The Heart Of The Matter (I know its a corny title)

Wow, what a crazy ride the past couple of days have been. Sunday night I woke up with a strange feeling in my chest. Nothing major, I thought, but still a little odd. It passed after about 15-20 mins and I was able to go back to sleep. The day progressed pretty close to normal until about 4:30 or so. The strange feeling in my chest returned. This time it did not go away so quickly. The “something is not right” alarms began to go off. I got up with Nancy and told her what was going on and within the hour we were in the Emergency Room. Six hours later I was admitted to the hospital. Something had shown up in the blood work. There was an elevation in some of the enzyme levels that they use as indicators for cardiac events. I was told that it was slight, but still enough to err on the side of caution. Additional blood work was scheduled and a stress test was ordered. The overnight tests were apparently a little more conclusive because Tuesday morning I was told that I was no longer having a stress test. I was to undergo a heart cauterization. I will admit to you there were a few tears as I evaluated my situation.

The day seemed to drag on as I waited for my procedure. Well, no, it did not seem to drag on, it did drag on. It was sometime in the 3:00 hour that I was finally taken down to the cath. Lab. What an experience that was!

During the procedure the doctor found several blockages. The severity and amount of the blockages was surprising to the doctor. I had 2 arteries with 90% blockage. I was living with high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes, and thought with my current level of exercise, taking note of how and what I was eating and medication that I was on the fairly healthy side of things. Nope. The two 90% blockages were treated; one with a stint and one with angioplasty. The rest is up to me and major lifestyle changes.

I would appreciate your prayer as my life’s journey takes a new direction. I am just glad that I am here to make the change.