Muzaffer Işık, who lives in Eskişehir, has been struggling with a terminal illness for 36 years. Işık, 67, a COPD patient who stated that he has been sleeping in his seat for years, said that when he lies down, his heart rhythm is suppressed and he stops breathing.
SLEEPING ON THE COUCH AT HOME, ON THE CHAIR OUTSIDE
Işık, who sleeps on the couch at home and on a chair outside, constantly wakes up tired because she cannot sleep.
Işık’s biggest dream is to have a sound sleep in a comfortable bed. Işık, who has blocked veins in his feet and legs and has swelling in his lower back, also has difficulty walking. Muzaffer Işık, who fondly remembers the days when he used to sleep on his back, stated that he understood how important health is thanks to this opportunity.
Işık prays to God every day for the day when he can lie on his back.
“IF YOU DON’T HAVE A COMPANION, YOU WILL SUDDENLY LEAVE, THERE IS NO SALVATION”
Muzaffer Işık, who explains why he sleeps sitting on the couch, says, “I haven’t seen the bed for 36 years. The doctor told me, ‘You will have someone to accompany you while you sleep. When you stop breathing, they need to wake you up. If you don’t have someone to accompany you, you will suddenly leave, there is no salvation.’ I sit on the chair until morning. When the cleric says Allahu Akbar at around 04:30 in the morning, I thank God and say, ‘My Lord, I survived today too.’ I have COPD. Since I have a hernia in my lung, my breathing stops completely because COPD puts pressure on my heart rhythm. I can never lie on my back. I sit on the couch until morning. Everyone is sleeping, I cry like a child. Sitting all the time is uncomfortable. When I sit, I have to move. My breathing stops again. I turn around the house. Since the hospital is close, I go to the emergency room from time to time and they give me a serum. The serum is comforting, but the emergency room doctor said that it will last for 48 hours and that I should go to the hospital again. I told him that I’m managing,” he said.
“I PRAY, ‘OH GOD, LET ME LIE DOWN LIKE THIS AND GET SLEEP’”
Işık stated that his biggest wish in life is for the swelling in his feet to go down and for him to sleep lying down, and continued as follows;
“My feet turned into gangrene because the capillaries were blocked and the blood did not press upwards. My feet were swollen like logs. I went to a cardiovascular doctor. The doctors said, ‘Since the blood cannot flow upwards and both kneecaps have weakened, the feet must be amputated.’ But the doctor said, ‘There is a 90 percent chance that this person will stay on the table because he has shortness of breath.’ Since I do not have a caregiver, I did not have it amputated because I was staying with a sibling. After all, my friends did not recommend it either. I bought a hospital bed and lifted the back. I cancelled it because I was short of breath even though I lifted it. I bought a single armchair and I sit on it. I really want to lie on my back. I cry like a child at 12:00 at night after everyone goes to bed. I pray, ‘Oh God, if I could lie down like this and sleep.’ There are two things I want the most. One is my feet and the other is sleep. Since I sleep sitting up, my body gets tired. I go out like this because I cannot rest completely and my sleep system is broken. When I sleep on a chair, people worry, saying, ‘Oh, something happened to uncle.’ I try not to fall asleep, but I have to close my eyes. I get stiffness in my neck. It feels like a wind has entered, I can’t bend it left or right, it gets stiff.”
(UAV)