SAVED by a
STOMACH ACHE
Suzanne David had no idea the medical danger she was facing
Suzanne David was walking around without a clue that she had a life-threatening protrusion in an artery. Because she had no pain, she had no reason to know that the balloon-like bulge was there. Luckily, a stomach ache saved her life. Although she has lived in Texas for decades, Suzanne still exudes her special Louisiana upbringing. She hails from the tiny town of Melville on the Atchafalaya River. Now she and her Louisiana-native husband, Al David, reside at Club Lake in Hunt County. They bought a cabin in 1980 and built a new home that Al had designed on their property in 2000.
“ We had planned to move from our home in Dallas when we retired and come to the lake on weekends,” Suzanne said.“ But after six months, we decided to stay at Club Lake full time even though we were both still working. I was employed at Southwest Airlines and Al and his partner had a landscape architectural business. We didn’ t mind the extra drive from Dallas because living here has always been just like we’ re on vacation. It felt like we were going back to our roots is Southwest Louisiana.”
Being around Suzanne feels like a party’ s going on. It’ s must be that good times Louisiana legacy. Her distinctive laugh and upbeat manner make everyone feel cheery.
This fun-loving lady also turned out to be quite fortunate. A couple of years ago, Suzanne came close to losing her life.
“ On a Tuesday here in Greenville, I had arthroscopic surgery for a benign cyst on my ovary,” Suzanne said.“ Everything went fine and I went home. [ But ] after I started to have extremely bad stomach cramps, Al took me to the emergency room at Hunt Regional Medical Center.”
After a number of X-rays and various tests, she spent the night at the hospital.
“ First, they thought I might be having A- fib,” she said.“ The next morning, an internal medicine doctor came in and told me that the cardiologist, Dr. Roger Belbel, would be coming soon.”
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“ I realized what a serious situation I was in but I hadn’ t been worried. Of course, that might have been the Prozac that I was on at the time. I’ ve had the most fantastic life and I thought,‘ If this is it, so be it.”
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- Suzanne David
SPRING 2025 23