The Miracles of Modern Medicine
Everything happens so fast in life today. Yesterday morning I saw my cardiologist and he confirmed what I was hoping he would not: that the problems I had recently been having appeared to be heart-related. He didn't need me to take a test to know that. Although I was originally going to schedule my procedure for next week, I decided to have it done ASAP. That meant less than 24 hours after my visit ended. Kind of scary to not have much time to psychologically prepare.
I stayed up late last night and woke up early this morning. Like any good Catholic guy (and gambler wanting to hedge his bets), I went to confession just in case there was an unforeseen problem. I recently had some dreams that dealt with death, and frankly I was a little scared.
I checked into the hospital just before 8:00 this morning. I was scheduled for a 9:30 a.m. cardiac catheterization. I found out that my cardiologist was running a little behind, so at least I had a little additional time to prepare -- or worry. He was not too late, however, and he quickly put me at ease by speaking with my wife and me. The surgical crew and the nurses were all fantastic.
It was actually all over pretty quickly. As I suspected, the lingering problem from my last hospital visit got worse over time. It was nice to see that the procedure done last time looks great. I was disappointed that all the exercise and relatively careful eating the past seventeen months did not prevent the trouble spot from getting worse. Although in actuality I should have gotten in to see my cardiologist sooner, at least I got in in time to prevent what surely would have been another heart attack as the troubled artery had almost completely clogged.
The last time the procedure was done by going through the groin area -- or actually the upper thigh. Today everything was done by entering in through my wrist. Amazing!
After the doctor finished, I ate lunch after recovering and left the hospital before 2:00 p.m. So ... in a span of less than six hours I went from being a heart attack waiting to happen to a guy with fixed blood flow through his heart.
I have a few physical restriction for a short time, but otherwise should be in great shape.
Thanks to my friends who wrote encouraging comments on my blog and sent test messages and tweets. You guys are the best!
I stayed up late last night and woke up early this morning. Like any good Catholic guy (and gambler wanting to hedge his bets), I went to confession just in case there was an unforeseen problem. I recently had some dreams that dealt with death, and frankly I was a little scared.
I checked into the hospital just before 8:00 this morning. I was scheduled for a 9:30 a.m. cardiac catheterization. I found out that my cardiologist was running a little behind, so at least I had a little additional time to prepare -- or worry. He was not too late, however, and he quickly put me at ease by speaking with my wife and me. The surgical crew and the nurses were all fantastic.
It was actually all over pretty quickly. As I suspected, the lingering problem from my last hospital visit got worse over time. It was nice to see that the procedure done last time looks great. I was disappointed that all the exercise and relatively careful eating the past seventeen months did not prevent the trouble spot from getting worse. Although in actuality I should have gotten in to see my cardiologist sooner, at least I got in in time to prevent what surely would have been another heart attack as the troubled artery had almost completely clogged.
The last time the procedure was done by going through the groin area -- or actually the upper thigh. Today everything was done by entering in through my wrist. Amazing!
After the doctor finished, I ate lunch after recovering and left the hospital before 2:00 p.m. So ... in a span of less than six hours I went from being a heart attack waiting to happen to a guy with fixed blood flow through his heart.
I have a few physical restriction for a short time, but otherwise should be in great shape.
Thanks to my friends who wrote encouraging comments on my blog and sent test messages and tweets. You guys are the best!
posted by lightning36 at 9:21 PM
17 Comments:
Wow, really good news!
Great news, Lightning, very glad to hear.
I'm sure the doctor suggested you spend more time in Vegas as part of the healing process.
Wonderful! If your doctor did indeed suggest a trip to Vegas, let me know ahead of time and I'll join you.
So, the heart is OK but you've two weeks on your knees saying Hail Marys (not the pass) for all your heinous acts?
That about cover it?
My mom had that procedure done yrs. ago, and it drastically improved her health issues. Sorry that you had to go through it, but at least it didn't escalate into something worse.. Glad to hear everything went well, and see you next time you're in Vegas.. -PokerJohnny
Excellent news!
I had saved your last post in my reader as a reminder to leave a comment today but then this post showed up this morning.
So glad it is all working out. Take care of yourself!
Great news, sir... Celebrate with a heart healthy glass (or three) of a nice Cabernet!
Great news! You can exhale now :)
WOW! I am so glad to hear that you made it through relatively well. Time to celebrate by going Gorilla Style I think....lol
Good news Light, I'm very glad for you. Time to celebrate (in moderation)
Excellent news. Sounds like it couldn't have been slicker and easier that it was. Thanks for letting us all know so quickly how things went.
All I saw from this post was "my groin".
@Josie: And you say _I'm_ obsessed???
Sounds like your back to normal...whatever that means...Congrats!
Sounds like your back to normal...whatever that means...Congrats!
Great news lightning.
Heart surgery has come a loooong way in the last 5 years. Working at a hospital, I see how fast they turnaround cases. It's almost drive-thru, minimal risk now.
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