got one sced. for 8-1-11 prayers are great, or just general well wishes, just wanted yall to know.
also i will try and give an update asap, gonna be on vacation for a few days after that and wouldnt want to leave the FF family hanging.
Of course you have our prayers.
See if you can get your procedure on a DVD, I got my last cardiac stent insertions put onto a DVD, sure makes an interesting talking point :) I also got my CT scan colonoscopy on DVD and I am due to swallow a video camera soon and will get that as well. Maybe I am just weird but I sure have a good idea of what I look like inside now if only they could find out where all my red blood cells are going, I'd be a lot happier.
Ely,
My wife had a heart attack on July 2. They did a catheterization/angiogram and found one 100% blocked artery and one 90% blocked. They put in stents and almost four weeks later she is doing fine (although she thought she was having another heart attack two weeks after the first but the tests showed it to be a false alarm.)
So now, after reading a book by Dr. Dean Ornish, she is a fanatic about her diet--completely vegan. I can't stand it. ;D
Good luck.
We will be praying for you, ely. Keep us updated, as you are able.
ely, my prayer is for a successful procedure. smiley_thumbsup
yessir, prayers and well wishes to you.
I wish you the best. I had one and got a stent last October. It really wasn't so bad. They do so many now i think they really know that they are doing. The toughest thing since has been the smoking cessation. It is driving me a bit nuts actually. I hope to pull out of it soon
ely,good luck to you.
My wife just had that done,found nothing wrong. ;D Than she had the scope down her throat,still found nothing wrong. ;D But she is still having a fullness in her chest. I know more test are coming. She felt better,more awake,after the heart thing than the scope. The scope they put her all the way under, the heart cath just a little under.
i know a few that had it done all doing much better
Good luck Ely.
Ely,
I had one done a couple years ago, ,maybe not that long but the worse thing I found is laying completely still for 4 hours after the procedure so the entry hole in your artery can heal. Can't move a inch.
Other than that it's easy.
Good luck, Say howdy to the Nurses.
Ely, I just wanted to wish you all the best on your upcoming heart cath. Just had one myself within the past month.
Started with a new to me primary care doctor with a complete physical. EKG showed what they call a left bundle branch blockage, which I already knew about, so down the hall for some blood work. Next was a sonogram on my carotid arteries and the tech asked me if I knew I have an irregular heartbeat! So back down the hall for another test, something like the EKG, but different. Doc says "your heart sometimes skips a beat", so on to a heart doctor for a stress test (indeed starting to get a little stressful by now).
Couldn't go on a treadmill because the left bundle branch blockage would show a false-negative result, so I got what they called a nuclear set test. Can't really describe what that was like except to say a little upsetting and scary, to say the least!
Then he wants me to have a heart cath so to the hospital I go (at a later date). For some reason he couldn't get all the way with the probe up my right side so he swaps to the left side, that way I get two entry punches in one trip. Around fifty percent blockage in an artery plus the bundle branch blockages in some smaller vessels, but no stents and nothing to be concerned about at this time, says he. And for sure the four hours laying still afterward was something else.
After that Doc says he wants me to have an abdominal CT Scan, after which, before I see him again, he makes me an appointment with a vascular surgeon, who explains that I have what they call AAA, an abdominal aortic aneurisym. He explained that what should be about the size of a lead pencil was about the size of a quarter so by now I'm getting paranoid! But he explained to me that he wouldn't be too concerned unless it gets up to around 35 sonometers ( or something like that). Says we have to keep a close eye on it so.....he makes me an appt. for six months from then. I'm thinking "so much for keeping a close eye on it" !!! But after reading on the internet, that's purty much what they say to do, so I'm hoping they know best.
I know this has been rather long but just to say "you pays yo money and takes yo chances" I pray that all you have is just maybe a heart cath without all the other extra added benefits that sometimes come with it. Best of luck and God's speed to you.
P.S. be very careful with any heavy lifting says the Doc, but I can't sit around on my keester just waiting to die, but don't tell my wife. She's got this thing about thinking she knows best...sometimes.
I also had one done a few years ago after flunking a stress test and doctor stopped a trip I had planned to California in a few days until I had it done. All came out OK. I've passed 4 stress tests since.
dnalley -
Abdominal aortic aneuysms are not uncommon, but if they are expanding over time, watch out!. The current regimen of repeat CT scans or ultrasounds is a very good idea and standard of care. If this thing is enlarging, but is causing no symptoms, they now can often repair it with stents, much like coronary arteries. If it gets blocked or becomes very large, a big open bypass procedure may be necessary. I am not trying to scare you. I am trying to make sure you are diligent in getting your periodic check-ups on this thing. If it changes size, but just by a litlle, they may increase the frequency of the tests. If I were you, I would make sure that your vascualr docs have the capability of performing the stenting operation. If not, I would get a second opinion with a specialist who performs this type of procedure in the near future. You want to be plugged into the right doc before the decision to intervene is made, not at the time of a later crisis.
Ely, good luck on Monday.
Ely,
Prayers and well-wishes go out to you for your procedure on Monday.
Here's to a speedy, successful recovery, too! smiley_beertoast
Raider Bill,you probably had it done through the groin area? Wife had it done in the wrist. No driving for a few days and no making bread for a week and lifting anything heavy. No moving the wrist around alot either.doctorb,is right about finding a Dr that can put the stents right in while you are in there.
Roger that, right side groin. I never did see where they went in it was such a small hole no stitches nothing.
When I worked in the OR Recovery room, we used to get the patients from the cath lab who had just undergone an angiogram. Those poor folks had to lie flat on their back, not move an inch, with a big old clamp holding down the wound to keep it from bleeding. That artery that they use for the angiogram is a very major artery, and we were trying to keep the patient from bleeding excessively from that incision wound. Usually, back then, we kept them in the recovery room for two hours for observation. When my mom had hers a few years ago, they shot her up with loads of Valium to keep her quiet while she laid there. I am sure they use something similar now for the patients.
Best of luck, Ely.
Quote from: Patty on July 30, 2011, 01:40:21 PM
When I worked in the OR Recovery room, we used to get the patients from the cath lab who had just undergone an angiogram. Those poor folks had to lie flat on their back, not move an inch, with a big old clamp holding down the wound to keep it from bleeding. That artery that they use for the angiogram is a very major artery, and we were trying to keep the patient from bleeding excessively from that incision wound. Usually, back then, we kept them in the recovery room for two hours for observation. When my mom had hers a few years ago, they shot her up with loads of Valium to keep her quiet while she laid there. I am sure they use something similar now for the patients.
Best of luck, Ely.
Nope, no Valium for me. Had to lay there for 4 hours without twitching. Back was sore, had a itch.... They kept a 5 lb bean bag on the cut which put my leg asleep. :(
hello, sorry jeff i had to reregister. i know it messes stuff up and is probablt ilegal on the forum but,.... heres an update . i went to my heart cath and much to my surprise they found problems. i am now in the oklahoma heart hospital in okc. my surgery is sceduled for tommorrow at 1pm. i will be having a quadruple bypass. i have been in a whirlwind getting here and getting squared away since monday morn. sooo much to learn and get your head wrapped around.
i will have my wife jennifer get on here tommorrow to update after i am out of the woods ,so to speak.
4 blockages 1 at 100%
2 at 80-90 %
1 at 55%
one of the 2 is where i had my stent put in in 06.
many thanks for all the prayers and well wishes.
Hey,hey,hey,glad they caught it. No fun to be where you are,but better there than in the ground. Keep us all posted.
I'm sure Jeff will let you slide by,but only this once. ;D He'll get you all squared away after the pig roast.
Great to get diagnosed and scheduled for repairs, you are still in our prayers even with the different login.
Best of luck with your surgery. Doing this before the heart muscle itself is damaged because of the blockages is the absolute way to go. Full steam ahead, chin up. Our thoughts are with you.
Hang tough Ely where thinking of you here in Iowa. :)
Best wishes and prayers for you, your family, and your doctors today Ely. Fixing all that you should come out a new man feeling much better ;) Hang in there neighbor. Dwight
thanks again all, just sitting here with the family all scrubbed up and ready to party. prob got about twenty minutes. everything going well so far. thats exactly what me and the doctors have discussed for the last couple days doc.
easier to fix a healty heart than a damaged heart. i will try and get my wife online to update for me. if not i will do it at the earliest i am able.
Well I just missed seeing this in time to wish you well before your surgery, Ely, but when you return you will know that you are(were) in my prayers and thoughts this afternoon. I'm sure I'm not the only one that is sorta touched that you think enough of your FF family to give us these updates at such a trying time. It just goes to show what a true family we have become. :)
i am doing well guys. they talk about sending me home sunday. i am unsure about that yet. i like it here, they take really good care of me .
Hey no pinching the nurses!
Glad to hear you're on the mend Ely.
only one port for an iv left n me. no chest tube or anything else. walking everyday 3 times thru the floor.
Way to go Ely!
Prayers answered again, good news.
Way to go, Ely. That is wonderful news. God is good....modern medicine is too :)
P.S. Not to steal from another's post, but I gotta ask DoctorB. The six month wait to check up on the aneurysm just scares the heck out of me. I've got a few friends telling me to get a second opinion...NOW! One told me "if they find something, I want you to promise me that you won't leave until they've fixed it". I want to trust my doctors, but
honestly, if you were in my shoes, what would you do? If you think this question is out of line please forgive and ignore. I'm probably not the only "dummy" you've encountered. Thanks, Dwight
The follow-up guidelines are based on size of the aneurysm. The bigger it is, the more frequent the follow-up exams. I certainly can't disagree with the recommendation about a second opinion. I look at it this way: you know your diagnosis and only have questions about treatment. This permits you the possibility of finding a real expert in the field without rushing. Give yourself enough time. Get an appointment within the next 2-3 months. Travel some distance if you need to. It will ease your mind. But you don't need to get this accomplished tomorrow, just in the near future.
I'm at the Pig Roast and have not kept up with all of the activity here, but it sounds like you are in good doctor's care. Prayers are answered every day and you also have an extended family or well wishers here.
And welcome to the Forestry Forum. Tell us a bit about yourself and your forestry interest when you get a chance.
gentlemen, i am here for another update, sorta tough day yeasterday, great day today and i will be an even better day tomorrow. i have discovered that 90 % of this get better with health care is that you have to believe you are doing the best that you possibly can. even something as simple as that air sucking thing that helps you build our lungs back, i was a bit discouraged with the results of that and started a silly downward spiral in my head.
you must keep a apossistive attitude about each thing. your visitors see it and give it back to you. i also want to say thanks again to my family here.
they wanted to cut me loose on monday, but i asked my doc could i stay over just one more day, he told me it would be fine.
and sort of in answer to the other ? with doctors and their opinons, you have to trust your docs care with every fiber of your being .... then and only then will you get well. i happen to have the best of both worlds... i use my best facilities to pick the best doctors alive for me, then use the prayers of many folks to guide their efforts. MBO.
been staying with the inlaws since tuesday and looking forward to going to my home tomorrow. feeling stronger each day, not needing to manage the pain too much either.
i am extremely happy with my results.
Many who have spent time living with their in-laws, regardless of whether they have had their chest cracked or not, look forward to going home. :D. Glad to hear that all goes well.
:D :o im gonna tell some redneck stuff about myself here now with severe risk to winning some sort of prize... the in laws that i am staying with happen to be my 2nd ex wifes family, who will forever and a day always be like my own family. me and my new wife have been staying here for the week and we are only getting to go home if we promise that we will come back in a few days for another stay. my 2nd x and us get along so great it is scary at times, we get alot of strange looks from folks who dont understand. bottom line = just plain good people on all sides.
Glad to hear your feeling better Ely. :)
im back on my work computer for the minute, i am going to try and get these two accounts sorted out with jeff post haste. thanks for the patience.
i am still doing great on my recoverery i feel better each day. not allowed to get out in the heat though.
question for doctorb? when a persons body is healing, does it used stored fat on the body as protein to heal the surgical wounds and such.
because i am eating 3 meals a day, resonable meals that is, and i still tend to lose at least a pound each day. im not particularly worried at this point because i do have quite a buffer zone in the weight department. ;D i weighed 224 on july 31st this am i weighed 212.
i know the folks that cared for me at the hospital stressed the fact that i need to eat high protien for a while after i went home to help with the healing process.
Stored fat is not protein, so that portion of the required elements for healing is not from stored fat reserves. Patients after large surgeries tend to lose weight, whether from stress, poor appetite, or a "Catabolic" response (using up her protein and energy reserves) as a reaction to injury (surgery). I am 17 pounds lighter after my total hip.
I lost 60 lbs in 6 weeks after surgery to remove a blood clot from my spinal cord
when I broke a couple vertabrae from a bike accident. Unfortunally I got them back and more.
update from me. i am as of monday the 10th of oct, back to work full time, no light duty. still feel great, still walking 2 miles every morning. still eating properly and thats really killing me. the only fried food i have scored is some squash and okra. ::)
Good to hear. :) :)