Something I never expected

(Scott ) #1

I have always admired my brother for his amazing lifestyle and drive to do it all. He lives “off the grid” on 40 acres on the Oregon cost, He has a dozen sheep, some goats, and a plethora of chickens. He heats his house with wood, which he cuts and splits from his own trees. He rides at least 10 miles a day on a custom made touring bike, and does centennial rides as time allows. He has never been overweight, which is no wonder since he eats only vegetables from his own garden, eggs and home made goat cheese. His wife is an amazing English chef who has managed and owned several very successful restaurants and coffee shops, so they have always had thick crusted artisan breads and deserts, not to mention a $5000 espresso machine in the shed, from which my brother churns out some of the most amazing cappuccinos on the planet.

Last week, my brother came in from putting the sheep up for the night, splitting some firewood, and then had a massive heart attack and died.

One of my biggest regrets is that I never shared the keto lifestyle with him. It seems that his perfect lifestyle had resulted in total congestive heart failure.

#2

Oh man, Scott, I am so sorry for your loss.

#3

oh, no! I’m so sorry…

(Stephanie Sablich) #4

I’m so sorry to hear about your brother, Scott. Thanks for sharing a little about who he was.

(Erin Macfarland ) #5

I am so sorry for your loss. Your brother must have been an incredible person. What do you mean when you say his lifestyle caused him to have a heart attack? It sounds like he was doing everything “right,” meaning wholsesome foods, exercise, and doing work he loved. What do you think led to his sudden heart attack?

#6

Scott, there’s no way to know if talking with him about keto would have helped, or helped in time. It’s early days and I can’t imagine what you’re going through, but I hope you don’t blame yourself.

(Darlene Horsley) #7

Scott, I am so sorry for the loss of your brother. He sounds like an amazing individual. I hope you find peace and comfort in fond memories.

(Scott ) #8

I think the fact that he was eating lots of grains, and he had a real weakness for pastries, made his diet more of a high carb diet. Apparently his doctor had recently tried to put him on a statin, but he threw them away because they made him so sluggish that he couldn’t get his work done. So apparently he had a cholesterol issue as well.

(Erin Macfarland ) #9

Oh I understand now, from what you had written it sounded like he ate a lot of veggies and pasture raised meat and eggs. So he must have enjoyed the bread and pastries he prepared as well. Again I’m so sorry, how tragic and unexpected. I hope you and your family are surrounded by peace and support as you grieve his loss. Thank you for sharing with us here.

(Richard Hanson) #10

Hi Scott,

I am sorry for the recent loss of your brother. It sounds like he had a wonderful , happy, and fulfilling life.

People often say, “I just can’t imagine”, but the truth is that almost all of us can do exactly that, “imagine”, what it would be like to experience the loss of an admired sibling, and I, for one, share your loss.

Warmest Regards,
Richard

(Liz ) #11

Oh how devastating, my sincerest condolences on your loss. I think a lot of us have that sad feeling about not getting someone we love on board with a Keto lifestyle we know could change their lives. It’s just not always possible, even if we do tell them, and that will always be a bit heartbreaking.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #12

I’m so sorry for your loss. Grief is hard enough to get through; try not to torture yourself with what-ifs. We all have regrets where our loved ones are concerned, but there’s no guarantee that even if you’d managed to talk to your brother about keto, the message would even have penetrated.

I have a dear friend I try to talk to about my journey, but she is too invested in the standard dietary guidelines to be able even to hear me. And my sister, who is so supportive, thinks she’s eating LCHF, but she’s just not aware of all the carbohydrate she eats.

There is no easy path. Just try to remember your brother with love.

(Steve Stephenson) #13

My condolences as well.

But don’t beat yourself up about not getting him to do keto. My experience is that my family members are the least likely people to believe what I say about keto. In fact, the only real influence I’ve had is with people who already know they’re sick and want to investigate LCHF / Keto.

(KCKO, KCFO) #14

Sorry for your loss. Please don’t feel guilty for not discussing keto with him. I am sure he encountered the information about it along his way. He planned out a certain lifestyle and got to live the way he wanted. He was blessed with all that.

If anyone else in your family has had heart issues you might want to do a DNA test to see what genes you might have making you at risk. The 2ketodudes did a podcast (#81) where they discussed @richard and his results from Promethease.com
I did it and found an area I do have to be more aware of, but found other things, I am at extremely low risk for that I had fretted about in the past. I am still learning what all this means to my future health, it is a deep rabbit hole, but worth the deep dive.

(Suzi Smotrycz-Guilford) #15

I’m so sorry for your loss, big hugs.

(betsy.rome) #16

Oh man, I got a shiver just reading your post about the loss of your dear brother. My sincere condolences. It’s so sad when you think, “gee could I have done something to prevent this”. Who knows, it’s easier to share keto with strangers than family sometimes. My brother is finally starting to get interested in keto. Last Thanksgiving he said, enough with this keto talk already, but now he sees my results and wants to check it out for himself. That would be something to give thanks for, for sure. Again, so sorry for your loss.

(Richard Morris) #17

I’m sorry for your loss.

Don’t worry too much about what you might or might not have been able to change by sharing your own lifestyle. The heart attack may not have been caused by anything in his lifestyle, some times heart attacks happen for no reason other than something occluded it’s blood supply.

You know the president of the AHA just had a very public heart attack. I’m not saying that his lifestyle was the cause either - even though the AHA gives lousy advice on how to avoid heart attacks. Any of us could get struck by a random heart attack. I hope if I suddenly have a massive MI that people don’t say “See that keto dude his lifestyle gave him that heart attack”.

It sounds like your brother had a great life, a shame it was short.

(Jamie Hayes) #18

Having lost a brother as well, all I can say is to grieve but don’t feel guilty. Keep the good times in your memory. It sounds like he had a very happy life, just cut short.

#19

I’m so sorry to hear of the loss of your brother. Sending good thoughts your way, and I hope you find peace soon.

(Scott ) #21