I thought I'd share this with PE members, it's actually a post I wrote and then copied from the "Illness and injury" thread. I had mentioned last month I was going to have surgery in August to have a defibrillator/pacemaker upgrade. Well shit happens, and well, read for yourself.....
What an ordeal... I'm home and doing much better, but I wouldn't wish this on anyone. Here are the fun details:
Well, I hate this expression, but sometimes things happen for a reason. I was scheduled for August 5th, but around June 25th I started having major chest pains, hardly slept the night. Went to work like an idiot and the pains came back and worse, more like heavy pressure near my heart. I went home early and tried to lie down a couple hours, but it didn't help, the pain persisted, so I called 911. Was brought to Princeton, and they did what they could, had tests and all, and they decided the next day to send me to Philadelphia. So it was a weekend of feeling horrible but in the right place. On the Monday, June 30th, I had a heart catheterization (I hate this procedure!), but thankfully no blockages. But while in recovery, I went into an A-Fib flutter, and my heart raced to 140 beats a minute. Scared the shit out of me. So for two days, I suffered through the flutter, now ranging from 60 beats to 120, and even higher a few times. Just horrible. So on Wednesday, they did a cardioversion to shock my heart into a normal sinus rhythm, and kept me under to then perform the implantation surgery and replace my defibrillator with the new device, now with three leads and the ability to pace the lower heart chambers. Cool technology. I woke up from the anesthesia feeling horribly groggy and nauseous, but the a-fib flutter was gone. Went into recovery for 6 hours and felt a ton of pain by the incision, and my back from the way I was lying. Percocet to the rescue! God, I hate this drug! Did it make the pain go away and give me a bit of a legal high? Sure, felt amazing on this. But I just knew this would do the worst thing possible, constipate me big time! The pain from that was far worse than from the surgery. Went through about two days dealing with that, and just taking tylenol for pain.
Once this ordeal was over, I just had to deal with the worst food imaginable. I get it, hospital food is not good, cardiac ward food is worse, very plain. And then there is the slop they gave me at this hospital, just the worst food I've ever had, I dreaded every meal. I admit to being a bit of a foodie, but I'm actually just comparing their food to the Princeton hospital, which was so much better. Horrible food service, they should be ashamed! It was so bad, I happily accepted a "Lean Cuisine" meal as an alternative, the nurse was so kind to offer this. Yup, Lean Cuisine was a BIG improvement, never thought I'd ever say such words!
So finally on July 5th, I was told I'd I'm going home. Not so fast, a screw up with the medications, and it being a holiday weekend meant one more day in the hospital. Finally, I went home on Sunday, July 6th. First thing I did at home was eat! They were leftovers, but some really great home made food, which never tasted so good!
So, after all this, I'm not in heart failure or a-fib. I have my new device, or "Borg Implant" as I like to call it. I should see gradual improvement of heart function over the next few months. I'll be home from work for a month, and even started PT today. Can't lift my left arm more than 90%, and do feel incision pain. So I'm limited in my arm movements, which makes things like dressing or washing difficult,. But it's getting better each day. Can't drive for another week, so I'm trying my best not to get too bored. But the worst is over. Oh, and I can actually sleep at night! Have not had many good nights over the last few months, so I'm thrilled by this. Just got to stay positive and realize the recovery is a process. Each day will be a little better.
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Originally Posted by Scott Bails
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