DU Lost a Member Last Night

Her name was "AzLady." She joined in 2008, but lurked for years prior.
She was on the quiet side here, so many may not recognize her name. After I finally talked her into joining, DU and politics were all she could talk about. She loved DU. She posted here as long as she was physically able, but read until the end.

She fell ill a few years back, starting with a few symptoms and quickly went downhill over the past few months. She went doctor to doctor seeking help but was only given meds which usually didn't help. She had no health insurance since she lost several jobs, couldn't afford it and her home was in foreclosure. Over the past few months when the pain had gotten so bad that she was bedridden and spent her days moaning in pain, she begged for additional tests, but was denied due to her lack of health insurance.

Her husband begged the hospital to admit her and run a few tests a week ago (he did this often) and they finally complied. The tests showed that she had advanced stage colon and liver cancer. They gave her a week to live and she died last night holding her husband's hand. :cry:

I'm sorry if this doesn't make sense or if this post is all over the place. I'm in shock and numb. I somehow wonder in my mind had she had health care if they would've given her the necessary tests sooner and she'd still be here.

Azlady was my best friend and more like a big sister to me. :cry: She just turned 50. Her husband is crushed. She was a very big-hearted person. She was the kind of person to give whatever she could to help someone in need.

I'm beginning to ramble, so I must go now. :cry:
Please keep her and her husband in your thoughts/prayers.

you were a part of our DU family , and you will be missed.

My thoughts to her husband, family and loved ones.

:grouphug:

our times truly are :cry:

but the show goes on, so many, do not notice.

i am completely SHOCKED and ANGERED by what our nation has become... things need to change, as a house divided can NOT stand!

Some of her sweet posts from the Pets Group...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=243&topic_id=37504#37508

It's so obvious that she was a good person who loved animals. If not for our dysfunctional "health care system" (so-called), she might very well still be with us.

RIP, AZLady.

Condolences and healing vibes to the family and all those who knew and loved her...

Ghost

I shall not forget.


Someday, some how, there needs to be a memorial forum on DU.

:hug: :hug: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

OhioChick, I'm so sorry for your loss, and her husband's too. :hug:

Such a frustrating story. Only 50 years old! This has to stop!

Sending strength to your loved ones

I am sorry we did not get a chance to meet online.. You must have been a beautiful soul to have a friend grieve you as OhioChick ... OhioChick I am so sorry you have lost your friend :hug:

:hug: to you OhioChick. My sincerest condolesnces to you and to AzLady's family and friends.

her family is in my thoughts and prayers.

Best wishes for her husband and family.

I'm sorry for your loss, OhioChick.

I will hold you all in my heart. :hug:

It makes me infuriated, devastated, and just plain horrified when I read about this. 50 years old!! AZlady had DECADES to contribute to our world....

:nuke: :grr: :cry: :cry:

I HATE what our society has become when we can't take care of people like your good friend. I know my words of comfort are probably cold comfort but please know her story means something, means a lot and I hope that helps you and her family today and in the days to come. Please know that stories like this are important and that her memory lives on....

Hugs and hopes for some peace very soon....

....our capitalist healthcare system has claimed another victim....this totally disgusting and shameful....

My deepest sympathies to you OhioChick and her family.

Tears in my eyes that another dear person is a victim to this terrible health care system of ours.

so sad ;(

This is the reason.

Why sew need to keep up that fight

Thank you for posting. It's a generous act.

My thoughts are with her and her husband. RIP

My condolences to her husband, family, and friends (including yourself).

I have no words. It's stories like this that leave me both unbearably sad and angry at the same time.

This woman did not have to die like this and should have been able to receive the diagnostic support and medical treatment that any other citizen in any other industrialized country would have received.

:cry:

:(

Another needless death caused by our messed up "health care" system. 50 years old is WAY too young - and early detection and treatment of her cancer could have saved her - if she only had access to it.

:cry:

My sincere condolences to you and all her loves ones. :hug:

I am sorry i did not know her, she sounds like a brave and good woman. I am sorry for the pain and grief you and her husband are feeling tonight. You are both in my thoughts and prayers tonight.

RIP Azlady.

RIP Azlady

:hug:

:cry:

my heart goes out to all of us

:cry:

:cry:

RIP

This is especially difficult during the holidays.

I'm sorry for your loss of your best friend, OhioChick.

I'm sorry for your loss of your best friend, OhioChick.

Let some good come from this thing ... those that have insurance ..
get your screenings ... including colon and prostrate checks ...

My thoughts and prayers are with her family and you. I hope her memory will gladden your heart soon.

Stupid computer

I could say a lot more about the need for a SPHC system in this country, but for the time being I'll stick with deep, deep condolences.

Sorry for your loss.
:hug:

AZLady deserved many more years to shine with her family and friends like you, OhioChick.

Peaceful, comforting wishes to you all from an understanding heart.

:grouphug:

Peace.

separated from the process of grief; don't be surprised if it takes five to seven weeks to start feeling like yourself in how engaged you are on the is.

What I'd offer as comfort or condolence is to submit you consider your loss is that of but a mortal shell. The who of her will continue to speak to you always, listen with an inner ear that hears those little bristles on the wind and her voice will be in them. Grief is about a period of adjustment on lack of access to the tangible, which I don't see as the meatiest part of what makes us us. That spirited energy of definition and individuality stay with us well beyond the passing.

Be patient with yourself.

Rest in peace, AZ Lady, and my condolences to friends and family. It's always so hard to lose a loved one.

Rest in peace, dear lady...

Thank you for letting us know. Aloha no.

I noticed her around the same time RadioLady "left". It only took a couple of posts to realize that they were not the same person. :-)

Please give her husband our condolences. R.I.P. AZLady.

No one should have to suffer like this...

All the best to her family and loved ones.

Remember that and rejoice in what you had, actually, still have with her.

:hug:

It is unconscionable that in such a wealthy country as ours she was denied proper treatment. Colon cancer is very treatable in its earlier stages. Liver cancer not as much, but more could have been done for her.

My thoughts and prayers are with you, her husband and other loved ones.

Rest in peace AzLady.

:(

I extend my sympathies to you, your loved ones, and her family. May each one of you find comfort and compassion in the wake of your tremendous loss. I hope in the coming days, the fond memories of AzLady will sustain you. Please take care.

:hug:

I will keep her and her husband and you in my prayers.

Sorry for your loss. I do remember her somewhat though. So sad.

to go through. Damn this country!! My heart goes out to all who loved her. I hope AzLady felt wrapped in the love people clearly had for her. May she rest out of pain and in peace.

:grouphug:

:hug: to you OhioChick and to Azlady's family.

So sad. There is no reason for someone to suffer so. :(

:(

:cry:

Thank you for telling us. What a great friend you are and she sounds a wonderful woman.

This is a great loss and it's one that healthcare could have helped.

What a sad day!

:(

It's reprehensible that the hospital wouldn't do anything because she didn't have health insurance. What kind of country do we live in when we can't take care of our poor????

My condolences to you and to AzLady's family. :( :hug:

So sorry ohiochick.

RIP azlady

Rest in peace, Azlady.

due to our unfair health care system. :(

Never imagine for a moment, and please pass to her husband this truth: that if one lives life connected to the living world, one cannot help but be anguished by news such as this!

No man is an island, entire of itself
every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main
if a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were,
as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were
any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind
and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls
it tolls for thee.


-- John Donne


"Because I am involved in mankind." Would that more would learn and live it! Peace be unto AzLady and her family.

I'm sorry for your loss, for DU's loss. May her love cradle you and the memories comfort you.

Peace and gentle hugs for you and AzLady's husband. :grouphug:

Rest east, AzLady

She had liver disease for most of her adult life. Managed it well for years and then she got really sick, they put her in the hospital and found out she had colon cancer. Gave her a week to live and she lasted 6 days.

So sorry for your loss. My friend was 50 as well. I understand how you feel.

I am so sorry OhioChick - I can't begin to imagine how you're feeling. I did not even know AzLady but the details of her story make me want to smash crockery. It's so horribly unfair and so WRONG.

I'm sure your friendship meant a lot to this dear lady.

May she find peace.

:cry:

I talked to her many times. What a great lady!

Talented too.

I'm sorry for your loss and her families loss.

Damn!

should stop resting in peace and start some major haunting of those who are responsible.

Sorry for your loss OhioChick and her poor husband.
:hug:

how very sad. She should not have suffered like that. There is no rational excuse.
RIP AzLady.

She will no longer feel the pain, and I understand she left too soon, with friends and family grieving. Her story, unfortunately, will be played out many more times because so many are without the means, or the the advocates, or the GD subscriber cards. I wish our collective anger would turn things around so we all could find the peace in living now afforded her in death. She has most likely forgiven us our failures to do that as well as those that were so blinded they could no longer care about our friend. She will be missed here, as our journey continues...

Stories like these need to be collected somewhere, maybe a website, that our illustrious leaders cannot run away from or deny the existence of until people like your friend get needed access to the health care that they need to survive. I wish I could do it but I don't have the expertise, but maybe someone who reads this can do it.

So, I will sidestep the other issues for the time being despite my horror.

RIP, dear lady. I wish you had lived in a kinder country and in a more compassionate time.

just so sorry. :hug:

And with the shame of coming from a country that has the capacity to prevent things like this, and yet refuses to :-(

known her better. I wish there words that were right for situations like this, but there never are. This story is so sad, so indicative of the society we live in. I feel so sad for her husband too. This should not happen to anyone in this country.

Take care of yourself, your friend sounds like she was a wonderful person. :cry: :hug: :cry:

And sorry that DU lost another good person.
And sorry that the U.S. has a ridiculous health care system.

Beyond tragic. My heartfelt condolences. :(

and yes, i believe if she had insurance she absolutely would have gotten the tests she needed.

and may the Deity she believed in, (if there was one) be holding her spirit in their loving hands.

My thoughts and condolences are with her husband and with you.

Damn.

Thank you for letting us know, OhioChick.

no husband should have to beg a hospital to do tests, she should have had free treatment years ago.... such a sad sad story.

eom

and way to young to die. Much sympathy to you, her husband and all those who love her. :grouphug:

I think everyone here could learn a lesson from this. We don't know what's going on behind the scenes when someone is posting or lurking here. Although everyone is anonymous, these aren't just words on a screen we are sharing with an automaton. I see DU as one big family and we are all human beings with feelings at the other end. Even though we don't expose it, some DUers are experiencing tragedies and going through really tough times.

I think I'm rambling now, too, so I'm going to stop here.

I really miss seeing you here, OC. I'll be in touch.... :grouphug:

Thank you for letting us know. It's such a young age to die at, and really tragic.

RIP, AzLady.

This whole thing only lasts
a few seconds.


All that matters is the love and bonds that were made.


May she find her way quickly back to the lifestream.

And see the snow falling in the galaxy.

RIP

I hope here death will not be in vain.

How many more victims will insurance companies leave in their tracks?

It sounds as though a wonderful woman left this world far too soon

Condolences to her husband, to you OhioChick, and to her friends and family.

:cry:

Such is the nature of the U.S. health care delivery system.

This couldn't happen in any other developed country on the planet.

R.I.P. AzLady

her work on earth is done...

...and may all who loved or cared about her find comfort and peace.

Such a needless death in this land of wealth but of inequality.

with thoughts of AzLady.

No one should have to endure that.

Sending you all light and love.

She was much to young and our country should do something with our health structure. My thoughts and prayers are with you and her family.

So sad to read these accounts...no one should be forced into a situation like this...:(

Tragic and unnecessary.

"Best Heath System in the World (if you're wealthy)."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es02wV7Ej2Q&feature=related">The Hope

RIP Azlady.

My condolences to her Family, and to you, OhioChick.

This is beyond sad. Rest in peace, Azlady. :hug:

My sincere condolences to your husband...

and to the family of AzLady.

I am so very sorry for the loss of your dear friend, OhioChick. :hug:

And I'm also so sorry for her husband and family, and for the injustice they suffered in the last few years. It's unconscionable.

Bless her....:hug:

:cry:

And sorry she was crushed by the bad economy and even worse health care system. Tragic. My heart goes out to all who loved her. :hug:

family, her friends and with you at this time.

very difficult.

America failed her.

I am so sorry for the loss of your friend.
At 51, with no health insurance, I find this post hits close to home.

HCR did nothing for her.

The medical profession did nothing to save her.

I am truly disgusted with America, for AzLady and for all of us whom America has thrown away.


Rest in peace, Dear AzLady.

She was stuck in that never-never land between Medicaid and being able to afford coverage. Those of us there have little hope of treatment when we become ill. I'm very sad for her and her family . . . and for this country.

you and Mr. Azlady have my most sincere condolences. :hug:

May she rest in peace after so much hardship. She is surely blessed for it.

I'm so sorry for your loss.

so sad and too many suffer the ill effects of a failed system. Take care of yourself OhioChick :grouphug:

If we had fair and equitable healthcare she'd be with us today as sure as the sun comes up.
:grouphug:

And thank you for letting us know. I'm very sorry for you loss.

Too many times we have looked the other way at the suffering and the pain of our fellow humans. We as a nation should be better than this, we will be better than this, we will make it happen.

Peace

Lee

May she rest in peace, pain free, surrounded by angels to care for her.

I hope you as her friend can find comfort knowing she no longer is suffering.


I too in the past 1 1/2 weeks lost two very very dear friends. It is so hard to to say good bye to those who have touched our hearts with love and friendship.
My thoughts are with you as well as with Azlady 's family.

fly

And only in American (and other third world countries) is this story even possible.

I regret that I did not know her.

She was murdered by the health care system, totally legally because she wasn't part of a privileged class with insurance. AZLady, I'm sorry this happened to you. I hope her husband finds some peace. The rest of y'all, if you didn't fight for single payer before, I suggest you do it now because it'll be far more meaningful than keeping her in your thoughts and prayers.

In her name I send out a hope, yet again, this country will evolve. Soon.

This country really sucks, that it doesn't have a national health plan for its citizens.

for your loss and condolences to her family as well.

I cannot, for the life of me, understand why we do not have a public option.

O8)

Try to remember her whole and free of the pain.

I too lost a friend who couldn't afford health insurance this year. It is just so senseless...

:hug:

Our thoughts and sympathies to AZlady and her loved ones.

I'm sorry for her suffering and the horrid amount of people that health insurance agencies kill everyday. My god! we aren't very free are we? you have a community here who are outraged, who want better, who care for the conditions of humanity. Do not be silent. In your own neighborhood, community, city, state, there are good people for you to reach out to and get to love and share yourself with. we are here so briefly. I hug you. I am so sorry.

Goodbye AzLady.

n/t

so sorry to hear

The best we can do now is try to prevent anyone else from dying from a lack of health insurance. It didn't have to be this way. :(

:hug:

Thank you for letting us know.

:hug:

So sorry to hear this, RIP AzLady. :( :hug:

To lose someone you love is very heartbreaking. DU has lost another soldier. That is why I fight. I fight for those who can no longer fight. Or for those who have given up. Or for those who need time to mourn. Take all the time you need to grieve your loss. Let the family know we are with them in spirit and thought. And don't worry I am not tired yet!!!!!AZLADY enjoy your REST!!! The fight continues!!

50. This SHOULDN'T have happened. And so many of us are in exactly the same predicament re can't afford medical treatment.

you and her family and friends.:grouphug:

n/t

the for-profit industries that look at people as if they're nothing but $$$$. I'm sick of this nation's 'leaders' who deny the citizens health care while they are fully covered.

RIP, AzLady. I'm glad your pain has ended. May the pain of the CEOs and our leaders begin.

Sorry for your loss.

I hate to get even a little political at times like this, but bear with me.

I'm in my mid-50s, and I got a colonoscopy about a month ago. Suffice to say, it was timely. As a result, I would endorse doctor recommendations to get this done.

Now for the politics - It cost $5,000 plus. I have insurance, and my portion was minimal, thank goodness. But for those without insurance, or without the ability to pay this even over time, it's, well, it's a killer. This is the country we now live in.

I am sorry for your loss, and for DU's loss as well.

I certainly remember AzLady. And I will be going out to my lodge soon to say prayers for her, her husband, and for you, her best friend.

There are many people here, myself included, who are here to talk with you at any time.

Your friend,
Pat

:cry: :hug:

Please accept my condolences.

...

and may her words and deeds inspire others to such acts of goodness and kindness that no one else will suffer needlessly.

Another real-life example of a greedy heartless system.

Rest in peace, AzLady. My thoughts are with her loved ones.

Maybe someday there will be a healthcare system for us all.

where this kind of shit is allowed to happen. :mad:

I am sorry for your/our loss, and I am also INFURIATED that this is a story that can happen today in our country.

So many have gone too soon, too soon...

She is already at peace with Father Sky.

May my Mother and Father comfort you and her husband as is my desire as well.

Blessings to you and yours.

-Hoot

Much love to you and her husband and family. RIP Azlady. :hug:

I weep for her, and for our country. We are truly lost as a nation.

even as you confront your own grief.

I do recall posts from her, and will miss her.

DU is a big, dysfunctional family--but not so dysfunctional that the loss of one of us goes unmourned.

I hope, when you have resolved your immediate grief, that you will memorialize her in a useful and giving way by writing the story of her experiences with the health care system and finding a way to get it into public view. People don't respond well to abstractions, but stories like hers belong in the national discussion.

:grouphug:

She sounds like a wonderful person. I'm so sorry for your loss.

We miss you, dearly..

As are you.

What fucking kind of country is this?

May she rest in peace. :cry:

My deepest condolences to her husband and the rest of her family.

To die for any reason at such a young age is sad, but to know that there could have been recourse if only
adequate health care was available, makes this a horrific story

.:cry: :grouphug:

she has passed over she will still be with us.

Bless you for letting us know and for being her friend.

:hug:

:cry:

Murdered by lack of health care... :cry:

:hug:

.

That is so sad. 50 is way to young, and such a terrible way to go. I hate the health industry in this country...best health care in the world my #*@

Please accept my condolences.

The DU family has lost one of its own and a pall falls over us as the reality of Azlady's illness and untimely death becomes more and more real to those who knew and loved her. Her story is a tragedy that has been playing out all to frequently across America. No one should be denied medical care for want of health insurance. If this is the best America can do for its own than we are failing miserably as a nation.. Azlady was to young to leave us and had so much more living to do. We are thankful for having had her on DU for the time we did and she will be sorely missed. Death has come like a thief in the night to one of our own and the U.S. healthcare system of Sickness For Profit brazenly steals our national soul.

Thanks for the thread, OhioChick.:-( :hug:

My condolences to her family.

I remember her from several of her posts. usually brief and to the point.

It also sickens me to think she was forced to suffer in pain. And that she was refused treatment.

We were siblings in the strive for what's right.

I also offer my most sincere condolences to her husband, to her family, and to OhioChick - who was, obviously, very attached.

We shouldn't have to lose good people this way. Hell, we shouldn't have to lose good people at all, but we do.

It would be fitting that we remember our lost members - all of them - by continuing the fight for justice in America. Justice in our health care system, our legal system, our political system, and our economic system.

To AzLady: Thanks for being part of us.

Celtic Merlin
Carlinist, almost 52 years old.

O8)

by the time symptoms showed up.

A routine colonoscopy years ago might have, but once it's in your liver, the prognosis is very poor.

"Someday this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed." Health care for all now.

sad:-(

that make decisions to hurt the public with selfish healthcare policies.

It's sad to see that she was yet another victim of the diabolical health care and insurance industry.

I'm not religious but in my book the health care industry is as sinful as it can get.

This hits home because I am just about to turn 50 myself. It's not fair that I have good health care and she did not. :cry:

:hug:

I lost my little brother exactly 1 month ago today to bladder cancer. The loss is still fresh. My prayers go out to all.