Mums do travel

Travel with and without teens

  • Home
  • Destination
    • UK
      • London
      • Kent
      • Northern Ireland
      • Wales
      • Elsewhere
    • Europe
      • Austria
      • Croatia
      • France
      • Gibraltar
      • Greece
      • Hungary
      • Italy
      • Netherlands
      • Norway
      • Portugal
      • Russia
      • Spain
      • Turkey
    • North America
      • USA
      • Canada
      • Carribean
      • Costa Rica
    • Africa
      • South Africa
      • Tunisia
    • Asia
      • Thailand
      • Bali
      • Singapore
    • Australia
  • Inspiration
    • Things to do in…
    • Things to do in London…
    • Where to stay
    • Language learning
    • Family travel interviews
    • The journey
    • Recipes
  • Published in
  • About
  • Contact
  • Travel shop
Home / Life in General / Happy New Year – and thank you

Happy New Year – and thank you

December 31, 2017 by Gretta Schifano 10 Comments

With Dad, Christmas Day 2016. Copyright Sal Schifano

With Dad, Christmas Day 2016. Copyright Sal Schifano

I need to tell you something.

I haven’t been able to write anything here recently because I’ve not had the time or the head space to be able to do so, and I’m very sorry about that. I want to explain why.

A couple of weeks before Christmas my fit and healthy dad had a cardiac arrest. In case you don’t know, a cardiac arrest is when your heart stops and, unless you’re very lucky, you die. Amazingly, my 78 year-old dad was saved and is now recovering at home, slowly. His life was saved by a kind passer-by who saw he’d collapsed, stopped and gave him CPR and then by the wonderful NHS care which he received in hospital after that. It seems that his heart stopped because of an irregular heartbeat. He’s now been fitted with an internal defibrillator (ICD). This marvellous device monitors the heart for abnormal rhythms and uses electrical pulses to try to return the heartbeat to a normal rhythm if necessary. Astonishingly, Dad was discharged from hospital in time to join us for the family celebrations at our house on Christmas Day.

Thank you to everybody who has sent gifts and messages of kindness to me and my family. I really do appreciate your support, even though I couldn’t always reply.

I hope that you have a healthy, peaceful and happy New Year – and I’ll try to get back to writing about travel stuff after this, I promise!

x

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

Related

Categories: Life in General

About Gretta Schifano

I'm a freelance journalist and blogger specialising in family travel with teenagers, trips when parents manage to travel without their kids, and 50+ travel. I also write about vegetarian travel, parenting teenagers, adoption, SEN, ADHD and anxiety. My work's been published by the Financial Times, Guardian, Independent, National Geographic Traveller, Lonely Planet and others. I've lived and worked in Italy and Spain and am now based in rural south-east England with my husband, adoptive and birth kids and our dog. I previously worked as a social action radio producer for the BBC.

Facebook - Twitter - Google+

Subscribe to posts by email?

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Comments

  1. Jane Welton says

    February 1, 2018 at 9:52 am

    Gretta, I only just read this. How stressful for you all, but also how fantastic that a passer-by stopped and was competent in CPR. Everyone should be trained in this. Hope he is recovering well now.

    Reply
    • Gretta Schifano says

      February 1, 2018 at 10:25 am

      Thank you Jane, he’s doing really well, thank goodness.

      Reply
  2. Elizabeth (Wander Mum) says

    January 11, 2018 at 9:09 am

    Happy New Year Gretta! I am so glad your dad is recovering well. Thank goodness for the passerby who knew CPR what a legend! A very scary time for you. My husband had a cardiac arrest a few years ago. Thankfully he was in hospital and they brought him back. So happy you all got to spend Christmas together. Lots of love xx

    Reply
    • Gretta Schifano says

      January 11, 2018 at 9:21 am

      Thank you Elizabeth, and Happy New Year to you too. Yes, it’s been very hard but we’re all just endlessly grateful to the woman who saved him. I’m so sorry that this happened to your husband, it must have been terrible for you all – thank goodness that it happened in hospital xxx

      Reply
  3. Steven Hartley says

    January 4, 2018 at 3:48 pm

    Best New Year’s present ever, I guess. Seems like a resilient dad.

    Reply
    • Gretta Schifano says

      January 4, 2018 at 6:05 pm

      Yes, he definitely is that!

      Reply
  4. William Gould says

    January 1, 2018 at 8:42 am

    Happy New Year! Best wishes for 2018!
    My old Dad was recently rushed into hospital with a suspected heart attack which turned out to be a false alarm, thankfully. My heart sank for a few hours, so I do know what you must have gone through. Here’s hoping your Dad recovers quickly!

    Reply
    • Gretta Schifano says

      January 1, 2018 at 10:27 pm

      Thank goodness that your dad is OK – and thank you for your kind words.

      Reply
  5. Steph Curtis says

    January 1, 2018 at 12:48 am

    Hoping for a full recovery for your Dad and that you all get lots of peaceful and happy time together in 2018 x

    Reply
    • Gretta Schifano says

      January 1, 2018 at 10:27 pm

      Thank you Steph – he’s recovering well x

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Search site

Follow me!

Email: gretta at mumsdotravel dot com
Follow me on FacebookFollow me on Google+Follow me on TwitterFollow me on InstagramFollow me on YouTubeFollow me on PinterestFollow me on Bloglovin

You'd like posts by email?

Booking.com

Most popular posts:

  • Where to find Mary Poppins film locations in London
    Where to find Mary Poppins film locations in London
  • How to pack for an 8 kg luggage allowance
    How to pack for an 8 kg luggage allowance
  • Thailand with teenagers: a two-week summer itinerary
    Thailand with teenagers: a two-week summer itinerary
  • What to do when your teenager doesn't want to go on your family holiday
    What to do when your teenager doesn't want to go on your family holiday
  • 60 free things to do in London with a teenager
    60 free things to do in London with a teenager
  • How to visit the places in the Winnie-the-Pooh books
    How to visit the places in the Winnie-the-Pooh books
  • Itinerary for a three-night Berlin sightseeing trip with a teenager
    Itinerary for a three-night Berlin sightseeing trip with a teenager
  • Top things to do in Sicily with teenagers
    Top things to do in Sicily with teenagers
  • 5-night itinerary for Northern Tunisia
    5-night itinerary for Northern Tunisia
  • What to wear for a DofE expedition
    What to wear for a DofE expedition

Recent Posts

  • How to apply for Italian citizenship: everything we’ve done so far
  • How to explore London’s top attractions from home
  • Amsterdam virtual museum & gallery tours
  • Introducing Armchair Travels
  • How to explore Florence, Italy, from home

About

  • About
  • Published in
  • Contact

Disclosure

This is a personal blog written and edited by me, Gretta Schifano. Sometimes I’m given products or sent on trips to review, but I always make this clear and give my honest opinion. See my About page for full details.

Copyright © Mums do travel 2019
Header by Suzanne Barton
Website by
Callia Web

Sign up for my free newsletter:
Subscribe to the Mums do travel mailing list... it's FREE!
You'll receive family travel news, offers and competitions. Once you sign up you can download my tips for saving money on family travel.
Your information will *never* be shared or sold to a 3rd party.
Sign up for my free newsletter: