Paul Alexander lives in iron creation/@musclesandnursing
Yesterday (Tuesday) Paul Alexander, the man who survived in an iron lung for over 70 years, died at the age of 78 from Corona.
At the age of 6, Alexander contracted polio, an infectious disease that causes paralysis.
He was rushed to the hospital and underwent tracheostomy - an emergency operation in which a hole is made in the trachea and a tube is inserted there connecting it with the outside air.
While the lungs of paralyzed polio survivors still work fine, they may have difficulty breathing due to paralysis of the chest muscles and diaphragm.
To overcome this problem, Alexander was put into an "iron lung", a machine that works by applying negative pressure to the patient inside.
The mechanical ventilator helps the patient inhale air by pumping it out of the machine - allowing their chest to expand.
As the air is drawn back into the machine, it causes the patient to blow the air that has accumulated in their lungs out.
He can get out of the machine for two or three minutes thanks to a learned technique he calls "frog breathing," which involves swallowing a lot of air using his throat muscles to force air into his lungs.
However, this is not a long-term solution, so he spends the vast majority of his day inside the mechanical cell.
Paul was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the man who spent the longest period of time in his life in iron creation.
@ironlungman Please keep Paul in your thoughts and prayers!
❤️?#conversationswithpaul #ironlung #poliopaul #PaulAlexander ♬ Chopin Nocturne No.
2 Piano Mono - moshimo sound design
@ironlungman Episode 1 of Convos with Paul!
We will be responding to comments and questions about Paul's life, his polio, and life in an iron lung!
Please be positive?
#PaulAlexander #poliopaul #ironlung #conversationswithpaul ♬ Chopin Nocturne No.
2 Piano Mono - moshimo sound design
Despite Paul's obvious limitation he never gave up on himself.
After graduating high school in 1967 at the age of 21, Paul went to study at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
He was quoted as saying "You can do anything, regardless of your origins, your background or the challenges you may face. You just have to set your heart to it and work hard... My story is an example that your past and even your biggest obstacles don't have to define your future".
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