To the editor:

February is heart month.

With heartfelt gratitude I want to thank the entire ER staff at Lawrence Memorial Hospital for saving my husband Jim’s life on the evening of Jan. 28. Jim and I both should have known what was happening … especially the denial. We had been through it before, in 1996 when Jim was only 47. Triple bypass surgery followed.

Jim’s cardiologists were in Kansas City but with bad weather we drove to LMH instead. We’re glad we did. Jim walked from the parking lot to the emergency room. The rest is a blur to him.

Changing just a few daily habits can make all the difference. Stop smoking, develop an exercise program and eat healthy. That’s a start. Genetics also plays a major part, as it has in Jim’s health; a family history makes it more important to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Two years ago Jim’s dad died of congestive heart failure. Take time to live today as if you might die tomorrow. Hug loved ones and appreciate life and others every day.

As several nurses said, call 911, ask for help or go to the hospital if you have heart attack symptoms even if it might be heartburn or stress, etc. They would rather send you away healthy than not to have seen you at all. Chew an aspirin if you suspect you are having a heart attack. Do not wait for the pain to go away; get help!

It may be routine work to the LMH staff but their dedication to saving lives will never be forgotten.

Linda Shotts,

Tonganoxie