When North Texas personal injury attorney Brian Loncar, who promoted himself as the “Strong Arm” with his series of TV commercials, was found dead Nov. 28, 2016, inside his Rolls-Royce Wraith, which was parked outside his downtown law firm, Loncar & Associates, the reported cause of death was a heart attack. The Dallas Morning News, however, at the time, say official results were still pending and would take up to two months.
Loncar, 56, died two days after burying his daughter, Grace, 16, a junior at Booker T. Washington High School who killed herself Nov. 25 and had battled depression since she was 11 years old.
When Loncar died, not once did I hear the local media say his heart attack was due to the stress of dealing with the sudden loss of his daughter in what I now know as “broken heart syndrome.”
Such was not the case Dec. 28 when screen legend, actress Debbie Reynolds, 84, died a day after her daughter, actress Carrie Fisher, 60, died following a massive heart attack she suffered on a flight from London to Los Angeles Dec. 23.
"She (Debbie Reynolds) missed her daughter (Carrie) and wanted to very much be with her," son, Todd Fisher and brother of Carrie, told Entertainment Tonight. "She had been very strong the last several days. [There was] enormous stress on her, obviously. And this morning she said those words to me and 15 minutes later she had a stroke and virtually left."
The morning after the world learned of Reynolds’ death the media brought up the subject of how she died from broken-heart syndrome.
The Mayo Clinic website describes broken heart syndrome as a temporary heart condition that’s often brought on by stressful situations such as the death of a loved one. Other situations that can often trigger broken heart syndrome include a threatening medical condition, domestic abuse, losing or winning a lot of money, strong arguments, a surprise party, performing publicly, job loss, divorce, asthma attacks, car accidents and major surgeries.
I won’t deny the stories I have heard of elderly couples dying in their 80s or 90s within hours apart, but were they truly a case where when the wife died, the husband couldn’t take the loss and as a result died of a “broken heart?” Is that what gets put on the person’s certificate as the cause of death following an autopsy if the family wishes one?
Consider the thousands, perhaps millions of parents who have gone through the pain of burying their sons and daughters who went to fight in the Iraq/Afghanistan wars since 9/11 and never came home alive. Did any of those mothers and fathers die from broken heart syndrome days later? I bet more police officers and military soldiers die by suicide on a weekly basis because of what they’ve gone through on the job and in battles overseas than hearing of a mother or father dying from a “broken heart” as a result of a losing their kid.
Dr. Holly Andersen director of education for the heart institute at New York Presbyterian Hospital and scientific adviser for the Women's Heart Alliance, said Reynolds succumbed to “a cardiovascular event” given the actress’ history of stroke and heart disease among women. I will not be surprised if Loncar’s official cause of death when released is also “a cardiovascular event.”
"It wouldn't be surprising that an 84-year-old woman like Debbie Reynolds had some (arterial) plaque, and with this kind of stress, became more vulnerable and had more of a garden-variety heart attack and sudden death," Andersen said.
I don’t know what Loncar’s medical history was. I do, however, believe Reynolds’ death was likely the result of her previous medical history involving the strokes she suffered than I am accepting that her death was the result of “broken heart syndrome” due to the immense stress of losing her daughter.
I believe when it came to heart disease, both were likely walking time bombs, and it was only a matter of time before they suffered a fatal heart attack or stroke even if Loncar’s daughter had not died by suicide or if Carrie Fisher had survived her massive heart attack.
Thousands, if not millions, of people go through the loss of losing a child. The one and only reason we now know of “broken heart syndrome” was because Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher were “Hollywood Royalty” and famed Texas lawyer Brian Loncar was only known to Dallas residents as the “Strong Arm.”
©1/4/17
Loncar, 56, died two days after burying his daughter, Grace, 16, a junior at Booker T. Washington High School who killed herself Nov. 25 and had battled depression since she was 11 years old.
When Loncar died, not once did I hear the local media say his heart attack was due to the stress of dealing with the sudden loss of his daughter in what I now know as “broken heart syndrome.”
"She (Debbie Reynolds) missed her daughter (Carrie) and wanted to very much be with her," son, Todd Fisher and brother of Carrie, told Entertainment Tonight. "She had been very strong the last several days. [There was] enormous stress on her, obviously. And this morning she said those words to me and 15 minutes later she had a stroke and virtually left."
The morning after the world learned of Reynolds’ death the media brought up the subject of how she died from broken-heart syndrome.
The Mayo Clinic website describes broken heart syndrome as a temporary heart condition that’s often brought on by stressful situations such as the death of a loved one. Other situations that can often trigger broken heart syndrome include a threatening medical condition, domestic abuse, losing or winning a lot of money, strong arguments, a surprise party, performing publicly, job loss, divorce, asthma attacks, car accidents and major surgeries.
I won’t deny the stories I have heard of elderly couples dying in their 80s or 90s within hours apart, but were they truly a case where when the wife died, the husband couldn’t take the loss and as a result died of a “broken heart?” Is that what gets put on the person’s certificate as the cause of death following an autopsy if the family wishes one?
The problem I have with what reportedly killed Reynolds is I had never heard of this medical condition before, regardless of the fact it exists in the medical books and on medical websites.What Loncar and Reynolds went through in the days/hours before they died were the same. Both suffered the loss of losing a child but under different circumstances. They are, however, not the only ones who’ve gone through the same tragedy. Many have lived through their losses.
Consider the thousands, perhaps millions of parents who have gone through the pain of burying their sons and daughters who went to fight in the Iraq/Afghanistan wars since 9/11 and never came home alive. Did any of those mothers and fathers die from broken heart syndrome days later? I bet more police officers and military soldiers die by suicide on a weekly basis because of what they’ve gone through on the job and in battles overseas than hearing of a mother or father dying from a “broken heart” as a result of a losing their kid.
I am also not denying how terrible it is for a parent to outlive their child. I can’t imagine the pain of going through that.Reynolds suffered two strokes in 2015 and recovered according to an ABC News article.
Dr. Holly Andersen director of education for the heart institute at New York Presbyterian Hospital and scientific adviser for the Women's Heart Alliance, said Reynolds succumbed to “a cardiovascular event” given the actress’ history of stroke and heart disease among women. I will not be surprised if Loncar’s official cause of death when released is also “a cardiovascular event.”
"It wouldn't be surprising that an 84-year-old woman like Debbie Reynolds had some (arterial) plaque, and with this kind of stress, became more vulnerable and had more of a garden-variety heart attack and sudden death," Andersen said.
I don’t know what Loncar’s medical history was. I do, however, believe Reynolds’ death was likely the result of her previous medical history involving the strokes she suffered than I am accepting that her death was the result of “broken heart syndrome” due to the immense stress of losing her daughter.
I believe when it came to heart disease, both were likely walking time bombs, and it was only a matter of time before they suffered a fatal heart attack or stroke even if Loncar’s daughter had not died by suicide or if Carrie Fisher had survived her massive heart attack.
Thousands, if not millions, of people go through the loss of losing a child. The one and only reason we now know of “broken heart syndrome” was because Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher were “Hollywood Royalty” and famed Texas lawyer Brian Loncar was only known to Dallas residents as the “Strong Arm.”
©1/4/17
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