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2009.03.07
Returning to Canada Early
We finally broke away from Antigua February 25th
and decided to go to Nevis (40 nm away) to renew our visa here. Due
to the unrest in the French islands south of us we decided that the option of
going south wasn't a great one. That was the good news, we hadn't
forgotten how to sail and the trip was brisk and uneventful. The bad
news was Gerry had to hand steer the whole way which normally would not have
bothered him but due to his health issues from last summer he found it wore him
out. He was very tired when we arrived to the point of exhaustion and then
on the second night we were there he fainted on the toilet. (Funny now not
then!) Luckily for him as any of you boaters can attest to the head on a
boat is very small so when he fainted the door kept him contained in the small
space until I could get to him and help him up. This is a very scary
and disconcerting thing to have happen when you are anchored off of an island
that has virtually no up to date medical care that we could rely on and no easy
way to get him to shore. Luckily we were with our good friends Chris and
Mike on s/v Reverie and I was able yell over to her that we needed their help
and they got their dinghy down and came over.
We discussed what we were going to do and after a
trip into town (just the 2 of them) late at night with their dinghy and them
asking around at the nearest police station for facilities we decided that that
wasn't the place we wanted to take Gerry. At this point he had regained the
color in his face and although weak seemed to be okay for the moment.
There was a tall ship anchored a little further out than we were so Mike and
Chris had the presence of mind to go over and ask if there was a medical person
on board, there were - 3 of them. A dermatologist, a psychologist and an
anesthesiologist. The anesthesiologist thought he would be the best person
for the job and their co-captain brought him straight over.
Meanwhile back on board I was in communication with
our son Toby on Skype and Alana and Giselle by phone. They were wonderful
moral supports and were putting in phone calls to anyone they could get
information from even people at the Four Seasons in Nevis (which is now shut
down since Hurricane Omar last fall). The night would have seemed even
more frightening if it hadn't been for their help. Once the Dr. arrived
and examined and talked with Gerry he concluded that he was okay and that what
had happened was not an uncommon occurrence and he didn't feel it was
related to his heart problems and was not life threatening. However, it is
something that he felt he needs to follow up on with his own
doctor.
The next day, aside from being tired, Gerry seemed
to be himself again and we made arrangements with two other sailing friends, one
of which is a retired ER doctor, here in Antigua to fly over and help us
sail the boat back to Antigua. The weather was good for a return trip home
right away so we were back here by the 1st of March.
So where does that leave us for sailing? At
first there was much talk about simply putting the boat up for sale here but as
time has gone on since our return we feel that for now we are going to use the
boat as a floating condo during the coldest months of the year (back home) and
just stay around Antigua. There are beautiful spots to anchor in, some of
which we haven't even been to and we are not quite ready to give up this life
style. For now we feel that the longer treks between islands are over for
us if it is just the two of us, however, if we had experienced sailing
friends join us from time to time it would be something we would consider doing
with them aboard.
So it's been a short sailing season this year but
we were fortunate to be able to enjoy such a spectacular place albeit was for
only a short time. We are getting excited about returning and seeing our
children and grandchildren once again.
13:16 Permalink | Comments (6) | Email this
Comments
Sorry to hear that but we're sure you have made the right decision. W/o our health we have nothing, it is precious. Looking forward to your return too! Susie
Posted by: Susie | 2009.03.07
Sorry to hear about Gerry's episode. Glad you were able to get help and I am sure you have lots more years of living on your boat in the harbour and short trips. We just want you both to be well and safe. Love, Charlie.
Posted by: Cheryll | 2009.03.07
Sorry to hear of your difficulty, but glad you're feeling better. Passing out in the can, Gerry, now that takes a guy back!
We'll try and get all the snow melted for your return.
Andy
Posted by: Andy | 2009.03.07
Glad to hear everything is OK so far. I just want to have you both back here safe. I love you both.
Maggie
Posted by: Maggie LaBrie | 2009.03.07
Just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of the friends who did so much to help Gerry and Dawn out over the past week. It was hard being so far away and not being able to do anything to help our parents but it made us feel a thousand times better to know they had such a great support system within their sailing community. (Especially that first night when there was no way of knowing whether or not Dad's situation was in need of urgent care. We found out very quickly that the island of Nevis was not very helpful in event of an emergency. The hospital on the island did not answer their phone and everyone else we called for help including the police told us to call the hospital. Luckily it turned out to not be a life threatening emergency and we are thankful for that too).
I'm sure you must be like family to them and now thousands of miles away and never having met you, you are now like extended family to us too. Thank you.
Posted by: Alana | 2009.03.08
Just back from CUBA and Ken and I received two family health issues.
Life is precious and relieved to hear you are alright Gerry. Dawn, I know how hard it must have been on you. Glad to hear you are both returning earlier so Gerry can come home to be check out. Ken's Mom was diagnosed with the big "C" word Cancer. She is just on year younger than our mother.
Love you both
Posted by: Joanne Young | 2009.03.09
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