you, I recovered really, really fast you did. Like within three days. I was walking, I was walking.
Speaker 3:Oh, I think I remember that too. Yeah, I was walking, yeah because it was interesting how quickly you recovered, but then like you disappeared again or something.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so, like I recovered really fast. So my FMLA was for a month, so I was going to write off a month, take some time off, relax, and that that was the plan. So I was going to come back. I think it was, um, I want to say it was probably like in may. I was going to come back may, yeah, um, something somewhere around there. So I was going to come back in may and so it was the end of May, uh, leading into the next month, and so, um, so I was able, I was, I was doing well, and as one morning I woke up and I remember calling you right, steven, yeah, I called you and I went to bed. This was on a Sunday night, it was Monday morning. I woke up and I couldn't feel my hands or my feet and I called you and I said I can't feel my hands or my feet. I don't know why they're like asleep and I can't wake them up. And what did you? Do you recall this conversation?
Speaker 2:I did, I was just, I remember I was okay, like I go. Is it? Is it because you cause remember you were going? You were going through some anxiety, too right, you were going through like some extreme anxiety that's right you get anxiety, you like it's, like it's bad.
Speaker 2:yeah, and I remember you went to your your doctor and he gave you some, uh, some new medication to anxiety start anxiety. And I think it was I think it was new because you said like I don't like this other medication because something I can't remember what was the side effect on it. But he had you try something new and I was just like, okay, your feet it just feels like it's constantly asleep. And you're like, yeah, and I was like I don't know man, like maybe it's a new medication that your doctor gave you. I'm not too sure.
Speaker 4:So you should probably call your doctor. And you were like, okay, I'll do that. I think he did, I'm not sure. So he told me, he told me to drop, quit taking it. So then, like within a couple of days, john, I was uh, I was having a hard time walking Like I would. I would get up and I would go take a shower. And then I struggled to get out of the shower for some reason, like I felt really weak and I and I just couldn't stand, so I had to lean against the wall, I had to constantly lean against the wall and I just kept falling and I think, um, I called my brother and I said, hey, there's something wrong, I need to go to the ER. I can't, I can't stand up. And he goes.
Speaker 4:Okay, this was like four o'clock and three o'clock in the morning, and so he came and picked me up and I was walking, I was, I was, I was okay at this time. I was walking out, I got my stuff, I locked the door, I was walking out and I fell down because our, our sidewalk was kind of, uh, uphill, and I fell down and he was able to come out and he goes what's wrong with you? I said I don't know and he said he picked me up and took me to the hospital and at that time I got, I got submitted, I got submitted to baylor and took me to the hospital and at that time I got submitted to Baylor and I'll try to speed this up a little bit. I got there. They couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. There was a neurologist there and every day, john, I was not able to. My legs were getting weaker and weaker and this was, I think I got admitted by.
Speaker 4:I think it was May the 25th and that was on a Tuesday. I think I got admitted by. I think it was May the 25th and that was on a Tuesday, I think. And then by Saturday I couldn't eat and I couldn't taste food and that day, I think, I coded. I think it was at night. Was it at night?
Speaker 2:Steven, when you coded it was around 5. 5 o'clock in the afternoon. If I remember correctly, it was probably like 4 or 5.
Speaker 4:So I was in the hospital, john, and at this time this numbing sensation was coming up. It was coming up my legs, it made it to my stomach, made it to my chest, so apparently, this numbness stopped my heart. It was stopping all my, all my muscles. I couldn't stand, I couldn't do anything and I, I, the last four hours before I, I, I coded, and luckily I was in the hospital and I was blessed to be in the hospital when it happened, I, I wasn't, I couldn't remember anything. So I do recall, whenever I did wake up, uh, my, my older brother was with me and he was showing me a video of a doctor talking to me, and I don't, I don't remember the video.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I talked to you that day too. It was earlier in the day and Steve was there and he called me and he said, hey, uh, I'm here with Robert. And I was like, hey, let me, let me talk to him. And I remember you were, just you were, you were breathing hard. I was like, hey, how are you feeling? You go? Uh, um, I don't know, like you were like struggling struggling to like you wanted to say words but you just couldn't.
Speaker 2:And I was like are you feeling bad? And he's. You were like a little like, and I was like I go, okay, so did you eat something? No, it was all one worded response. Okay, I was like all right, well, I go, are you too tired to talk? You're like, yeah, I go, okay, I'll let me talk to Steve. And I was like I go, I go. That's weird. He goes, yeah, he's, he's. When I'm trying to talk to him, he's like not, he's not. It feels like he's not there.
Speaker 4:Yeah, cause I think at that time I told the nurse that I couldn't breathe and so she came in and like she gave me like major attitude and she, she just put on a oxygen mask, she goes breathe in, and she walked out and I was having a hard time breathing and so I think eventually, you know, she's a key player, though, right.
Speaker 4:Yeah, she's a very key player in this so at this time I think it had reached my heart and I think Uncle Steve was with me, he left, and then Uncle Raymond came, came in and then I coded. So yeah, at this time, uh, from what I don't remember at this point what happened.
Speaker 2:So, steve, steve called me and he was like hey, did you get a call from raymond? I said no, why? Because he just called me right now and I I think something's wrong. I am not. At that time I was like no, I didn't want to accept it. I was like it's probably a miscommunication, he goes. Well, I'm turning around right now, I go. Okay, I have Raymond's number, let me call him. And I called Raymond and I can hear a lot of commotion in the background. I can hear a lot of commotion in the background and he goes hello.
Speaker 2:I was like Raymond, it's Steven, he goes. Yeah, I was just like what's going on? Uncle Steve said you called him and he's going back, what's going on? And he's all like he's gone. I was like what do you mean? He's gone? Like what is that? I was like.
Speaker 2:So I was getting like the rage and, yeah, you know, getting all that, those emotions back of, like I go, what do you mean? He's gone. I just talked to him. He goes, he's gone. His heart stopped, he's not breathing and I was like what, what do they do? What's what's going on in the background? Like I just didn't want to accept it because they're working on him right now. Uh, they're, they're, you know, they're trying to bring him back.
Speaker 2:And I was like I was like raymond, like I don't understand, like what's what's? He goes, he goes, I gotta let you go and he let him. And I was like I was already thinking the worst. I was like, okay, all right, and I called. I remember I called blair, my wife. I was like okay, all right, and I called. I remember I called Blair, my wife, and I and I broke down and I was like I got Robert, robert's gone. And she was like wait what? And I was like Robert's gone, like Raymond called me right now and they said that he just he flatlined and he's just like okay. I was like I don't know what to do. I, the boys, are here, I'm watching the boys, you're at work. I don't know what to do.
Speaker 2:And that was whenever I'll speed this up Like she called her dad and he was, and whenever they were still living here, my father-in-law and he was like he got there in like 10 minutes, literally 10 minutes and he was like, hey, uh, I'm going to take you to the hospital and but during that 10 minutes, while I was waiting on him, I was like I already thought the worst, I already I thought I lost you already.
Speaker 2:I was like it's been minutes. There's no way. And then I called him and he answered real quick, he goes, he's back. And I was just like wait what? And I was like looking at the time, I was like this it feels like it's been like an hour. You know how long was it?
Speaker 2:Does anyone know about how long you were? Technically, to me it was like probably 10 minutes, it was probably really 10 minutes. But I was like, okay, he's back, I go, what's going on? He goes well. His heart stopped for seven minutes and I was all like, okay, so what are they doing? Now? He goes well.
Speaker 2:They said that it's anything past three minutes. Is it's like really it's bad, it's brain damage. And I was like, I was like okay, and he goes, they're going to test them to see if, like, if his brain is anything different or something like that. And I was like, okay, father-in-law's gonna drive me off and uh, yeah. So my father came and you know, at this point the boys saw, like me and like almost in a wreck, and yeah, they they kind of knew and picked up and they were like, what's wrong with uncle robert? I said, uh, he's in the hospital right now. Uh, he's, he's sick.
Speaker 2:I didn't want to tell them right, but I think they think they knew. But I was just saying he's sick and I'm just going to go to the hospital and I'm going to check up on him. And yeah, you know, put on my brave face, which I shouldn't have. I should have just let them know what was going on. They were there at that time. They're really smart, they still are. But yeah, they stopped. Yeah, but yeah, yeah, I went to the hospital and I do you. When they brought you back, I don't think you were still out yeah, they.
Speaker 4:They had put a ventilator on me and yeah um and they yeah go ahead.
Speaker 2:So I remember getting to the hospital and uh yeah, did you see me at all?
Speaker 4:yeah you saw me, yep, I was sedated.
Speaker 2:You were sedated. Uh, you were out and uh I was there. I forgot who was. Who else was there? I think steve. Steve was already there too, raymond um, I think at the time grandma was on her way. I could, I couldn't really remember, but I remember going to the hospital and I was just like I was looking at my phone because I kept thinking that raymond was gonna call back and say you're gone again, like I didn't know how, like this was serious, yeah, so, um, yeah, I just remember going to where raymond was at and raymond gave me a hug and he looked like he was, like he was crying and he was just saying he's back.
Speaker 4:This is my, uh, my older brother.
Speaker 3:Yes, yes, this is my other uncle Uh so when you, when you coded out was it, was it only one time? Yes, Okay, so then so then I guess immediately after is like I guess I don't know how else to say it Recovery kind of stuff began like I guess I don't know how to say it recovery kind of stuff began.
Speaker 4:Yeah, my, my older brother told me that the late, the same lady that gave me attitude that she the key player, the key player, she, he said that she came in with her superwoman's, uh, with her supergirls. Cape on yeah and she started doing cpr on me and it was three ladies and they were all taking turns until until they brought me back, and so it was three ladies that did CPR on me for seven minutes without stopping. Dang.
Speaker 4:And so I gotta go. I still gotta go back to the hospital and thank them. I have their names. I still gotta go find them. But, um, but that's what he told me, cause, like, from that point on, I think that was on a Saturday night, right, think that was on a Saturday night, right, that was on a Saturday night, right yeah.
Speaker 2:Because Blair was working and she didn't get off till, I think, six. So this happened like around like whenever she was working, I was like I can't, I have to go. Um, and I, yeah, I had the. This is whenever we had two cars. So I was just thinking I was like I'm gonna take the boys whenever we had two cars. So I was just thinking I was like I'm gonna take the boys, but she was scared of how I tunnel vision I was and she didn't want me driving right?
Speaker 2:So I think another key player there was my father-in-law got there in like 10 minutes and was like I'm gonna drive you and then I'm gonna take the boys, we're gonna take the boys to spend, spend the night with us and you just need to take the time that you need. I was like, please, thank you. I didn't ask for it, but thank you, right. But yeah, no, I was just happy to be there at the hospital and yeah, it was just that those two days I felt like I think it was, or the next day, yeah, because we figured it out on Sunday, sunday or Monday, can't remember it was all. Now it's all a blur, so yeah, so yeah, so what?
Speaker 3:yeah so, so what was it technically that caused your heart to stop beating? So what's the name of the thing?
Speaker 4:Here's the thing it's called. It's called Guillain-Barre syndrome and it's it's a bacteria that gets in your system and it turns your immune system I mean your, your immune system against your nervous system. So it thinks it thinks it's a, it's a disease and it just attacked it. So what I was suffering from is that my immune system was attacking all my muscles, all my nerves from my muscles.
Speaker 2:And it always starts from the feet and it works its way up. Yeah, right, so yeah, that was another key thing that I'm so glad that I remembered.
Speaker 4:Yes, and I called you and told you. So let me just retract it. Let me just go back a little bit on this. John, is that like when I was going through the, the, the colorectomy before I got sick?
Speaker 4:I was a nurse uh, her name is shay and I became friends with her while I was going through my, uh, recovery from my colorectomy before I got sick, and so we became instant friends. We traded numbers, she was from West Dallas, I was from Oak Cliff, so we kind of clicked. And so while I was in the hospital and they couldn't, the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with me, and so she was discharging somebody. When my two brothers and and my mom were coming in, I think that weekend, and they already met her too there, they had already met her, yeah, and so they were crossing paths at the entrance and they, she says, what are y'all doing here? And she goes, robert's here. And she goes, so what for it? Goes because, uh, he, his you know his body got numb and he coded. And she goes I'm gonna discharge this guy and I'm going to go up and talk to y'all. And so she went up and I'll let you tell the story for me, because I wasn't there.
Speaker 2:So before that happened, we were all this was. I think this was Sunday. I want to say this was Sunday or Monday the next day. Um, joe, your cousin Joe was there. Joe, your cousin Joe was there. Big Joe was there. Mary was there. Grandma, I think Christopher and Carol and Albert already left these are my cousins.
Speaker 2:Yes, all family members and Raymond and Steve and Richard, and I remember when Richard got there he was so angry you could tell in his face how pissed off he was that the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong, cause he was. He'd asked him once. He asked that, um, that doctor with the, the, the Harley Davidson, harley Davidson, uh, cap, cap on on his head, he goes what is wrong with my brother, like, what is wrong with Robert, and they're like, well, we're still trying to figure that out. Uh, there's some type of, you know, paralysis or something that that it just he goes. And he just sat and sat down and he was like I think he needed to step away because he didn't like the answer. So we're just all trying to figure out and that's whenever, um Shay came in and she, she gave everybody a hug.
Speaker 2:She gave me a hug and she goes how are you doing? And I was like I'm not good, you know, I'm trying to figure out what Robert. And so she was just like like getting ideas, like so, tell me what's going on. And we're like just telling her what was going on. She goes, okay, um. So like what, what was he feeling numb at? And I go, I go, um, robert was feeling, I remember he called me and Robert said that he couldn't feel his feet and then, like I think the next day it was like it was his hands she goes, it started at his feet and I was like, yes, it sounds like Guillain-Barre, guillain-barre syndrome. And I was like what, what is that? And then Joe was next to me, our cousin.
Speaker 2:he was like, oh yeah, the Dallas Cowboy player had, he had it, he had it like six or seven years ago he had it and then, yeah, they caught his early, they caught his early, he didn't code or anything like that, but they were able to catch it early. She goes. You need to tell his doctor or whoever's in charge here to to test for that, because they do not test for that, that you have to specifically ask for a spinal tap for them to test it and we're like, okay. So that guy came in with the, the harley davidson cap on and he was all like, um, yeah, so yeah, so, yeah, you know it started with his hands and stuff. And I was like, no, it started with his feet. He goes well on the clipboard.
Speaker 2:Whenever he came in and said that, that it started with his hands, I go, I go, that was whenever I think you were, you were out of it. So am I. Can 100, 100 tell you that I called him before all this went bad, that it started with his. It started with his feet. He couldn't feel his feet and then it worked his way up and then it said it was like I think the last time I talked to him on the phone before he came to the hospital said that he couldn't feel his hands now and he, like, he looked at the, like the ground, likeating, like, looking, he goes, I'll be right back.
Speaker 2:And then he brought in another doctor and the doctor is all like, okay, so let me get some clarification here, because I think there's some some, some some type of misunderstanding here. Did it start with his feet or did it start with his hands? I go, it started with his feet, I go. And then, before he uh, before he, I guess, guess, went to the hospital, he called me and said that he couldn't feel his hands. He goes, okay, he goes. Well, we don't know. That does sound like it's a symptom from Guillain-Barre, but if you're permitted, like we permission, we can do a spinal tap. And we're like, yes, like we want to figure out what's going on. So they did the spinal tap and I saw that I was not pleasant I, I woke, actually I woke up.
Speaker 4:So let me, let me just, let me just let me just say this, john, that that this, this lady shay, she was not a nurse, she was a, she was a nurse's aide. So I was, I was extremely blessed to have to meet, to meet this lady, because without her, I don't think I would be here right now, without her at all. So I think, God.
Speaker 4:I think God put her in the path to be so I could be friends with her, so she could save me, because I told her afterwards that she saved me and she. But I'll just say this that I do recall them turning me over. I woke up just for like maybe a couple minutes and then the needle went into my back and I passed out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I saw that and I was not.
Speaker 4:So they end up. They pulled fluid from my spinal cord and they tested it and they showed that my immune system was on full red alert and it was like attacking. So they never said it was right, it was.
Speaker 2:Guillain-Barre. That's another thing too, that pissed off Richard. He goes, is it Guillain-Barre? Yes or no, he goes. Y'all have tests here to say that right, and they're like yeah, and he goes. Well, why aren't you telling them that it's Guillain-Barre? Richard was like a madman that time. I never, never seen that side of him before nice.
Speaker 4:So at this point they figured it was guillain-barre yep, john. And so they ended up giving me this, this dosage. It was like five days worth it. It was like a, it was like a iv.
Speaker 2:I forget what was it called man I wish hemoglobin, hemoglobin um like a treatment.
Speaker 4:Yeah yeah, so they, at this time, I don't, I don't, I wasn't, I was not awake, right?
Speaker 2:you, you know okay, so you were awake. So whenever I got there, uh, saturday, okay, you woke up. I don't know if you remember that you woke up and uh, you, that's whenever you were trying to say hey, I'm sorry'm sorry. Right, because you knew how bad it was. You woke up, you saw the ventilator on you.
Speaker 4:So I would just say this, john, is that I woke up and my hands were tied and I had a ventilator so I couldn't talk. And so when I looked at Steve, I knew I was in a different room. And I looked at Steven and the look of concern on his face was overwhelming and I was trying to tell him I'm sorry for putting him through that and he was telling me he's telling me, stop trying to talk, stop trying to talk. Yeah, and I was like because, like I think that night I had woken up, john, and in the middle of the night I woke up and, uh, my, my childhood friend, juan, was there and he hates hospitals. He was there spending a night with me. And so I woke up and I don't think I've ever told you a story, but I was.
Speaker 4:I was, it was in a loop, like I could. I was right by the nurse's station and I could hear what they were talking about, what they were doing for the weekend, and I would wake up and I would fall back asleep, and then I would wake up again and I would hear the same conversation, the same conversation, and then I had a nurse's aide come in and says hey, conversation. And then I had a nurse's aide come in and says, hey, I'm so, and so I'm gonna be taking care of you. I'm not good at charades, I know you got a ventilator on and then I fall asleep and I'd wake up in the same conversation, and so I thought that was really really weird. So, yeah, but anyway. But from this point on I I was given this dosage of this hemoglobin, and it was five days worth, and so at the time I could barely move, and as soon as they were done with it, I was able to move my upper arms. I was able to move them the first day.
Speaker 2:That was whenever you were able to move your hands and move your arms and I remember I was like this, is it this, this? Because that bothered me the whole, the whole time. That was the same. That was the same night before. This is another little key in of what I was saying on the dreams part. That was whenever grandpa came to my dream and said everything's gonna be all right, right.
Speaker 4:So he's like he's like he knew that we're gonna figure out the next day. So, because I don't want to dwell too much on all this stuff right now, but yeah, um, I'll say this, john is that you know? I was able, I was able to move and I had to go through therapy. So this happened in May the 29th and I guess I woke up on June the 1st and they were afraid that I didn't have any brain function or I wasn't thinking cognitively yet. So I asked to write. I said give me something to write. So I was writing.
Speaker 4:I said what's today's date? And they said it's June the 1st. I go, I got to pay rent, you're so responsible. And so my brother said he goes, it's okay, we'll, we'll take care of that, we're gonna take care of it. So, uh, at this point, uh, I was they. I think it was eight days later, they pulled out the ventilator. I was able to talk and I was, I was, I was, I wanted like to eat, so and they ended up giving me crackers and I think Sierra Mist, Sierra Mist, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4:I wanted the Sierra Mist so bad, but anyway. So from May the 29th, I would say, they moved me to another floor in which I started doing rehab. And I would just say this Baylor is probably the best facility for rehab. I would just say that Baylor is probably the best facility for rehab. I'll just say that they were. They were really good to me. And so from May 29th, I think it was like from, uh, june, uh, I was, I was there until, I think, june the 15th and I did a bunch of rehab and so I was barely able to move. And and then, I think, from there they moved me to another facility in Grand Prairie.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I remember when they. I remember they moved you, so I must've talked to you sometime during that window.
Speaker 4:So I think from that time I had enough strength to hold my phone then, because before that I could not hold my phone, I could not hold like a spoon or a fork. I struggled because they, they wanted me, they didn't want anybody to feed me, they wanted me to do it on my own. And so I struggled doing that, I struggled holding the phone, and so I think, once I reached out to you, I was able to dial a number, put the phone on my, on my, on my stomach, and then talk to you on speaker. So so, uh, but at this time I think, uh, I, I, I moved to another facility and, and uh, grand Prairie, which is probably one of the worst facilities, but I think, at the same time, I needed it. I needed worse than the best. In a way, it was the worst and the best because I needed this. I needed this too, cause at this time, right now, john, I will say this I was broken spiritually, I was broken mentally, I was broken physically, I was broken mentally, I was broken physically and I was, and I prided myself on not breaking down and crying in front of Steven, because you know I raised him and you know we had so many people in our life die and had to be the rock for him.
Speaker 4:And I, I and I broke down in front of him and I, and it killed me to do that. It killed me to do that because, you know, I've always, I've always been available for him. So I couldn't hold it. I couldn't, cause he would tell me what's wrong, what's wrong, and I and I would, I would break down, cause I told him, I said I go, I can't, I can't do this, this is too hard, it's too hard. And he would tell me cause no, you can do it, you can do it, I believe in you, I believe in you. And so this place I was at, it was really bad. But at the same time I decided, okay, I'm going to cry this out, I'm going to, I'm going to break down a couple of times and then I'm going to be done with it, and then I'm going to, I'm going to bust my butt from here on out. So, from there on out, I think I was there until, I think, august, august, the 15th, I think, or something. Then I went home, I moved to my brother's house.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 4:And he was taking care of me. At this time, I still couldn't walk, I was in a wheelchair, and so my sister-in-law and my brother were great. They did great things for me. I was blessed to have them, and they motivated the crap out of me.
Speaker 3:And your love for Steven must have motivated you too, because I remember talking to you one time and it may have been a fake, it till you make it kind of mentality, but you're like, no, I'm going to beat this so much faster than everyone thinks that it's possible.
Speaker 4:You know what? Because I told, I told the doctors at a big where I said I said what's the record for for beating this? And they said they go, cause we think two years, I go, I'm going to beat it, I go, I'm going to beat it. And they said okay, I said you're going to come back here and and walk and show us? I said absolutely, I'm gonna do it.
Speaker 4:And so I, there were some days I was real confident. There's some days I just, I, mentally, spiritually, john, I just broke down. Yeah, because I, I, you know my mom, my mom, was so angry at baylor. She was so angry and she wanted, she wanted to sue them too. Yeah, she wanted to sue them too. And I and I told her, I said them too, yeah, she wanted to sue them too. And I and I told her, I said I told my mom, I said mom, I don't want to start this recovery on a negative note. I just really don't. I go, I don't care how I got it, I, I care where I'm going, the outcome of the outcome of it, that's what I want, because it was a baylor, a baylor employee, that brought you back.
Speaker 2:Right. They could have easily just said he's gone.
Speaker 4:Yeah, no, seven minutes of doing the resuscitate, yeah Like so I, I, I, you know they would tell me this physical therapy. People would tell me don't work too hard Cause, like Guillaume Bray, it, it, it takes away your strength, like put it on your socks. That would tire me out for the whole morning. I couldn't do it. But they would tell me, because don't exercise too much, you're going to wear yourself out. And I was thinking to myself. I said you shouldn't tell me that, because I'm going to do it more.
Speaker 4:Now I'm going to do it more. And so the physical therapist and Grand Prairie would come to me and go hey, you ready to exercise? I go, yeah, she goes. Well, get up and come do it. So I had to. I had to get a board and put it on the bed and put it on the wheelchair and slide myself over to it and and roll myself with it. You know, even though I couldn't feel my hands, I would roll myself over there and I would do these exercises. And if she told me to do 30, I did 40. If she told me to do 50, I did 70. And she goes you're doing it too hard. I said I'm gonna and I would go back. I'm gonna, and I would go back to my room and I would exercise more and even when I got tired, john, I would tell steven when he'd come see me I'd be laying in bed.
Speaker 4:I said, move my legs. So he'd grab my knee and grab my ankle and just like, move my arms. I mean, I mean, move my legs up and down until I was waking up the body. Yeah, I was just, I was just constantly doing it and I and I remember at this point, when I was at at at my brother's house, I would call you more free, more, more frequently and I'd ask you, hey, what's going on? And hey, you know stuff like that. And I would. I would call Caitlin too and say, hey, what do you need? You need, you need me? I go, do you need to talk to me about something, or you need to find something? I can help you work through it. And so she would call me every now and then and ask me about work and stuff.
Speaker 4:But anyway, but I'll just say this I I would not wish this upon my worst enemy, because this, this thing is the, the hardest thing and I mean this with all my heart, this is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life is to, yeah, is to wakingaken up, to wake up your body, wake up your, your, your spiritual strength and your mental strength, because I mean, you know, to have all three of them down, that's probably the worst thing in the world.
Speaker 4:And I, you know, I never, never, never, I never thought about suicide, never thought about it, but I thought about giving up and not walking again. And I, after a while, I just never, I never thought about suicide, never thought about it, but I thought about giving up and not walking again. And I, after a while, I just I couldn't, I couldn't do it, I couldn't fathom that. I said no, I mean, cause my like I was saying before and I'm sorry I'm rambling a little bit, but my mom wanted to like like I said she wanted to sue Baylor.
Speaker 4:And I told my mom, I said I go, what if God did this to me to pull me off the street because I was going to be in an accident or I was going to get robbed or shot or something? What if this is God's way of saying he's humbling me and he's taking me off the street and he's doing this to me so I can learn to be stronger mentally, spiritually, physically? What if that? And she looked at me and she goes, okay, she goes, I won't try to sue them, I'll let it go, man.
Speaker 3:You know. To that thought my brother Paul. He just sent me a song this morning and I just had to look it up in my text messages. I can't remember who it's by. It looks like maybe the singer is Jerry Raspberry, I guess I just want to give credit. But the name of the song is God Redeems All he Allows, and that's exactly what I'm thinking as you're saying this God. He allowed this to happen to me and he's going to work it for his good and for your good.
Speaker 4:And you know what, john, I was not angry. I was not angry at God. I didn't say hey, know, hey, why have you forsaken me? I never thought that I was. I was just like you know. I was just thinking, you know, I just I can't do this. This is too hard. This is too hard for me, even for you know. I would like you know. If you're going to do this to me, great, I'm just going to accept it and go. And then I realized I said you know what this is? This is I could be a testament. I could be a testament for someone else yeah, you know well.
Speaker 3:So how long? How long did the recovery take before you came back to work and all that?
Speaker 4:so I I made roughly I made it back to to my brothers on august the 15th I was, I was walking. So this, this really happened on May the 25th and then I was in the hospital. I made it back to my brothers in August. By September I was on a walker, October I was in a cane and by November I was driving and so I made it back to work, I think on December 15th, Yep.
Speaker 2:I was like why are you doing this? I know I remember you showing up too.
Speaker 3:And I was like, because even then you weren't quick. You know what I mean?
Speaker 4:No, I was shuffling. Yep, I was shuffling around and I'll be honest with you I've told Steven this, he's gotten really angry with me. When I went back to work I couldn't feel, from my knee down on both legs, on both legs, I couldn't feel it.
Speaker 3:And.
Speaker 4:I couldn't tell when.
Speaker 3:I was hitting the gas or hitting the brake.
Speaker 4:Let's not do that again. But yeah, I was determined. I was determined because the hospital wanted me to go on disability forever. Yeah, and I told them no, I can't do that, I can't do that, that's not me, I can't do that. Sorry, that's what you want me to do. Because they said we don't think you should drive, we think you should get a DART pass and we can help you get, you know, the disability hell.
Speaker 2:They told you that. Yeah, hell, no. I said you now want to get on a dart? No, no, no.
Speaker 4:I said no I'm good, I I'm, I'm, I'm gonna get past this and I I remember telling everybody I said I'm gonna make it back, I'm gonna. And I think some people at work didn't believe me or didn't think I was gonna make it back. And you know, I made it back and uh, I and uh I was. I was really proud of myself. I was really proud of myself on the struggle that I went to. And you know what?
Speaker 4:What was really odd, john, is that you know there was a lot of things in my, in my life that I cared. I cared about comic books, I cared about football, I cared about college football. I care, I came back, I didn't care for that anymore, that didn't interest me anymore and I quit buying comic books. I don't watch that much football. I'd rather be alive and just experience life than think about that stuff. And I don't know, it's just a lot of things change. I don't get angry. I don't get angry so much anymore. I don't get angry. I don't get angry so much anymore. You know, I don't get, I don't try not to get road range that much anymore. And like you know, like you were saying earlier, I don't, I don't take stuff personal, it's just business. It's just business.
Speaker 2:So I was the same way, too.
Speaker 2:I was very thankful that you were here. Yeah, I was very thankful that you were here, yeah, and you know, I used to go into the hospital or go in to see you. If someone cut me off, I was like okay, you know, it was all good. You know, I didn't get angry like how I used to. I felt like if I did something would backfire. I don't know, I was very, very cautious, super cautious about everything. Yeah, you know, something spilled. I was super cautious about everything. You know something spilled. I'm like okay, well, I guess I have to. You know, something's stopping me from going where I need to go or something.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it was just Well, man and God is so good the way he uses each of us in each other's life. There's this priest that I love, Father Mike. He said this once and it's always stuck with me. He said God writes straight on crooked lines and so all the things, the wild things that happen in our lives, all the messed up families that we have and all that kind of stuff, right, but he still works it all for good. And I know for, like Robert, for you, like I prayed for you every single night and, as a consequence, like my prayer life improved because I was focused on prayer, Right, I knew like I could.
Speaker 2:There was literally nothing I could do, you know, but I know God could do something with it and so, just seeing all these different ways, I'm sure and same thing for Steven, I'm probably so many people you have no idea how, how this experience positively affected their lives oh yeah, you know, I I always I don't think I told you this, but I'm pretty sure the doctors, the nurses that helped you around that they were one of them, or maybe all of them were all like why am I doing this? Right, they were probably in the midlife crisis or something. And then they see you come back. Yeah, they see you not only come back to live, but they see you come back walking. That probably motivated them more, like that's why I'm here.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I didn't say this part, john too, like when I first started walking in September I went back to the hospital on the cane and I struggled really hard from getting from the parking lot to the building, but I made it there and I caught the staff that first got me. I caught them in a meeting. They were in a big meeting and I asked the front desk. I said, is the staff back there? He goes, yeah, go back there. They want to see you. Go, go, go, go. So I went back there and the head doctor, the one that was so positive with me, he was talking and the whole staff was facing him and he saw me. He stood up and they all stood up and turned around and they all started crying and oh, and I walked up to him and they were all hugging me and I told him and they, they were, they were, they were saying he goes. You know, we don't get to see a lot of times.
Speaker 2:You know the end product Yep yeah.
Speaker 4:Thank you so much for coming back and talking. You know, and like my legs are shaking because I was so tired and they go. Do you need to sit down? I go, I've sat down long enough, I don't want to see that anymore. So I thanked each person that put the hands on me. I thanked them and then I went down to the.
Speaker 4:I went down to the ICU and I walked. They were having a meeting there too and I walked up and the doctors there were looking at me and they were talking and they were like they kind of felt like I was watching them and they kind of the doctor stopped and looked at me and goes can I help you? And I turned to him and I said I pointed to the room, I said I was in this room last year and I came back to thank everybody and he goes. He looked at me, he goes you're the Guillain-Barre guy, right? And I go, I am the Guillain-Barre guy and he goes. Oh my God, you're walking and he walking. And he walked up to me and he hugged me and some of the other nurses that they put their hands on me came up and hugged me and stuff, and like the doc, the one doctor, the one that was steven was talking about earlier. He was a nurse practitioner and he was like doubting what was going on with me. He walked up to me, he goes, he goes. It's good to see you walking. It really is.
Speaker 4:I said I go thanks to you guys, thanks to you guys, I mean to you guys, I mean I, I wouldn't, I wouldn't be here, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you guys. So, um, so I think you know I, I again, I was blessed to have such a good group of people and I, I will, I will say this like for people like you, john, and people, coworkers, that reached out and try to, you know Lisa, who tried to find out what's going on for me, and people that went to the hospital. I had friends that I hadn't talked to in years and they showed up and the. You know the real, not not that I'm trying to be negative here, but you know when, when you have something bad happen to you, you find out who really loves you.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:And the people who don't need to be in your life, work them way, the work that work themselves out, yep. And so everybody, everybody that was really negative toward me, just disappeared. They just scattered. And everybody that loved me and I, you know, I'll say this I felt loved. I felt loved when everybody was asking for me and I know when I, when I make it back to work, there was some people that I didn't see for years and they would just, they just ran up to me and just hugged me and I go. What's going on? It's because I haven't seen you since you've been back. I go, really, he goes. Yeah, I thought I saw you. He goes. Maybe I just saw an email, I don't know.
Speaker 3:But, but anyway, I know I've been rambling a little bit, john, and I'm sorry. No, no, it's, it's just, it's an amazing story. It's the kind of story that I think people need to hear, because it it gives us all a moment to reflect. Isn't it amazing how short-term memory we all have?
Speaker 3:yeah you know, it's like these crazy things happen and and like like you're saying, like oh, or Steven was saying I was really calm, or I was really patient, or whatever, and man, you'd think those lessons would last a lifetime. But I know if if I'm any kind of, if similar to anyone else out there, it's the lesson doesn't last nearly long enough. So I think it's always good to hear stories that make you pause and think about the important things.
Speaker 2:And I was going to ask too I don't know if you ever talked to John about this, but do you remember that whenever you broke down in front of me, one of those, those sentences that you were saying, like you know, you were saying I can't do this, I'm scared. Another, another thing that really impacted me is like I was gone for seven minutes. I don't remember any. I don't. I don't remember if I was in heaven. I don't remember if I was in hell, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 2:And like I had the hardest time trying to come up something positive and the only thing I could say is I go, you were probably in heaven, but you saw, you saw. You probably didn't see her. You probably heard my mom saying it's not your time yet and if you would have saw her, or you saw grandpa you know papa deal, victor, you know other people that we've lost. You wouldn't want it to stay and they were like, no, you can't stay, it's not your time yet. So they probably like erased your memory or race when you came back. That was part of the deal send him back, but erase what he saw. That's the only thing I could think of and I and I wanted to hear your perspective on that. John, you know you're, you're gone for seven minutes. That's a long time, yeah, a very long time. You, some people I've heard so many people when they pass away, they flatline for like a couple minutes and they remember seeing like something or something bad, something good.
Speaker 2:So yeah, you know, I wanted to hear your perspective. You know someone like you know you're religious and stuff. Have you heard something like that?
Speaker 3:yeah, I've. I've, actually I've heard several stories where, um, so I'm I'm not super surprised that robert can't remember anything. Um, I've heard stories where, kind of like, where you're saying people are like oh or or um, so I'm not super surprised that Robert can't remember anything. I've heard stories where, kind of like, where you're saying people are like oh, or who is it? Your grandmother, or who was it? Who's like it's beautiful.
Speaker 2:Oh, my mom.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we were just talking about it, yeah, yeah. So it's like there's times where people have these experiences where it's beautiful, it's warm, there's a light, they feel like they're around loved ones, right, welcoming them into the afterlife, things like that. Those are way more common than anything negative, which is maybe a good thing, I hope. But every now and then you get people who come back and they're like oh man, I do not like I've got to change everything, because what I saw was like every version of hell you can imagine, kind of thing. But I've heard lots of stories where people go yeah, it's, it's like I just woke up and I don't remember my dream, you know.
Speaker 4:Yeah, because, like I recall waking up from you know, from coding and my up from.
Speaker 2:You know, from coding and my, that was another thing too is that steve was saying he goes, don't tell him what happened because I don't even. I don't think he knows and we're like I think you were. Luckily you weren't talking, but you know, whenever you got to the writing part I was like we can't really I don't want to lie to him yeah, because like once, once they took the ventilator off, um, I think, uh, I uh I forgot who the.
Speaker 4:I think it was Steve or Raymond. No, they asked me hey, did you see mom? I mean, did you see dad, did you see Sandra? And I would looked at him like inquisitively, like yeah, what are you talking about?
Speaker 3:What are?
Speaker 4:you talking about, and he says and like my other brother was telling him, I could see my other brother, like you, you know, doing like his hand under his throat, like stop stop, don't do that, yeah, yeah and so, um, I think raymond came in after afterwards and he says do you remember what happened?
Speaker 4:and I go. No, I go what happened. He goes because you died for seven minutes and you came back. He goes, you don't remember anything, I go. No, I felt, it felt like to me, it felt like a dream, because, like the last four hours that I was alive, john, I don't remember.
Speaker 3:Kind of loopy anyway, yeah, I was really loopy.
Speaker 4:I couldn't. I think my brother was trying to get me to eat. It was chicken with some vegetables or something, but it tastes like sand. I didn't have any taste buds, I didn't have any flavor, nothing. I go, I don't want it.
Speaker 3:I like yeah I go, I don't want it, I can't eat, I don't want it yeah, but uh, I think there's probably a very strong medical reason why you may not remember either, right? Right literally, your nerves are not working. So if if your brain is not working properly and your nerves are not working properly, then your mind may have had an impaired ability to retain any kind of memory, you know.
Speaker 2:It's a possibility, yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah, because when I woke up, when I took the ventilator off, like I can't remember what side of my face was drooping right, your right side, right side was drooping, and so I had to go through speech therapy for it. Yep, and like I was, like I was, I was so at the time, I was so pissed because I was, I was doing speech therapy.
Speaker 2:I go I, go I can speak.
Speaker 4:What the heck yeah?
Speaker 4:and, like you, had a hard time yeah, and like they were, they were giving me puzzles and quizzes and I had to color a bunch. Yeah, and like they would, they would tell me stuff. It goes, okay. This lady goes to chicago. She got two children. Then she goes to a hotel. The hotel burns down at this date. What happened? So, because who's with her? I go, the two children, I go. Yeah, it goes. What date did the hospital burn down? I go on this date, because why was she there? She was on vacation so. So I had to answer all these questions. I go, okay, can I stop doing this now?
Speaker 4:yeah, yeah, but, uh, but it is just something I had to go through at the time and you know, it's one of those things that again I, I mean, I'm gonna always say this I, I was think I was just blessed, you know, I was, you know, handpicked, well that's yeah, that's like not everyone gets a second chance no um, even though our god is a god of second chances not not all of us, you know it, or at least not in such a dramatic way. Yeah.
Speaker 3:And it definitely impacted your life. Do you think it's changed or developed over time? Because I do think it positively affected you, yeah.
Speaker 4:I think so. I mean I. At that time there was a lot of people. There was a lot of people that I in previous jobs and people in my past that I did not have good relations with, and so I sought a lot of people that I left in a negative way and I said hey, man, I'm sorry, I need to make this up to you. And it was like people who just hadn't talked to in years.
Speaker 4:And I went up to this one, this one coworker that I used to work with, and I hated this guy. I tried to like him at first on and I couldn't. I couldn't like him, and I walked up to him and I said hey, man, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I treated you bad and I'm here to tell you that I want you. I hope you forgive me. And he hugged me he goes. I already forgave you and I go, thank you, I thank you so much.
Speaker 4:And so I went to a lot of people I think some of Stephen's friends I didn't have good relations with, and I reached out to them and I said look, man, I was immature and I'm sorry, please forgive me. And I think I surprised him whenever I did that and he was just standing, he goes man, okay, that's cool, I I'll take your apology and I I did that with a lot of people and I think it changed me, you know, and I just I was just around just doing the right thing. Constantly I go well, no, we got to do the right thing, I got to do the right thing. That's not the right thing to do.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So I think you were. I think you were imprinted somehow in this experience, even if only in your subconscious, because you didn't have the ability to hold on to a memory. I think there's something there, because it's not easy for many people, especially men, it's not easy to say sorry, right, but saying sorry is a whole lot easier than asking for forgiveness.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And when you have the courage to ask for forgiveness, not just apologize, but to ask that person can you forgive me? Like that, it absolutely does something to you, right? And we have confession and reconciliation, the sacrament of healing, where we go to God and we say this is what I did, I'm sorry, can you forgive me? And God of course he says yes. I forgive you. I love you. You're my most beloved son. Come on, you know, yeah, so I think that's it's good.
Speaker 4:Did you? Did you notice a change in me?
Speaker 3:or whenever I came back, or yeah, I would say for sure, cause you've always been a kidder, right, and I think it's easy to, especially again us guys, right, it's easy to pick on somebody for fun and not not being malicious, necessary necessarily, but it's easy to kind of pick too a little too hard or too far, you know um and I would say that that you are much gentler in that arena. Now you know what I mean um yeah you would much rather be the recipient than to give out a joke like that, right?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I don't know. I mean, it's just one of those things that I'm just, I'm just happy to be here. Yeah, I'm happy, I'm, I'm blessed to get a second chance. I'm, I'm, I'm going to take advantage of it. You know, I'm going to be a better person and just do better things and and try to make an impact, whether it's on my life or someone else that I'm close to. I'm just going to, I'm just going to try to do it the best I can.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so is that the kind of thinking about like if you could tell, if you just grab somebody by the shoulders and shake them and tell them something, because, again, we don't always get these second chances. But it's like, if you could tell someone do this before it's too late, what would be that thing that you'd tell them?
Speaker 4:You know. I would just tell them that you know that stressing over a job or stressing over just minor things, those little things that you know, that will break a person's soul or break a person's will. You know, take a step back, look at it, and it's not that bad. I mean, it's not so like when I walked away from our job, the job I had, I walked away. It was a good paying job, yeah, and I was completely. I had faith that God was going to put me where I needed to be. Yeah, whether it's going to be a low paying job, cause I, I took a couple of low paying jobs. But there's, you know, someone at that job was telling me cause, man, I'm sorry you had to step down from that job to come here. I said not really, because I think God put me here either to influence someone or someone to influence me.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:So to influence someone, or someone to influence me. So I think it's important that I made it to your life, or I made it to someone here that I work with and now God's put me at this really, really good job, that it's more money than I've ever made. And he did it for a reason he humbled me and put me in different spots so I could be, you know, motivated by someone spiritually or mentally or physically, and and and now I'm here.
Speaker 3:So, um yeah, is it so hard to do, you think? Do you find it difficult to respond to people from a position of love or like patience, or is it easier now than?
Speaker 4:it is, it's easier than ever before. Like I, you know, I don't, I don't hate anybody, I don't hate anybody. I just, you know what I just I don't know. I mean I don't, I just don't have that part of me anymore. I just don't have it. And I, I, I'm pretty patient now I'm I'm patient with Steven's boys, I'm patient with our neighborhood, I'm patient with, you know, other coworkers right now. I mean, you know, I, I, I really I, I really wanted to get like when I was going through recovery, the, the guy that was doing the recovery, he was great guy and he asked me what's your motivation?
Speaker 4:And I think at the time I was joking and I said I want to get married. I wanted to get married. And he goes okay, well, let's, let's get started on your recovery so you can invite me to your wedding, so and so, and I was joking about that. But love is great, but it's not always for everybody. I think God has put me I say this all the time to Stephen and I don't know if Stephen's heard this many, many times God has put me here for something. I don't know what it is yet, but when I see it I'm going to know. And so I don't know what it is yet, but when I see it I'm gonna know. And so, uh, I don't know what it is, but when I see it I'll know.
Speaker 2:and one thing that you had to learn, too is I don't know, you skipped over this you had to learn to be patient with yourself, yeah, and your body, yes, being in, in, because your, your body is, is what you know. So it's a powerful thing. So to be imprisoned in your body, where you can't move, yeah, and you can't like it'll, it'll, it'll really mess with you mentally, spiritually, you know, emotionally, you know, and you will get depressed. There's a it'll just spark that like that, because you can't move, you can't do the things that you're used to doing, that you've been doing for a long time. So you had to learn to be patient with yourself. But you knew your mind was telling it goes, I'm, I'm going. I don't know if it's gonna take two years, but I'm for sure I'm going to make it.
Speaker 2:You know, get there and get it done, because that's what you kept telling me you go, I'm going to get it done. I don't care how long it takes, but I'm going to get it done.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I think, uh, I was at that time, I think I there was a point, like I was saying before, I was a point in time, but I was really, really, I was really hard on myself, really depressed, and there was a point extremely confident, yep, and like in September of 2021, you can remember this I got COVID. Yeah, I got COVID, you got, you got COVID too. We had COVID at the same time, right, yep, and you were really worried about me that I was not going to, and I told you this. I said, dude, I go. If Guillain-Barre is not going to kill me, covid is not going to kill me, I'm going to be fine. Yeah, I said I go God didn't put me all the way straight through this to die for COVID. I go. I don't know what it is, but he's got a plan for me. I got to go figure it out, but I got to walk first.
Speaker 2:I had the opposite feeling Not for you, though For me, because I'm a bigger guy and that time they kept saying you know, bigger people are gonna, they're gonna die. So I was like I shaved. Why I shaved? Because I wanted to look good in a casket oh my god, yeah.
Speaker 2:so I remember telling uh my uh therapist that and she goes why that is. So she was like that is so dark, like why did you? Because I had COVID and everyone kept saying you got COVID, you're going to die, you know. And I was just like, okay, well, I mean watch the office and you know just, you know shave. I don't know how I shaved, I was so weak, don't know how I did it, but you know, uh, I was. I was scared for you, though I was like man, why, god? Like, why did you have to get freaking covet, like of all things?
Speaker 4:you know, I was afterwards. I was so mad at you because you didn't you tell me how severe you were, because I was asking me you got coveted, he goes. Yeah, because I'm good, I'm good, I'm right yeah, because I was.
Speaker 2:I think, uh, you asked me it was like the first four day. Well, you called, we called each other every day, but uh, I think, yeah, the first four days I had the fever. I had a fever earlier, but I think I think I'm beating it and then I came back at night. I go oh god, yeah it keeps coming back.
Speaker 4:Um, yeah, I remember I had a fever for three days and I just had a big towel and had a big bowl of water and I just dunked it in it and that's what I just helped. I just put it over my head the whole time, yeah, and like my hair was wet constantly. Yeah, my ears got, you know, water inside, but I didn't care, I just wanted to get this fever and get it over with.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and Blair got in and luckily the boys didn't get it. If they did, they beat it. If they did, they beat it.
Speaker 4:But yeah, once I got over the first, week I was like, okay, I think I'm going to be good. Man, we're really rambling, I'm sorry.
Speaker 3:John. No, it's good. I'm so glad that you guys took time out of your busy days to chat with me. This has been really fun, and I also, because, man, we have been going for a little bit. Let me.
Speaker 4:It's been an hour and 25 minutes.
Speaker 3:Yeah, start wrapping things up, but let me encourage everybody again to go listen to the Bigfoot Club podcast, because we just recorded an episode over there. Of course, I want everyone to go listen to it as well. Yes, about dreams. Very good stuff, man guys this has been fun. This has been yes, we'll have to find we will definitely. Well, I'm going to have to get you guys back on.
Speaker 4:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker 3:Because we didn't even get a chance to talk about Bigfoot and all that stuff. No, I know, I know.
Speaker 4:We were. We were so emotional talking about stuff. And I am. I am sorry that no one filled you in on most of the stuff and I apologize. I'm glad you were able to fill in the blanks on some of the stuff that was going on with me.
Speaker 3:Yeah, just a wild story. Well, guys, thank you so much. And again, everybody go listen to Bigfoot Club podcast and guys thanks for joining me and everyone thanks for listening and we'll go ahead and wrap it up. So I'll see you, guys, when I see you.
Speaker 4:Okay, thanks for having us on.
Speaker 3:Thank you All right, bye, y'all Bye.
