Tino O'Brien

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.


On Sunday, November 5th, Tino & Elizabeth hiked Mt Mansfield. The following day, Tino lay down at 3:00 for a (highly unusual)  hour long nap. When he awoke & asked Elizabeth for an asprin, she took one look at his face, waxy & pale gray, and decided to call an ambulance. The local crew arrived within minutes, and cofirmed their suspicions that Tino was indeed having a heart attack. 

The paramedics skillfully rushed him to fletcher Allen in Burlington. Along the way, Tino's heart stopped, and he was immediately given CPR & restarted by defibulators, though his sternum was cracked in the process. Upon arriving at the hospital, Tino was rushed to the Cath lab, where they went right in & placed a stent in an artery on the left side of his heart.  He remained at the hospital until Thursday, November 11th, when he was released into Elizabeth's care. During his time there, he received excellent care, and has pronounced his gratitude for the kindness & professionalism shown to him by the attending nurses & doctors. 

This will mark the beginning of a new chapter for Tino, the one in which he slows down. Not an easy task for our favorite adventurer! The good news is that with a few modifications in routine, Tino is an excellent candidate for a long & healthy future. 

Here is the action plan:

Low salt diet
No heavy lifting
Especially no lifting above the heart
Daily weigh ins to monitor dangerous water retention, a sign of a poorly beating heart
Daily medications
Limited alcohol initially, then red wine ok
Limited exercise at first, then slow & steady. 
Sleep well
Monitor heart rate & blood pressure. 

Many of you have asked how you can help... Thank you! Your love & support warms us. The fridge is well stocked, but Tino & Elizabeth welcome calm & quiet late morning visits for scrabble games, walks around the flatter parts of the neighborhood, and conversations about anything but Donald Trump or climate change...


This Wednesday, November 15t, Elizabeth has a meeting in the afternoon, and would like someone to be with/visit Tino from 1-4, please email if you are able to come by then. Thank you!