Health Update #2, or As Janey Would Say, “The Saga Continues”

“And a new adventure begins,” were my exact words to Warrior Queen as our car turned out of our driveway and she drove me to the nearest emergency room.  This occurred at 1:15 AM on Tuesday, May 30.  Yes, you read that time correctly, AM.  Warrior Queen was not amused to be awoken at this time of day, but after I told her I was startled out of a sound sleep with chest pains at 1:00 (AM again) she was game for the drive to the hospital.

I should digress at this point to warn the young ones reading this not to make a habit of waking up your Warrior Queen in the middle of the night if it is not an emergency.  I think this scenario is covered in the Warrior Queen Care and Maintenance, But Not-By-Any-Means an Owner’s Manual in the section entitled “DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.”  You could cause permanent damage to yourself or your WQ, not to mention damage inflicted on yourself by a grumpy/groggy/grouchy WQ.

We now digress back to the saga in progress.

Once in the emergency room I uttered the magic words, “Chest pain”, and I was wheel-chaired back to an emergency room pod/stall within seconds.  Over the next few hours various tests and the obligatory chest x-ray were performed.  Somewhere along the way I was hooked up to a cardiac monitor, which I wore for the remainder of my stay. The hospital staff was alerted to the fact of my pending catherization within a few days and there was something said about the procedure may have to be moved up. 

This was the news I was hoping to hear.  In recent months my light-headed episodes and shortness of breath issues had gone on too long, and I wanted something/anything done to alleviate my condition as soon as possible. By 4:30AM I was in my own room at Einstein East Norriton, where patients do not share a room with other patients.

Over the course of the morning several nurses would come in to check my vitals, and a few doctors would come in to offer their thoughts on my situation. One announced that my catherization would now happen sometime that very afternoon and I, therefore, would not be allowed any further nourishment or liquid until the procedure was completed.  At this point Warrior Queen returned home to feed our cats, shower, and go to work.

Alas, the rest of the world had to go on without my meager contribution that day.

The catherization was originally scheduled for June 8, then June 1, but finally happened on May 30 with the intention of diagnosing a possible artery or stent blockage.  No blockages were found, but the surgeon seemed concerned that there may be a blockage with my aortic valve.  An echo cardiogram was scheduled for the next day to confirm this.  I was sent back to my room where I amused myself watching television, channeling back and forth between Turner Classic Movies and MSNBC where the implosion of our current regime was being analyzed in micro-detail.

All the while the cardiac monitor (remember the cardiac monitor?) was transmitting data to another location inside the hospital.

While engaging in the game of “Hurry Up and Wait for a Visit from a Physician” I napped, watched television, and ordered my meals from the hospital room service.  My first breakfast from the Low Sodium diet menu was an omelet with fried potatoes, toast, but no cereal as the egg, potato and toast put me over my sodium limit.   The omelet was good, but how come everyone has forgotten the skill of frying potatoes until they are soft and brown, i.e. thoroughly cooked for digestion.   I made a mental note to avoid the potatoes in the future.  

The echo cardiogram was done in my room late in the morning on Wednesday.  I have had this procedure before and I do not look forward to them.  I don’t mind the coldness of the gel, but the hard press of the device against my chest and abdomen gets annoying after 15-20 minutes.  Warrior Queen worked a half day and was there by 1:30PM.  Now we both played the “Hurry Up and Wait” game for the cardiologist to come and tell us what would happen next.

The cardiologist finally appeared about 3:30PM and offered a detailed explanation of my procedures so far.  He reviewed the results of the catherization with us, explained that the echo cardiogram ruled out a blockage of the aortic valve (yay!), and then went on to explain that my problem was more “electrical” than with the “plumbing” or valves and arteries.

Huh-oh.

To be continued….

(Thank you for reading this far.)