Wednesday, December 10, 2008

A day spent in the emergency room

Three months ago today I had a quadruple bypass. I spent today in the emergency room.

I'd been feeling a little out of sorts since the weekend, but last evening I felt particularly tired. I fell asleep while watching TV after dinner, woke up about two hours later, checked my e-mail, and then returned to the living room and lay down on the couch. I fell asleep around 7:15 and, except few a few restroom trips, slept until 7 this morning.

When I arrived at cardiac rehab this morning at 8:15, one of the nurses (or are they physical therapists?) said I looked like I didn't feel well. I walked on the treadmill--at a much slower pace than usual--and then sat on a chair to rest.

The next thing I knew I was flat on my back on the floor, with a dozen people hovering around me, checking my blood pressure, putting cold rags on my forehead, raising my legs, and doing a variety of other things to ensure my health and safety. As soon as they felt I could safety sit in a wheelchair, they wheeled me across the hospital to the emergency room, where I was subjected to a variety of tests and wasn't released until around 6.

The upshot? My blood pressure medication is being reduced by half and I'm to follow-up with my cardiologist within a week.

It was not a fun way to spend my three-month anniversary.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thou shalt monitor thy blood pressure regularly.

Which reminds me. I just switched to the cheap drug, so maybe I'd better check mine out soon.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Mine is very hard to regulate also. Let's hope you have a stress-free and stress-test free holiday.

Terrie Farley Moran said...

Michael,

Take care.

Terrie

Susanne said...

Sorry you had to spend the day in the ER, BUT glad your episode happened where you were being monitored instead of at home.

Take care!!

Carol Kilgore said...

Close call, Michael. Your body will always talk to you, but sometimes it's hard to know what it means. Glad you're OK.

Kevin R. Tipple said...

Glad it was relatively ease to fix. My BP is really hard to control as well becuase I spike and drop. The weather changes don't help me with the wild swings in temps and it might be affecting you as well.

Take care of yourself and take it easy.

Anonymous said...

> It was not a fun way to spend my
> three-month anniversary.


I'm sure it wasn't.

I'm sorry to read that you've needed heart surgery. I remember you being extraordinarily slim and fit, back when we knew each other, oh, thirty-plus years ago (which is not a criticism but a recognition that like murder, Entropy Will Out).

I offer my best wishes for your improved health.