20 ms·

Paul Alexander, ‘the man in the iron lung’, has died

315 points by palijer 3y ago

toomuchtodo 3y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_(polio_survivor) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_(polio_survivor...
whythre 3y ago
Remarkable man! Good on him for achieving all that. The part where he was able to learn how to breathe and leave the iron lung for short periods of time is particularly interesting. I wonder what he did on those outings…
- drewzero1 3y ago
  I've just been reading this longer article from 2020 which has a lot more about his life: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lung-paul-alexander-polio-coronavirus https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lu... It says he went out with friends, saw movies, and even flew on planes while "frog-breathing", as he called it. He couldn't do it while unconscious so he still had to sleep in the lung.
  - rob74 3y ago
    > The technique had a technical name, “glossopharyngeal breathing”. You trap air in your mouth and throat cavity by flattening the tongue and opening the throat, as if you’re saying “ahh” for the doctor. With your mouth closed, the throat muscle pushes the air down past the vocal cords and into the lungs. Paul called it “frog-breathing”. So, to state it in computing terms, this wasn't a fix for not being able to breathe, it was a workaround. But it seems to have worked really well: at 40, he was "able to spend most of his day outside the machine that still kept him alive".
    - zingababba 3y ago
      That's incredibly interesting. I'm attempting what I believe to be the technique described at the moment. If I'm doing it correctly I can see why he nicknamed it 'frog-breathing.'
  - redkoala 3y ago
    It sounds like scuba diving, having enough in the tank to go for dives in the outside world at a time before returning to sleep in the lung.
- danbruc 3y ago
  Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by ventilators. But Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. If this is reported correctly, it would even have been an deliberate choice to not leave more often or entirely. EDIT: This was seemingly not reported correctly, it seems he only depended on the iron lung while sleeping but could otherwise live without it.
  - throwitaway222 3y ago
    Maybe his decision to keep using the lung was a smart one. After all 2020 + ventilators...
- thatwasunusual 3y ago
  > I wonder what he did on those outings... Contracting Covid, unfortunately. :(
  - axelfontaine 3y ago
    No. Hadn't left the iron lung in 5 years. Source: https://www.sueddeutsche.de/projekte/artikel/magazin/eiserne-lunge-polio-paul-alexander-texas-beatmung-e348607/ https://www.sueddeutsche.de/projekte/artikel/magazin/eiserne...
    - thatwasunusual 3y ago
      "Alexander, who lived in Dallas, Texas, was rushed to the hospital in late February after testing positive for Covid, according to his social media manager. He was released from the hospital but was struggling to eat and drink." Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/paul-alexander-polio-survivor-iron-lung-70-years-dies-78-covid-diagnos-rcna143137 https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/paul-alexander-polio-su...
scop 3y ago
> Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by ventilators. But Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. As somebody with a medical condition since birth, this line really hit home. I'm not speaking for Mr. Alexander, but for myself "used to it" is such a great way of putting the odd experience of living with frequent and cumbersome medical intervention. On the one hand you have no choice so it is quite easy. You just do it. On the other hand there are often periods here and there through your life where you wrestle with the treatment, complain about it, explore other options, etc. But then a new option does come around every so often and, well, some times you stick with what you know even though there are "better" options. "used to it" is such a disarmingly accurate way of putting it. It is simultaneously the most difficult and easy thing to do. Requiem aeternum Paul Alexander.
- dasil003 3y ago
  That line also jumped out at me. My understanding is iron lungs were only declared "obsolete" due to cost and mobility reasons, but the actual experience of an iron lung is better because it is less invasive and spreads the pressure more evenly over ones whole torso rather than forcing air into the lungs from the inside. In other words, an iron lung is more like actually breathing (and maybe that's how Mr Alexander was able to learn to breathe despite the prognosis).
  - jxramos 3y ago
    yes I believe one of the videos of him expresses the better comfort the negative pressure has on his body somehow over the positive pressure contraptions he's used.
    - hinkley 3y ago
      I remember a conversation in the 90’s about lung damage from over-inflation by dialing the volume incorrectly. They were talking about tech that was better at avoiding it, and thus the lung damaged caused by it. That conversation stuck with me because I found it horrifying.
marbletiles 3y ago
Curious that the story doesn't mention he died of Covid – an infection that, you'd expect someone with his condition to be extremely keen to avoid, and who should have been able to, given reasonable precautions from his visitors.
- zdragnar 3y ago
  Many people are asymptomatic, and not only that, are exposed by others who are asymptomatic. Short of every single human interaction being preceded by a PCR test, the odds are that he eventually would have been exposed. It is easy to do an at-home nasal swab test when you are infected but before the viral load has gotten to the point of being highly contagious, at which point you think you are negative but really will soon become contagious. "Reasonable precautions" would have to be very rigorous, and I have to imagine it would be easy to cave and relax precautions as loneliness sets in.
  - 0xAFFFF 3y ago
    Reasonable precautions here were likely to be proper masking from visitors and adequate air filtering in the room. Not something too hard to expect from people visiting a sick person.
    - hn_throwaway_99 3y ago
      It's not like those "reasonable precautions" are guaranteed. I know a couple people who were absolutely terrified of getting Covid, such that they always masked with N95s and literally only would meet with people outside, 6 feet apart (probably the only time they were inside was with others at the grocery store, and when stores were enforcing masking) and they still got it.
      - foofie 3y ago
        > (...) and they still got it. I don't see the point of your comment. You're presenting an anecdotal case where someone who took some precautions which are known for not being 100% effective against airborne diseases ended up contracting an airborne disease. It makes as much sense as ranting about wearing seatbelts because you can put together an anecdotal case of someone who got hurt in a car accident in spite of wearing one. What's the point of that sort of argument, really?
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
freitzkriesler2 3y ago
Very sad. I hope him and his family will find peace. His story was interesting and the team that helped him refurbish his iron lung were angels in disguise.
schiffern 3y ago
[flagged]
- blueflow 3y ago
  Also i'd like to know why you are getting downvotes. Is this factually wrong conspiracy garbage or something? I don't know but i would like to. Edit: valid reasons presented.
  - jMyles 3y ago
    My presumption is that the downvotes are related to this unsourced and incorrect assertion: > As we know, COVID infections are almost unknown when infected individuals consistently wear a high-quality fitted mask.
  - gambiting 3y ago
    I downvoted because of a completely unfounded and frankly offensive assumption that the worker "who killed him" must have been one of those "muh freedumbs" types - if you read about Paul's life and the people who were next to his side, they were most kind and most caring people you could ever wish for, he was so lucky to have them. To say to the people who literally spent decades with him and looked after him, frequently without any compensation, that they must be the "muh freedumbs" types will all related connotations - to me, that feels like spitting directly into their faces, like the armchair judgement of an internet expert to the highest degree. We don't know anything about the circumstances here, but we are so quick to pass judgement - that's why I downvoted OP.
- ParetoOptimal 3y ago
  They were likely misinformed a surgical mask was enough or thought "taking my mask off for just a second wont hurt".
- anon291 3y ago
  > As we know, COVID infections are almost unknown when infected individuals consistently wear a high-quality fitted mask. Suppose you're visited by a home health aid everyday and in every instance of mask application the protective rate is 99.999%. That means at each instance (each day), you have a 0.001 risk of contracting COVID. If we extrapolate out, after four years, the risk of contracting COVID is 1.5%. Now suppose you have two or three visitors each day. Your risk is now 4.3%. Even 'unheard' of risks become quite common as you tempt fate.
nadermx 3y ago
"That year, he published a memoir which reportedly took him eight years to write using a plastic stick to type on a keyboard and dictating to a friend." Talk about determination
_yb2s 3y ago
I've read his autobiography... I highly recommend it, it is a mind blowing story. Amazing that someone with such a severe disability was able to live such a full life with romance and adventure that most able bodied people would be jealous of. His story and positive attitude has had a lasting impact on me in making me appreciate and enjoy life more- and to really work to make the best out of whatever is thrown at me.
- samstave 3y ago
  TLDR? WOW -- I just read this: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lung-paul-alexander-polio-coronavirus https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lu...
  - rootusrootus 3y ago
    [flagged]
    - johndevor 3y ago
      The vaccine was introduced after polio prevalence was already plummeting.
      - deleted 3y ago
        [deleted]
      - autoexec 3y ago
        I would hardly call that "plummeting" considering the baseline https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/research/online-documents/salk/salk-a.pdf https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/resear...
      - anon291 3y ago
        I'm sorry... this is ridiculous. I'm not vaccine-heavy (like I don't really think you need a chickenpox vaccine or a rotavirus vaccine if you're healthy or a Hep B vaccine at birth if you're low risk), but the idea of forgoing vaccines for illnesses like polio is just stupid. Too many kids died or were disabled for this. It's just stupid. The injectable vaccine is safe and has been used for decades. There should really be no objection to it. The oral ones are a different story and I wouldn't let my kid anywhere near those (too high a risk of polio)
keepamovin 3y ago
What a legend. You poor man. Thank you for showing us what's possible. Thank you for never giving up on life. He always had a smile.
speedylight 3y ago
This man demonstrated such an outstanding will to live and over come his disability. A part of me hopes he has moved on to a better life. Rest in peace, Paul.
reddickulous 3y ago
I didn't even know he was sick.
runjake 3y ago
Paul regularly livestreamed on TikTok -- almost daily. When I first saw him, I was rather horrified by his predicament. But then I saw that Paul was always upbeat and positive and accomplished. He seemed to live his life to his maximum. And he accomplished more than the average abled person. I hadn't seen him the past couple weeks (though my TikTok usage is more cautious morbid curiosity and at an arm's length). I guess this explains it.
- vanjajaja1 3y ago
  that's how I heard of him too. at first the idea of his stationary life seemed terrifying, but he looked like he made the most of it. sad to hear his passing
begueradj 3y ago
He was too brave.
daft_pink 3y ago
They should post a link to the book. I want to read it now.
yiiyiyiyi 3y ago
I remember reading this story a few years ago and realizing that the engineer who maintained it, a guy named Brady, was the same guy who ran my school FIRST robotics team back in 1998-2000. What a guy.
anon115 3y ago
<333333333333333333333333333333 you can rest now my sweet prince
- lee-rhapsody 3y ago
  what a weird way to respond.
Uptrenda 3y ago
He managed to become a lawyer and live a productive life in that thing. Crazy inspiring story.
- CyberDildonics 3y ago
  Yeah... that's the point of the article.
Strom 3y ago
Paul was an inspiration for having amazing perseverance and determination. I especially enjoyed a 30min interview he did in 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DOre3MFlw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DOre3MFlw
bouncycastle 3y ago
The first time I've learned of an iron lung was from The Big Lebowski, "Is this your homework Larry" scene. Larry's father was in the iron lung, in the living room. I was very curious about the machine, so I've looked it up. Quite an incredible machine, and led me into a deep Wikipedia rabbit hole.

315 points by palijer 3y ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_(polio_survivor) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_(polio_survivor...

whythre 3y ago

Remarkable man! Good on him for achieving all that. The part where he was able to learn how to breathe and leave the iron lung for short periods of time is particularly interesting. I wonder what he did on those outings…

drewzero1 3y ago
I've just been reading this longer article from 2020 which has a lot more about his life: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lung-paul-alexander-polio-coronavirus https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lu... It says he went out with friends, saw movies, and even flew on planes while "frog-breathing", as he called it. He couldn't do it while unconscious so he still had to sleep in the lung.
- rob74 3y ago
  > The technique had a technical name, “glossopharyngeal breathing”. You trap air in your mouth and throat cavity by flattening the tongue and opening the throat, as if you’re saying “ahh” for the doctor. With your mouth closed, the throat muscle pushes the air down past the vocal cords and into the lungs. Paul called it “frog-breathing”. So, to state it in computing terms, this wasn't a fix for not being able to breathe, it was a workaround. But it seems to have worked really well: at 40, he was "able to spend most of his day outside the machine that still kept him alive".
  - zingababba 3y ago
    That's incredibly interesting. I'm attempting what I believe to be the technique described at the moment. If I'm doing it correctly I can see why he nicknamed it 'frog-breathing.'
- redkoala 3y ago
  It sounds like scuba diving, having enough in the tank to go for dives in the outside world at a time before returning to sleep in the lung.
danbruc 3y ago
Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by ventilators. But Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. If this is reported correctly, it would even have been an deliberate choice to not leave more often or entirely. EDIT: This was seemingly not reported correctly, it seems he only depended on the iron lung while sleeping but could otherwise live without it.
- throwitaway222 3y ago
  Maybe his decision to keep using the lung was a smart one. After all 2020 + ventilators...
thatwasunusual 3y ago
> I wonder what he did on those outings... Contracting Covid, unfortunately. :(
- axelfontaine 3y ago
  No. Hadn't left the iron lung in 5 years. Source: https://www.sueddeutsche.de/projekte/artikel/magazin/eiserne-lunge-polio-paul-alexander-texas-beatmung-e348607/ https://www.sueddeutsche.de/projekte/artikel/magazin/eiserne...
  - thatwasunusual 3y ago
    "Alexander, who lived in Dallas, Texas, was rushed to the hospital in late February after testing positive for Covid, according to his social media manager. He was released from the hospital but was struggling to eat and drink." Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/paul-alexander-polio-survivor-iron-lung-70-years-dies-78-covid-diagnos-rcna143137 https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/paul-alexander-polio-su...

scop 3y ago

> Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by ventilators. But Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. As somebody with a medical condition since birth, this line really hit home. I'm not speaking for Mr. Alexander, but for myself "used to it" is such a great way of putting the odd experience of living with frequent and cumbersome medical intervention. On the one hand you have no choice so it is quite easy. You just do it. On the other hand there are often periods here and there through your life where you wrestle with the treatment, complain about it, explore other options, etc. But then a new option does come around every so often and, well, some times you stick with what you know even though there are "better" options. "used to it" is such a disarmingly accurate way of putting it. It is simultaneously the most difficult and easy thing to do. Requiem aeternum Paul Alexander.

dasil003 3y ago
That line also jumped out at me. My understanding is iron lungs were only declared "obsolete" due to cost and mobility reasons, but the actual experience of an iron lung is better because it is less invasive and spreads the pressure more evenly over ones whole torso rather than forcing air into the lungs from the inside. In other words, an iron lung is more like actually breathing (and maybe that's how Mr Alexander was able to learn to breathe despite the prognosis).
- jxramos 3y ago
  yes I believe one of the videos of him expresses the better comfort the negative pressure has on his body somehow over the positive pressure contraptions he's used.
  - hinkley 3y ago
    I remember a conversation in the 90’s about lung damage from over-inflation by dialing the volume incorrectly. They were talking about tech that was better at avoiding it, and thus the lung damaged caused by it. That conversation stuck with me because I found it horrifying.

marbletiles 3y ago

Curious that the story doesn't mention he died of Covid – an infection that, you'd expect someone with his condition to be extremely keen to avoid, and who should have been able to, given reasonable precautions from his visitors.

zdragnar 3y ago
Many people are asymptomatic, and not only that, are exposed by others who are asymptomatic. Short of every single human interaction being preceded by a PCR test, the odds are that he eventually would have been exposed. It is easy to do an at-home nasal swab test when you are infected but before the viral load has gotten to the point of being highly contagious, at which point you think you are negative but really will soon become contagious. "Reasonable precautions" would have to be very rigorous, and I have to imagine it would be easy to cave and relax precautions as loneliness sets in.
- 0xAFFFF 3y ago
  Reasonable precautions here were likely to be proper masking from visitors and adequate air filtering in the room. Not something too hard to expect from people visiting a sick person.
  - hn_throwaway_99 3y ago
    It's not like those "reasonable precautions" are guaranteed. I know a couple people who were absolutely terrified of getting Covid, such that they always masked with N95s and literally only would meet with people outside, 6 feet apart (probably the only time they were inside was with others at the grocery store, and when stores were enforcing masking) and they still got it.
    - foofie 3y ago
      > (...) and they still got it. I don't see the point of your comment. You're presenting an anecdotal case where someone who took some precautions which are known for not being 100% effective against airborne diseases ended up contracting an airborne disease. It makes as much sense as ranting about wearing seatbelts because you can put together an anecdotal case of someone who got hurt in a car accident in spite of wearing one. What's the point of that sort of argument, really?

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

freitzkriesler2 3y ago

Very sad. I hope him and his family will find peace. His story was interesting and the team that helped him refurbish his iron lung were angels in disguise.

schiffern 3y ago

[flagged]

blueflow 3y ago
Also i'd like to know why you are getting downvotes. Is this factually wrong conspiracy garbage or something? I don't know but i would like to. Edit: valid reasons presented.
- jMyles 3y ago
  My presumption is that the downvotes are related to this unsourced and incorrect assertion: > As we know, COVID infections are almost unknown when infected individuals consistently wear a high-quality fitted mask.
- gambiting 3y ago
  I downvoted because of a completely unfounded and frankly offensive assumption that the worker "who killed him" must have been one of those "muh freedumbs" types - if you read about Paul's life and the people who were next to his side, they were most kind and most caring people you could ever wish for, he was so lucky to have them. To say to the people who literally spent decades with him and looked after him, frequently without any compensation, that they must be the "muh freedumbs" types will all related connotations - to me, that feels like spitting directly into their faces, like the armchair judgement of an internet expert to the highest degree. We don't know anything about the circumstances here, but we are so quick to pass judgement - that's why I downvoted OP.
ParetoOptimal 3y ago
They were likely misinformed a surgical mask was enough or thought "taking my mask off for just a second wont hurt".
anon291 3y ago
> As we know, COVID infections are almost unknown when infected individuals consistently wear a high-quality fitted mask. Suppose you're visited by a home health aid everyday and in every instance of mask application the protective rate is 99.999%. That means at each instance (each day), you have a 0.001 risk of contracting COVID. If we extrapolate out, after four years, the risk of contracting COVID is 1.5%. Now suppose you have two or three visitors each day. Your risk is now 4.3%. Even 'unheard' of risks become quite common as you tempt fate.

nadermx 3y ago

"That year, he published a memoir which reportedly took him eight years to write using a plastic stick to type on a keyboard and dictating to a friend." Talk about determination

_yb2s 3y ago

I've read his autobiography... I highly recommend it, it is a mind blowing story. Amazing that someone with such a severe disability was able to live such a full life with romance and adventure that most able bodied people would be jealous of. His story and positive attitude has had a lasting impact on me in making me appreciate and enjoy life more- and to really work to make the best out of whatever is thrown at me.

samstave 3y ago
TLDR? WOW -- I just read this: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lung-paul-alexander-polio-coronavirus https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/26/last-iron-lu...
- rootusrootus 3y ago
  [flagged]
  - johndevor 3y ago
    The vaccine was introduced after polio prevalence was already plummeting.
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
    - autoexec 3y ago
      I would hardly call that "plummeting" considering the baseline https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/research/online-documents/salk/salk-a.pdf https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/sites/default/files/resear...
    - anon291 3y ago
      I'm sorry... this is ridiculous. I'm not vaccine-heavy (like I don't really think you need a chickenpox vaccine or a rotavirus vaccine if you're healthy or a Hep B vaccine at birth if you're low risk), but the idea of forgoing vaccines for illnesses like polio is just stupid. Too many kids died or were disabled for this. It's just stupid. The injectable vaccine is safe and has been used for decades. There should really be no objection to it. The oral ones are a different story and I wouldn't let my kid anywhere near those (too high a risk of polio)

keepamovin 3y ago

What a legend. You poor man. Thank you for showing us what's possible. Thank you for never giving up on life. He always had a smile.

speedylight 3y ago

This man demonstrated such an outstanding will to live and over come his disability. A part of me hopes he has moved on to a better life. Rest in peace, Paul.

reddickulous 3y ago

I didn't even know he was sick.

runjake 3y ago

Paul regularly livestreamed on TikTok -- almost daily. When I first saw him, I was rather horrified by his predicament. But then I saw that Paul was always upbeat and positive and accomplished. He seemed to live his life to his maximum. And he accomplished more than the average abled person. I hadn't seen him the past couple weeks (though my TikTok usage is more cautious morbid curiosity and at an arm's length). I guess this explains it.

vanjajaja1 3y ago
that's how I heard of him too. at first the idea of his stationary life seemed terrifying, but he looked like he made the most of it. sad to hear his passing

begueradj 3y ago

He was too brave.

daft_pink 3y ago

They should post a link to the book. I want to read it now.

yiiyiyiyi 3y ago

I remember reading this story a few years ago and realizing that the engineer who maintained it, a guy named Brady, was the same guy who ran my school FIRST robotics team back in 1998-2000. What a guy.

anon115 3y ago

<333333333333333333333333333333 you can rest now my sweet prince

lee-rhapsody 3y ago
what a weird way to respond.

Uptrenda 3y ago

He managed to become a lawyer and live a productive life in that thing. Crazy inspiring story.

CyberDildonics 3y ago
Yeah... that's the point of the article.

Strom 3y ago

Paul was an inspiration for having amazing perseverance and determination. I especially enjoyed a 30min interview he did in 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DOre3MFlw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5DOre3MFlw

bouncycastle 3y ago

The first time I've learned of an iron lung was from The Big Lebowski, "Is this your homework Larry" scene. Larry's father was in the iron lung, in the living room. I was very curious about the machine, so I've looked it up. Quite an incredible machine, and led me into a deep Wikipedia rabbit hole.