An 11-hr day at the hospital w/dh today

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
An 11-hr day at the hospital w/dh today
18
Wed, 08-20-2003 - 9:06pm
Whew! What a day! Got there at 7:30 for dh's renal arteriogram, due to

an unexplained increase in his blood pressure. MRA last week showed

blockage in artery connecting aorta w/kidney. We had to wait TWO hrs

in the waiting room just for a room. THAT was fun....NOT! We got in

the room at 9:45, they gave him a valium, then took him to the cath lab

about 11:00. He was back in the room about 12:15. The blockage was only

40%, and they don't "blow out the blockage" unless its over 50%. So....

boo hoo! I'd rather have known that was the reason for his increase in

bp. I also had asked that they go ahead, & while they were 'in the

neighborhood', go ahead & do a heart cath, & check his arteries as he

had double bypass surgery 12 yrs ago. Now THAT was some good news, as

both the doc & the cath nurse said they looked amazingly well. The 3rd

artery, which was about 50% blocked 12 yrs, that they didn't bypass, was

about 40% blocked. I later saw the heart surgeon who had done the surgery

& told him, and he was so pleased I stopped to talk. Jimmy was a very

exceptional case back then, the youngest they had done in a new facility,

AND their first staph infection patient. Needless to say, he DID remember

us He said that if they looked that good now, they should last him

the rest of his life....as long as he doesn't smoke!

The cardiologist gave us some *unsettling* news, tho. His blood count

showed he was VERY anemic. Now he was 2 yrs ago, also. But the cardiologist

had ordered a consult w/a hematologist since we were already there. Well...

about 3:00 or so he gets wheeled down to that place, where the hemotologist

is also a oncologist (seems strange to me). Anyhoo.....we had to wait 2-1/2

hours to see him. By then, even after many many laps around the heart floor,

AND jumping jacks on the onc floor, I was goin' nuts. He had looked back

over Jimmy's history & said he was 'chronically anemic'...so wasn't so

worried. He ordered some more blood work, & Jimmy's to go back in a week

for MORE blood work. Then...possibly a bone marrow biopsy. So...we were

there from 7:30 to 6:30. At least this explains why my husband is sooo

tired all the time, I guess.

The end result is his bp med has been doubled already, and thankfully, the

cardio doc gave him a script for a mild diuretic, because his tummy is

always so bloated. And dh will go back to him next week to discuss other

meds. And hopefully the hemotologist will find out WHY he is so anemic.

But, nonetheless, he is a bit relieved nothing REALLY wrong was found today,

and I guess, so am I:) Although, I STILL would have liked that renal

artery to have been cleared, but...oh, well.

I told him I was ready to trade him in on a newer model! j/k of course.

But that guy has spent so much time in that hospital, it's ridiculous. The

bypass, then staph infection which nearly killed him, more surgery to

debreed the sternum of the infection, 2 neck fusions, rotator cuff surgery,

and other minor procedures such as colonoscopies, more arteriograms, etc.

etc. etc. But..........he was a 3pack a day Marlboro man b4 the bypass,

and has never had one since. Course he's gained quite a bit of weight,

substituting food for cigs. We make a *lovely* couple...LOLOL

So.........aren't you glad you read this thrilling post about my day? HA!

* stel *

* Stel *

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 9:07am
Have a peaceful weekend - - GO TO THE LAKE!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I WANT to....been 3 weeks for me!! But.....forecast looks dismal at this point.

Of course it can always change!

Ya know what was the *coolest* thing about yesterday. In the rooms now, you can

access the internet ~ via monitor hooked up to TV & a keyboard. But by the time

they got me a keyboard

it was afternoon, and then.....I *broke* it. Got to AOL thru the TV, but neither

of the 2 keyboards would work for me, and none of the nurses knew how.

Called maintenance & left msg, but then it was time to go to the hemotology lab.

Oh, well.....its a neat thing anyway....for those like me who don't have a laptop:)

* Stel *

Avatar for kiggidyk
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 9:08am
what a lucky guy to have such a wonderful woman taking care of him! I'm glad things are looking positive! continued good luck :)

kim

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 9:11am
CRS-forgot, maybe you two should walk those horsies into the sunset!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

rofl...thanks for that chuckle. We actually DID go horseback riding....just walk,

not even a trot....thru Cades Cove in the Smoky Mtn Natl Park a few years ago.

They have a *stand* you can stand on to get on the horsies. It was fun!

* Stel *

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 9:22am
what a lucky guy to have such a wonderful woman taking care of him! I'm glad things are looking positive! continued good luck :)

kim

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks, Kim. For all you still-single youngsters out there....this "for better or

worse, in sickness and in health* thing can be FOR REAL sometimes! So make sure

you know what you are doing!!! LOL We were only married for 3 yrs before "he went

for a physical and got filleted" (I got him a t-shirt made that said that after all

the by-pass mess!!)

* Stel *

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-24-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 9:24am
Stel, you sure are a trooper! Sometimes it can be more exhaustiing being the support system. Glad you're outta there.
Avatar for iwantpeace
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 10:14am
Awww Stel! How hard this must be for you (and for dh, of course). I'm so sorry you had to go through all of this! Have some fun this weekend and celebrate that it wasn't anything worse.

xoxoxoxo Mae


ps...You know I strongly advocate that riding a horse is wonderful medicine. To control an animal 10 times your size is quite amazing and gives you a great feeling. I say go for a ride by the lake...the horses can handle it (;)

pss...I STILL use a mounting block while getting on my horse (;) Helps to keep his back healthy and strong (without me pulling it over all the time)(;)

~~~ Mae~~~
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-24-2003
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 10:53am
pss...I STILL use a mounting block while getting on my horse (;) Helps to keep his back healthy and strong (without me pulling it over all the time)(;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whew, thanks, Mel...for that tidbit of knowledge. No horses for us to ride at the

lake, but...it IS nice to know that using the mounting block is best for the horse...

and for US, too!!!!

* Stel *

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-04-2002
Thu, 08-21-2003 - 2:52pm
This was a "tease" Stel post but maybe not today :) Enjoy the lake if you can, Hilary


Edited 8/21/2003 4:53:21 PM ET by peskygirl1

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