New Heart, Big Dreams
Donation protected
I am starting a fundraiser for my husband who inspires me everyday to get up off the couch and reach for my dreams. He has been reaching for one particular dream for years now and I hope after reading this, you will also want to make this amazing persons dreams come true.
He is not just an inspiration to me, but to everyone around him who feels the passion for life and health spewing from his pours. He wakes up every morning at 4 AM to open up the gym he works at and teach the first class of the day at 5 AM (yes, many people show up!).
Through out the day he trains people from all walks of life. One 80 year old woman with Parkinson’s. Another teenage boy with Asperger’s. Many stay-at-home moms, and C-Suite Executives. He works at the gym until his last class finishes at 10pm every night, just to come home and do it all over again. He can't complain though, he is doing what he loves, and he has beaten some amazing odds!
Gerardo named his signature high intensity interval training classes after his life’s story. His 'BodyShock’ classes have inspired numerous members at the gyms he teaches at, to change their lives completely, kick bad habits, start new careers that make them happier, and lead fuller lives!
Gerardo has had a dream for years to one day produce his BodyShock classes in a series of 1-hour fitness DVDs. But now, nearly 6 years after the events that changed both of our lives forever, we are barely getting back on our feet financially. We have finally paid off all of the medical bills, and we believe we will be able to purchase our first home this year. Unfortunately these base securities have taken precedent over such dreams...
Our story began in the summer of 2005 when Gerardo walked into the bar that I tended at. We fell in love quickly, and couldn't stay away from each other.
Until one day before Gerardo's 30th birthday he passed out at the gym he was training at. He went to the hospital and was immediately diagnosed with an acute cardiomyopathy. His life came to a complete halt. He soon found he could no longer work at a gym due to the strenuous aspects of the job. For the next four years I struggled to finish my college degree in media production and marketing, while bartending to support both of us in my small studio apartment in New York City. Gerardo's condition got worse with every year. He lost all his muscle mass and was in and out of the hospital on a monthly base. He received three different pacemakers in his chest and each one had the honor of saving his life on multiple occasions. At any time Gerardo would collapse on the ground and go into a ventricular heart attack until the pacemaker would have enough time to charge up and hit him with an electrical pulse to set his heart back in rhythm. Many times he suffered from concussions (which his still has side effects of memory loss and testing disabilities from), and sometimes even reversible strokes. Over the years, we developed a system to keep Gerardo from falling to the ground, especially in public. Whenever he felt faint, he would look me straight in the eyes and say "I Love You." then he would wrap his arms around me in an embracing hug. I would know then to grab him tight. His body would go limp in my arms as he convulsed for 10 seconds. I would count down as I waited for the pacemaker to shock both of us. I would pray that two seconds later, I would have my boyfriend back. It usually worked.
In 2008, during my senior year, we found out we were pregnant. We quickly decided to move out of the city to Fairfield, CT, a great town with good schools, where we would start our family. As we explored our new surroundings, we decided to go to the towns school fundraising carnival. It was a beautiful day, but as we watched the cute kids go round on a kiddie ride, Gerardo once again hugged me and said "I Love You." I embraced him, and counted. The pacemaker went off, shocking him, me, and our little boy inside my belly. As I waited for Gerardo to come back I could no longer hold him and the baby up. I lowered him to the ground as the crowd started to notice and circle us. He didn't wake up. I panicked and started to wonder if our son would ever meet his father. I counted another 10 seconds out of pure hope. Gerardo's body jumped off the ground once more as the pacemaker sent another jolt through him. Gerardo eyes once again focused on me as he sat up. A man in the crowd said, "Thank God for pacemakers. My father has one."
Gerardo was then put on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) list for a new heart that week. I could go on for pages (I could probably write a book!), telling you about the endless life and death events that occurred in the seven months to come. But for the lack of space, I will skip forward a few months to the point when Gerardo's heart stopped for the very last time. We were in the emergency room (once again), I was five months pregnant now and starting to show. Gerardo was having multiple ventricular attacks and no one in the emergency room knew his condition better than me. I watched the heart monitor as he went into another V-TAC. It spiked to 280 beats per minute, I counted 10 seconds waiting for the pacemaker, but nothing happened. I looked at the monitor again, 300 beats per minute. The pacemaker did nothing. "It’s not going off!" I screamed over the monitor’s loud alerts to the cardiologist on duty. The EMT looked at me, then look at Gerardo. I screamed to him, "Get the pads, it's not going off!" Nurses raced to cut Gerardo's clothes off and charge the paddles. "1,2,3, CLEAR!", the doctor sent the paddles to Gerardo's chest. A long flat line came across the screen as Gerardo's heart went flat. Once again, the thoughts came through stronger than ever, that I would be having this baby alone. "1,2,3, CLEAR!", the doctor said once more.
Finally, a steady beat responded. They quickly incubated and sedated Gerardo into an induced comma. For the next three months, Gerardo would be in this state as a balloon pump reaching his heart through an artery in his leg, squeezed his heart every second of every day, while we waited for a heart.
Gerardo received a heart on June 23rd. The same week the doctors were considering pulling the plug on him, as all of his organs were failing and he had lost more than 50% of his body mass. One month later, Gerardo was released from the hospital. And one day later, our son was born on July 23rd 2009.
Ever since that summer, Gerardo and I have lived our lives with an unending faith in God's love for us, and with an unending eagerness to achieve our callings. Gerardo was back in the gym 6 months after his heart transplant.
Gerardo and our son, Christian (now 6!)
He developed his fitness class, BodyShock based on this story, and his passion for helping others achieve a fuller lifestyle in the one body they have to live in. He hopes to produce his BodyShock classes in a series of 1-hour fitness DVDs so that he can share his story and fitness lifestyle with everyone! He has been in the pre-production stage of this project for over a year now, faithfully praying that God would provide the budget for even one of his classes to be filmed. He doesn't know that I have asked for your help. I am sure he will be on his knees in gratitude when he sees your generous donations.
To anyone who donates towards our cause, we would love to send you a free copy! The number of classes that will be filmed depends on how much is raised. Each class takes a full day on set with film crew, and many hours of editing in post-production. If you would like to receive a copy, please feel free to send me (through Gofundme) your:
-Username on Gofundme
-Name
-Email to contact if anything
-and Shipping address
Thank you in advance for your kind and generous donations. Every dollar counts! If you would like to learn more about BodyShock, or Gerardo and his personal training services please feel free to visit our website at ddfitnesstraining.com .
Please remember to Share this post with your friends!
He is not just an inspiration to me, but to everyone around him who feels the passion for life and health spewing from his pours. He wakes up every morning at 4 AM to open up the gym he works at and teach the first class of the day at 5 AM (yes, many people show up!).
Through out the day he trains people from all walks of life. One 80 year old woman with Parkinson’s. Another teenage boy with Asperger’s. Many stay-at-home moms, and C-Suite Executives. He works at the gym until his last class finishes at 10pm every night, just to come home and do it all over again. He can't complain though, he is doing what he loves, and he has beaten some amazing odds!
Gerardo named his signature high intensity interval training classes after his life’s story. His 'BodyShock’ classes have inspired numerous members at the gyms he teaches at, to change their lives completely, kick bad habits, start new careers that make them happier, and lead fuller lives!
Gerardo has had a dream for years to one day produce his BodyShock classes in a series of 1-hour fitness DVDs. But now, nearly 6 years after the events that changed both of our lives forever, we are barely getting back on our feet financially. We have finally paid off all of the medical bills, and we believe we will be able to purchase our first home this year. Unfortunately these base securities have taken precedent over such dreams...
Our story began in the summer of 2005 when Gerardo walked into the bar that I tended at. We fell in love quickly, and couldn't stay away from each other.
Until one day before Gerardo's 30th birthday he passed out at the gym he was training at. He went to the hospital and was immediately diagnosed with an acute cardiomyopathy. His life came to a complete halt. He soon found he could no longer work at a gym due to the strenuous aspects of the job. For the next four years I struggled to finish my college degree in media production and marketing, while bartending to support both of us in my small studio apartment in New York City. Gerardo's condition got worse with every year. He lost all his muscle mass and was in and out of the hospital on a monthly base. He received three different pacemakers in his chest and each one had the honor of saving his life on multiple occasions. At any time Gerardo would collapse on the ground and go into a ventricular heart attack until the pacemaker would have enough time to charge up and hit him with an electrical pulse to set his heart back in rhythm. Many times he suffered from concussions (which his still has side effects of memory loss and testing disabilities from), and sometimes even reversible strokes. Over the years, we developed a system to keep Gerardo from falling to the ground, especially in public. Whenever he felt faint, he would look me straight in the eyes and say "I Love You." then he would wrap his arms around me in an embracing hug. I would know then to grab him tight. His body would go limp in my arms as he convulsed for 10 seconds. I would count down as I waited for the pacemaker to shock both of us. I would pray that two seconds later, I would have my boyfriend back. It usually worked.
In 2008, during my senior year, we found out we were pregnant. We quickly decided to move out of the city to Fairfield, CT, a great town with good schools, where we would start our family. As we explored our new surroundings, we decided to go to the towns school fundraising carnival. It was a beautiful day, but as we watched the cute kids go round on a kiddie ride, Gerardo once again hugged me and said "I Love You." I embraced him, and counted. The pacemaker went off, shocking him, me, and our little boy inside my belly. As I waited for Gerardo to come back I could no longer hold him and the baby up. I lowered him to the ground as the crowd started to notice and circle us. He didn't wake up. I panicked and started to wonder if our son would ever meet his father. I counted another 10 seconds out of pure hope. Gerardo's body jumped off the ground once more as the pacemaker sent another jolt through him. Gerardo eyes once again focused on me as he sat up. A man in the crowd said, "Thank God for pacemakers. My father has one."
Gerardo was then put on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) list for a new heart that week. I could go on for pages (I could probably write a book!), telling you about the endless life and death events that occurred in the seven months to come. But for the lack of space, I will skip forward a few months to the point when Gerardo's heart stopped for the very last time. We were in the emergency room (once again), I was five months pregnant now and starting to show. Gerardo was having multiple ventricular attacks and no one in the emergency room knew his condition better than me. I watched the heart monitor as he went into another V-TAC. It spiked to 280 beats per minute, I counted 10 seconds waiting for the pacemaker, but nothing happened. I looked at the monitor again, 300 beats per minute. The pacemaker did nothing. "It’s not going off!" I screamed over the monitor’s loud alerts to the cardiologist on duty. The EMT looked at me, then look at Gerardo. I screamed to him, "Get the pads, it's not going off!" Nurses raced to cut Gerardo's clothes off and charge the paddles. "1,2,3, CLEAR!", the doctor sent the paddles to Gerardo's chest. A long flat line came across the screen as Gerardo's heart went flat. Once again, the thoughts came through stronger than ever, that I would be having this baby alone. "1,2,3, CLEAR!", the doctor said once more.
Finally, a steady beat responded. They quickly incubated and sedated Gerardo into an induced comma. For the next three months, Gerardo would be in this state as a balloon pump reaching his heart through an artery in his leg, squeezed his heart every second of every day, while we waited for a heart.
Gerardo received a heart on June 23rd. The same week the doctors were considering pulling the plug on him, as all of his organs were failing and he had lost more than 50% of his body mass. One month later, Gerardo was released from the hospital. And one day later, our son was born on July 23rd 2009.
Ever since that summer, Gerardo and I have lived our lives with an unending faith in God's love for us, and with an unending eagerness to achieve our callings. Gerardo was back in the gym 6 months after his heart transplant.
Gerardo and our son, Christian (now 6!)He developed his fitness class, BodyShock based on this story, and his passion for helping others achieve a fuller lifestyle in the one body they have to live in. He hopes to produce his BodyShock classes in a series of 1-hour fitness DVDs so that he can share his story and fitness lifestyle with everyone! He has been in the pre-production stage of this project for over a year now, faithfully praying that God would provide the budget for even one of his classes to be filmed. He doesn't know that I have asked for your help. I am sure he will be on his knees in gratitude when he sees your generous donations.
To anyone who donates towards our cause, we would love to send you a free copy! The number of classes that will be filmed depends on how much is raised. Each class takes a full day on set with film crew, and many hours of editing in post-production. If you would like to receive a copy, please feel free to send me (through Gofundme) your:
-Username on Gofundme
-Name
-Email to contact if anything
-and Shipping address
Thank you in advance for your kind and generous donations. Every dollar counts! If you would like to learn more about BodyShock, or Gerardo and his personal training services please feel free to visit our website at ddfitnesstraining.com .
Please remember to Share this post with your friends!
Organizer
Tiffany Lambert
Organizer
Fairfield, CT