When Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin collapsed after a tackle on Monday Night Football, Maurice Trosclair was watching the game like millions of other Americans.
But unlike the rest of us, Maurice, a.k.a. “Miracle Meaux” (pronounced “Mo” down here), watched with some inside knowledge that you can only get by experiencing something not many people live to talk about: sudden cardiac arrest.
While questions and speculation were swirling around what happened to Hamlin, Maurice and his wife had no doubt.
“The way he fell to the ground totally limp, we both looked at each other and said this guy might be having a sudden cardiac arrest. We knew exactly what it was, and to see it live, I got to say it shook me up,” said Maurice.
Surviving a sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital setting is unlikely, and that happens a lot. In the U.S., there are more than 350,000 sudden cardiac arrests outside of hospitals every ear, and 90% are fatal according to the American Heart Association.
One of the biggest reasons why sudden cardiac arrest is so deadly has to do with the lack of timely help in form of CPR, automated external defibrillator (AED) and emergency medical workers.
Of course sudden cardiac arrest, as its name would suggest, doesn’t have a schedule, so it’s often left up to bystanders or strangers to be the first to respond. But are we ready to help? Would we know what to do?
More than likely, the answer is no. It’s why Maurice and his wife founded Heartbeat NOLA.
Click the link above to listen to how Maurice got his nickname “Miracle Meaux” and how he was able to cheat death twice.
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