The gift of some breathing room
Courtesy photo Richard Gutierrez laying in his hospital bed last November after collapsing in his home. Gutierrez was later diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension.
Photo by Josh McDonald Richard Gutierrez now, sitting at his home with his dog, Tucker. Tucker can tell when Richard’s oxygen levels are low and will alert his wife despite never receiving any training to do so.
WALLACE — Once again the Silver Valley is demonstrating its community spirit.
A fundraiser has been organized and donations are being sought to help out local residents Richard and Connie Gutierrez, after Richard fell dangerously ill last year and has been in and out of the hospital ever since.
Richard, 67, was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension, a condition where arteries in the lungs are narrowed, blocked or destroyed, making it difficult for the blood to flow through the lungs. Because of this, blood pressure rises and makes the heart pump harder.
The most common symptoms include chest pain, fatigue and shortness of breath.
Last November, Richard was enjoying a nice dinner with his wife, Connie.
Connie got up to pour them each a glass of wine and with her back to the table, she heard a loud crash. To her horror, she turned around to find her husband face down on the ground, unconscious.
After calling 911 and performing CPR, Richard was transported to Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, where his diagnosis was discovered — or more aptly — his actual diagnosis was discovered.
Richard had been being treated for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or more commonly known as COPD, and was also suffering from a semi-paralyzed diaphragm from a neck surgery he had.
After months of ins and outs with the hospital and learning that their lives would never be the same, the Gutierrez’s are settling into their new routine — but one that has come with some serious costs.
Each month, they are faced with thousands of dollars in medication, oxygen and medical supplies.
For Connie, her husband’s illness unleashed a new fear inside her, but also strengthened her drive to be able to understand and care for him.
“It robs you of your life. It takes away your ability to walk more than 5 feet without stopping because you can’t breathe. It slams a sledge hammer into your chest, between your shoulder blades,” she said. “He can’t go fishing, hunting, walk outside, or even get into the car without assistance and support. Oxygen tubing is his lifeline and his days are spent watching reruns on television, trips to specialists and waiting for me to come home. I startle awake if I can’t hear him breathing — I’ll slide my hand under the covers and rest it on his chest, until I feel the slow, labored rhythm of his breath.”
That is Connie’s normal life now.
For Richard, it is the frustration that comes with everything his wife said, but also being the one on the life-giving medication, connected to oxygen and being unable to lift more than 10 pounds.
It is the frustration that comes with being a man on a leash.
“I get angry sometimes,” Richard said. “This medication makes me sick and is basically like chemo, but I won’t lose my hair. My bones hurt and doing things that once took me a short time to do, now take much longer. I can’t just jump in the shower.”
Through all of this though, Richard refuses to give up his sense of humor.
At one point in an interview with the News-Press, he nearly got his wife in trouble for making a joke about her beating him. He also made it clear that he doesn’t care much for the hotel he has to stay in (the hospital). But if he can get to a point with his medication where his condition improves, he hopes to at least reclaim one of his favorite hobbies.
“One of my goals is to get back to being able to go fishing,” Richard said with a smile.
Both Richard and Connie have been active in the community, as they willingly give to just about any fundraiser they hear of and Richard is also a locally-known musician, playing at church as well as a few weddings; so this has put them in an unfamiliar spot.
“We feel kind of guilty,” Richard said. “We aren’t really used to being the ones getting help like this.”
“This fundraiser is something we would normally be a part of,” Connie said. “But we’d be on the side of donating what we could. Not being the ones donated to.”
The Gutierrez fundraiser will be at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 25 at the Wallace Elks.
A silent auction and various raffles are being organized for the event, as well as a dinner.
All funds raised will go to Richard and Connie, to help with the costs that are now associated with their new normal.
For more information on the fundraiser, contact Colleen Pettis at 208-512-0917 or to make a direct donation to the Gutierrez’s, stop by Columbia Bank in Kellogg.