Back to Life
Now thriving at work and in life, Dennis Redman Sr. battled a broken back, the loss of his home in Hurricane Katrina, a massive heart attack that left him clinically dead, unemployment, and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.
I worked for NASA security for over three years when I stepped in a hole while doing defensive tactics and broke my back from the fall. This was a couple of months before Hurricane Katrina hit, August 29, 2005.
Katrina devastated our area. We lost our home and lived in a FEMA trailer for 18 months while we were rebuilding. While this was all going on, I had two back surgeries.
Since I was out of work for so long, my employment with NASA was terminated. Physically, I was unable to work because of my back, and eventually we received a small settlement. This got us through for about two years.
I was getting my strength back and felt I was able to go back to work. I really needed to, because the cost of rebuilding right after Katrina skyrocketed.
Before I was able to find another job, I had a massive heart attack. This was on June 21, 2008. Around 7 p.m., my wife, Barbara, was bringing me to the hospital (I refused an ambulance, because I did not think it was too serious), and about five miles before we got to the hospital, my heart attack started.
Of course, I do not remember any of this, but Barbara clued me in later on. She told me that she was doing 100 mph on the interstate when the heart attack started. When she got to the exit leading to the hospital, she said she almost panicked because she had to pass through seven traffic lights. It was a main road in Slidell, Louisiana. Although she was aware that she could go through the lights, she knew it would slow her down.
At this point, Barbara noticed I was not making any more sounds, and she knew that I was dead. God was definitely with us, because all seven lights were green, even the one where she had to make a left to the ER, and nothing was coming the other way.
When she pulled up to the ER and started beeping frantically, they came running and got me out of the car. They knew I was dead at that point. They hurriedly got me inside and started working on me and I was revived for the first time.
Around 7:30 p.m. my cardiologist co-worker happened to be on duty in the ER. I coded again and he took over and shocked me six times. After the sixth time, one of the nurses gave a prayer and I was shocked for the seventh time, and it revived me.
Later on, we asked the doctor why he kept going (I’m glad he did), and he said there was something about me that wanted to live. After recovering, I had to go back in November of the same year and get a pacemaker and a defibrillator. That was another three-month recovery. I wanted to get back into the work force, but found out that I was limited in what I was able to do.
I was fortunate enough to get a job with the state of Mississippi as a special agent with the Katrina Fraud Task Force. I was only with them for one year, 2010, because the federal grant expired.
I was unemployed until February 13, 2014, which happens to be my birthday. I got a job with a security company, working locally, and after three months, I was promoted to lieutenant as a patrol supervisor.
I found out I had cutaneous T-cell lymphoma cancer about one year ago. A year prior to that, I had a rash on certain parts of my body—mainly under my arms. The rash continued to get worse…. with cracking, bleeding, redness and severe itching. It was also painful.
I called my dermatologist to refill the cream that she had prescribed for me when it looked like an ordinary rash. She said I needed to come in, because it has been one year since I was there.
After examining the rash, she said she would have to biopsy it. The biopsy confirmed that I had T-cell lymphoma cancer, and I was then referred to an oncologist.
After he reviewed my reports, the oncologist referred me to a doctor at Tulane Medical Center in New Orleans, who specializes in this type of cancer. She verified that I did have it and started me on chemo pills and UV light treatments.
After a couple of months on the chemo pills, they were not agreeing with me. They made me so weak that I was unable to get up once I was down, so the specialist changed my medicine. I was very frustrated trying to find the right medicine to work for me and it was also frustrating trying to work out affording the medicine.
The doctor’s office contacted Caring Voice Coalition and a young lady told me all about the program. She is my patient advocate and told me not to hesitate to call her if I had any more questions. This was a big relief, because I felt like I was in good hands. I am very grateful for Caring Voice Coalition.
What is important to me about this diagnosis is that it is not life threatening, as long as I keep up with my doctor and I am not afraid to try new meds, if one does not work for me. My caregiver, my wife, Barbara, is very supportive and is there for me in any way she can be. She knows exactly what is going on and what meds I take and keeps me up to date with my doctor visits.
I enjoy doing being involved with the Cub Scouts, going to church, socializing, whether it’s at the senior center of Picayune, or in line at Wal-Mart, and most of all, spending time with my wife and grandkids.
I also volunteer to play Santa Claus at the Head Start Preschool, as long as I am able to, every year. One of my all-time favorite hobbies for the past 40 years or more is collecting and painting miniature soldiers.
We’ve been through a lot in the past nine years. It’s been very difficult a lot of the times, physically, emotionally and financially. After every let down, we always kept the faith and were able to move on.
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