Ever feel as though you’re too tired to
face the day?
Ever caught in a slump where reaching the
end of a shift feels like an impossible task?
Of course you do, of course you are.
When tiredness takes over, the solution most
of us turn to is coffee, or else some other
means of getting energy into our bodies quickly.
Yet there are potential pitfalls in consuming
concoctions designed to revitalize you through
chemicals.
The family of John Reynolds know this all
too well, after their lives were changed forever
one Saturday morning in February, 2011.John
Reynolds was just 41-years-old when died after
complications relating to cardiac arrest.
The cause?
Energy drinks.
By all accounts, John a healthy individuals;
doctors said he had a strong heart.
Yet one Saturday morning, his wife, Cassondra
Reynolds, woke to find her husband of ten
years going into cardiac arrest in their bed.
She could hear him gasping for breath, and
all she could think was: “Is this actually
happening?”
It was happening, and in the next moment Cassondra
was atop of him, performing CPR while waiting
for paramedics to arrive.
John was rushed to the hospital, where he
was soon placed in a medically induced coma
in the Cardiac ICU.
Doctors were initially perplexed as to what
might have caused the arrest, asking Cassondra
if her husband was diabetic or used drugs.
After she informed them that he’d neither
took drugs nor was a diabetic, and that he’d
passed a recent medical test with flying colors,
they asked if he drank energy drinks.
She answered that he typically had one per
day, as he worked night shifts.
Then and there, doctors knew where John’s
sky-high sugar levels were coming from.
They informed Cassondra that cases of people
experiencing problems with their hearts as
a result of the drinks are becoming more and
more common.
Cassondra told Love What Matters: “His exact
words were, ‘people drinking these drinks
are playing Russian Roulette with their lives’.
“I was blown away and couldn’t believe
just one drink could do this damage.”
Eventually John was taken out of the coma,
but he was still unconscious.
He remained in such a state for the next two
weeks, with doctors delivering grave news
to Cassondra.
“I was told by a team of doctors that my
husband had an anoxic brain injury caused
by lack of oxygen to the brain and he had
[a] very long road of recovery ahead of him
and he may not ever be the same if he wakes
from his coma.
“My husband’s brain continued to seize
and 10 days after he was admitted I was told
he was actually brain dead and there was nothing
further they could do.”
Then, one day, after Cassondra and the family’s
three little boys had said their loving farewells,
John was taken off of life-support.
“I sat there squeezing his hand and kissing
him for 31 minutes as I watched all signs
of life slowly leave this beautiful man’s
body,” said Cassondra.
“This man who was my EVERYTHING!
I went home in a state of shock.
Mind blown and completely shattered.
My heart felt like it was physically cracking
open inside me.”
Campaign for awareness
Cassondra’s now on a campaign to raise awareness
over the dangers of energy drinks.
She told Love What Matters that she undertook
her own research, and the findings were scary
indeed.
“I just couldn’t accept that one stupid
drink had the ability to kill my healthy husband.
I started doing my own research and found
just how bad these drinks truly are.
I found that these drinks were already banned
in many Northern European Countries.
“I learned that on top of the already high
amounts of caffeine and sugar in these drinks,
that Guarana breaks down into its own form
of caffeine.
I learned that Taurine also in these drinks
has caused brain damage in lab rats.
I learned that several Major League Baseball
teams have banned their players from drinking
energy drinks but these organizations were
having a hard time enforcing this ban because
it’s not an illegal substance.
“I’ve learned that the DOD (Department
of Defense) is discouraging our military from
drinking these drinks which are rampantly
consumed by our troops.”
For Cassondra, John’s loss is a pain that
will never go away.
Her children have to grow up without their
father, she has to live without her partner.
“The pain manifests in different ways with
each son,” she shared.
“Holidays, birthdays, school events are
still SO difficult.
My soul feels empty and half of me is gone.
If by sharing our story prevents just one
person from taking another drink, I can at
least feel my husband’s death wasn’t senseless.”
Rest in peace, John.
The world can be a bitterly cruel place sometimes.
Help us get Cassondra’s word out there by
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