He lived 65 years inside a steel machine due to a health problem, he asked to marry his girlfriend and they did not let him

A man that He has lived in an iron lung for 65 years. He has explained how he was forbidden to marry his first love; However, against all odds, he managed to find a partner who cares for him and accompanies him.

Paul Alexander contracted polio at the age of six, in 1952, a disease that caused paralysis throughout his body. He underwent a tracheostomy at the hospital, an operation in which a hole is made in his windpipe and then a tube is inserted to provide him with air to breathe.

For 65 years, Paul Alexander has lived in an iron lung

But since Alexander was paralyzed from the neck down, his diaphragm could not function. To fix this, the doctors locked him in an iron lung.: A ventilator that helps you breathe.

Alexander is actually one of the last people alive in the world who is still inside such a lung. The Guinness Book of Records even recognized him for spending the most time inside the machine.

Although this catastrophic illness changed his life completely, it did not stop him from Paul will graduate from law school and become a lawyer. Precisely while he was studying this career at the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, the man he met a woman named Claire and became romantically involved with her to the point of becoming engaged.

However, Claire’s mother did not approve of the relationship. On one occasion, when Paul tried to call Claire, her mother answered the phone, forbade the marriage and barred Paul from speaking to his fiancée again. Remembering how she felt, she told The Guardian: “It took years to heal from that.”

Kathy Gaines is blind and has cared for him for 65 years.

Although Paul didn’t find his happy ending with Claire, he did he found a long-term company with Kathy Gaines, who has been taking care of him since he graduated from law school and, furthermore, he lives in the same apartment building. Gaines, who is blind due to Type 1 diabetes, became her arms and legs.

Although the couple have never been romantically involved, Paul’s brother Phil compares their relationship to a marriage.

Alexander told News Rebeat: “Actually, you can do anything, regardless of where you come from, your background, or the challenges you may face. You just have to put your heart into it and work hard… My story is an example of why your past and even obstacles need not define your future.”

THE NATION