Family and Community Support

Coping and Care Family in Crisis Carol Matheson: Wonder where going? Female: Walking up this hill pulling twins, Kate and Carson is close to miraculous for Carol Matheson. The mother of three has survived the battle with a frightening and mysterious heart ailment that began shortly after giving birth. Doug Matheson: Of knowing that you’ve got three-day old twins and a four-year-old at that time and that’s—your just pretty scared, really. Their story under scores the true value of friends, family and community. Doug Matheson: Without the help of Carol’s mother and her father, there is no way that we could have—no way, I certainly could have managed it. Female: The Matheson’s had already overcome incredible odds in conceiving the twins, undergoing seven grueling infertility treatments in two states. Carol Matheson: Once they were born, what a great feeling of relief because they were healthy and we had made up to 35 weeks. They came out, there was no issues with them whatsoever. Female: But three days later, Carol realized something was wrong with her. With every hour, it became harder and harder to breathe. Doug Matheson: Well you could just see here, she’s been laboring well if she breathe, her ankles were swollen bigger than I had ever seen anybody’s ankles swollen. Female: The diagnosis— Carol Matheson: Well, it was a congestive heart failure from Peripartum Cardiomyopathy. Female: It’s a rare often fatal condition in which the heart muscle weakens in women who are in the final month of pregnancy or have just given birth. Carol was immediately started on medication. Doug Matheson: It was at that point that night, the two of us were sitting there on the internet and we started reading about it and some of the things the we are reading is the fatality rate was 50%. Female: Doug realized they needed support. Doug Matheson: Its just the emotions would come out of thinking that here I am at this—you know at that time a 40 year old guy that was now going to be become a single parent of three under the age of three and its like, how am I going to make that work? Female: Doug took the twins home from the hospital leaving Carol behind. Carol’s mother helped as to their network of friends. Doug Matheson: And then the people at work were extremely supportive. The people at church were extremely supportive and people were calling. I was trying to keep people updated on the email at night, usually about every two or three days, I’d try to send an email out just because I knew so many people were thinking about our family. Female: Eventually, Carol was able to come home though her future was still uncertain. For months, she couldn’t leave the house without a defibrillator to jump start her heart in case it stopped. Then, a year after the twins birth, carol got good news. Her heart was functioning normally again. Carol Matheson: I was praying that I was better but I did not go and expecting to be told that it was normal. Doug Matheson: It’s just a complete 180 and we just couldn’t be more grateful. Female: And they know that their happiness today is in large part. Thanks to the help of others. Doug Matheson: It’s okay to rely to another people. I think that’s one of the things that really surprised me is that I’ve always pretty been than pretty independent than pretty tight when it comes to getting things done and I was in a situation where I couldn’t do it all myself and I’ve pretty quickly realized that and I welcomed to all the support that we got. Female: As for the future— Doug Matheson: That is, how we get enough money to pay the college for all these kids.