So a bit of good news today. My INR was 3.7. If you'll remember, that's the measure of how thin my blood is. We're shooting for 3.0 to 3.5. Two weeks ago it was 2.8. We've made an ever so slight adjustment and hopefully we've got this blood thinner mess worked out. It's taken a little longer than I had hoped/thought it would take, but we've finally gotten there.
It's now been 5 months since my surgery and I'm feeling great. I now feel better than I did before. I seem to have more energy, I definitly have a better appetite (as proven by my expanding waist line) and I've grown used to my clicking so that if I can't hear it, I'll sometimes stop and check to make sure it's still going.
I've been blessed beyond measure through all of this and I want to say thank you to each and every person who has been reading this blog. I think it's been a fairly sucessful endevor and I'm really happy with the way it's turned out. At this point, I think that what I'm going to do is archive this blog off and just start a new general blog about what DeAnne and I are up and what's going on in our lives. I don't know when I'll ever get around to this, but that's the plan as it stands now.
Till next time,
Paul
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Lord, I Was Born a Ramblin' Man...
Well, not really, but I did go on a trip last week. I went with my boss to Minneapolis to do factory acceptance testing on our new backup control center hardware. We left Tuesday and got back yesterday. All in all, it was a good trip. We tested everything we wanted to test and even a few things we hadn't planned to test, talked to our vendor about some new projects we might be doing and go to experience a little bit of an early winter. The highs were in the upper 50's most of the time we were there, so it was a good bit cooler than what we left behind in Alabama.
Everything went well though and I didn't have any problems flying or anything else. I had wondered if I would set off the metal detector, and actually thought it would be a little neat if I did, but I walked through and not a beep or a buzz sounded.
One nice thing was getting to see the trees up north. They had started to turn and were about a week or two away from being at the peak of their fall colors. Taking off coming back home was pretty awsome. Everything was a sea of gold and red and green. I'm glad we got to go this time of year. It's something you don't really get to see in south Alabama.
Flying also never ceases to amaze me and to put me in shear awe of creation. We had almost completely clear skies on the way home and I think it's the first time I've flown where you could see to the ground for pretty much the entire trip. The fact that we're able to do what we do just reaffirms for me that this world is no accidental result of an big explosion. Anyone who flies somewhere on a clear day and says there's not a creator must have looked out the window with their eyes closed.
Anyway, we're still working on getting my medicine level adjusted. We slowly inching closer to having it just right. I'm still getting checked once a week, but I think we're getting close to moving that out to maybe once every two weeks.
Other than that, there's not much going on. DeAnne's doing well. She seems to really be falling into a rythm with school and I think she's able to enjoy it more now than when school first started and everything was hectic and new to her.
I'll keep you posted on how the medicine is going. It's hard to believe, but it's already been four months since the surgery. Anyway, take care...till next time...
--Paul
Everything went well though and I didn't have any problems flying or anything else. I had wondered if I would set off the metal detector, and actually thought it would be a little neat if I did, but I walked through and not a beep or a buzz sounded.
One nice thing was getting to see the trees up north. They had started to turn and were about a week or two away from being at the peak of their fall colors. Taking off coming back home was pretty awsome. Everything was a sea of gold and red and green. I'm glad we got to go this time of year. It's something you don't really get to see in south Alabama.
Flying also never ceases to amaze me and to put me in shear awe of creation. We had almost completely clear skies on the way home and I think it's the first time I've flown where you could see to the ground for pretty much the entire trip. The fact that we're able to do what we do just reaffirms for me that this world is no accidental result of an big explosion. Anyone who flies somewhere on a clear day and says there's not a creator must have looked out the window with their eyes closed.
Anyway, we're still working on getting my medicine level adjusted. We slowly inching closer to having it just right. I'm still getting checked once a week, but I think we're getting close to moving that out to maybe once every two weeks.
Other than that, there's not much going on. DeAnne's doing well. She seems to really be falling into a rythm with school and I think she's able to enjoy it more now than when school first started and everything was hectic and new to her.
I'll keep you posted on how the medicine is going. It's hard to believe, but it's already been four months since the surgery. Anyway, take care...till next time...
--Paul
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Hello, Hello...
Is there anybody out there? Just nod if you can hear...bah...enough of that. So it's been over a month! Man, a flurry of activity and then I seem to drop off the face of the Earth. If anyone is even still checking this, then let me say I'm sorry for neglecting you.
So how am I doing? Overall, I'm great. In fact, I think that I'm not better than I was before the surgery. I'm still limiting my physical activity, but I'm able to pick up pretty much anything I want to now. We also still don't have my blood thinner regulated, but Dr. Kerr's only making me get it checked once a week now, so that's something to be grateful for.
DeAnne is busy as ever with school. She's having a good year and she seems to be enjoying her class even if it does wear her out sometimes. I'm going full force at work myself. We have a big project that we're about to move into implementing. As part of that, me and my boss will be making a trip to Minneapolis at the end of the month. 2 days travel and 3 days at the vendor's site. I'm looking foward to seeing if I set off any metal detectors. According to St. Jude's (maker of my valve), I shouldn't, but they said that there's always a chance that it could set one off. I just have to have my little ID card they sent me handy.
Other than that, we're just cruising along with the usual. Visiting family from time to time, working and just having a good time. DeAnne's been after me to post another picture of the dining room featuring our new light fixture. I'll see if I can't get around to that sometime in the near future.
Take care,
Paul
So how am I doing? Overall, I'm great. In fact, I think that I'm not better than I was before the surgery. I'm still limiting my physical activity, but I'm able to pick up pretty much anything I want to now. We also still don't have my blood thinner regulated, but Dr. Kerr's only making me get it checked once a week now, so that's something to be grateful for.
DeAnne is busy as ever with school. She's having a good year and she seems to be enjoying her class even if it does wear her out sometimes. I'm going full force at work myself. We have a big project that we're about to move into implementing. As part of that, me and my boss will be making a trip to Minneapolis at the end of the month. 2 days travel and 3 days at the vendor's site. I'm looking foward to seeing if I set off any metal detectors. According to St. Jude's (maker of my valve), I shouldn't, but they said that there's always a chance that it could set one off. I just have to have my little ID card they sent me handy.
Other than that, we're just cruising along with the usual. Visiting family from time to time, working and just having a good time. DeAnne's been after me to post another picture of the dining room featuring our new light fixture. I'll see if I can't get around to that sometime in the near future.
Take care,
Paul
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Just When You Think You're Through With the Sticky Pads...
...they go and stick more on ya'.
Went back to Dr. Kerr today. The leg's doing better. He's mainly worried about it getting infected so he's pumping me full of antibiotics. My INR was a little higher today so we didn't change the dosage on my coumadin. Hopefully now we can get down to once/week with checking it and I'll catch a break on getting stuck.
The only other news is that when I went in Monday, my blood pressure and heart rate were a little low. We went to taking the beta-blocker once/day instead of twice and after talking to Dr. Mayer, they decided to put me on a 24-hour monitor to see how I'm doing. So I get to walk around with a new accessory until 11:20 tomorrow. I'm sure all the ladies will be jealous. Anyway, if my heart-rate is still too low, they're going to take me off of the meds and if it's fine, we're going to stick to once/day and if it's too high, then we go back to twice/day. No big deal, it's just a little annoying to have to wear this thing.
So it's been an interesting week thus far. All this plus school started this past Monday. It's been a long time since we've had this many updates in a week. I don't know that that's necessarily a good thing but that's the way it goes sometimes, huh?
--Paul
Went back to Dr. Kerr today. The leg's doing better. He's mainly worried about it getting infected so he's pumping me full of antibiotics. My INR was a little higher today so we didn't change the dosage on my coumadin. Hopefully now we can get down to once/week with checking it and I'll catch a break on getting stuck.
The only other news is that when I went in Monday, my blood pressure and heart rate were a little low. We went to taking the beta-blocker once/day instead of twice and after talking to Dr. Mayer, they decided to put me on a 24-hour monitor to see how I'm doing. So I get to walk around with a new accessory until 11:20 tomorrow. I'm sure all the ladies will be jealous. Anyway, if my heart-rate is still too low, they're going to take me off of the meds and if it's fine, we're going to stick to once/day and if it's too high, then we go back to twice/day. No big deal, it's just a little annoying to have to wear this thing.
So it's been an interesting week thus far. All this plus school started this past Monday. It's been a long time since we've had this many updates in a week. I don't know that that's necessarily a good thing but that's the way it goes sometimes, huh?
--Paul
Monday, August 07, 2006
One Day I'll Learn...
...to keep my mouth shut. No sooner than I post about how well I'm doing than the next day, everything goes to pot. Well, maybe I'm exaggerating a little bit, but still. Anyway, I've got an incision on my left groin from where they took some vein out to repair my aorta with. Yesterday I noticed that it looked a little bruised at the end of it and then today I get out of the shower and it's bleeding. So I got on the bed and held some pressure to it and once we got it stopped we put a band-aid on. I was scheduled to get my blood checked today, so I went early and asked the nurse when she was drawing me. They asked me to come back in a little later to let Dr. Kerr look at it.
So I went back to the doctors latter this morning. Turns out my blood pressure and heart rate were a little too low for Doc's tastes and he wants to back off on my beta blocker. He said that the problem with my leg wasn't a big deal, that the area is high-stress from the movement the leg makes and that the skin is thin there anyway. He said it should close up in a day or two and just to keep some bactoban on it and keep it dressed.
So after no real news, I've had a fairly exciting day. My INR (blood thinness measure) was lower today so that was the one bit of good news for the day. Now if we can just keep it steady, we'll be doing good.
Hopefully this leg thing is minor and it'll just heal up and we won't have any other problems. I really think that the dog may have stepped on me while she was in my lap or while we were sleeping or something. That's the only thing that I can think of that would cause something that looks like this. But that's besides the point.
So there you have it, two posts in two days. That hasn't happened in a while. Hope you enjoyed them.
--Paul
So I went back to the doctors latter this morning. Turns out my blood pressure and heart rate were a little too low for Doc's tastes and he wants to back off on my beta blocker. He said that the problem with my leg wasn't a big deal, that the area is high-stress from the movement the leg makes and that the skin is thin there anyway. He said it should close up in a day or two and just to keep some bactoban on it and keep it dressed.
So after no real news, I've had a fairly exciting day. My INR (blood thinness measure) was lower today so that was the one bit of good news for the day. Now if we can just keep it steady, we'll be doing good.
Hopefully this leg thing is minor and it'll just heal up and we won't have any other problems. I really think that the dog may have stepped on me while she was in my lap or while we were sleeping or something. That's the only thing that I can think of that would cause something that looks like this. But that's besides the point.
So there you have it, two posts in two days. That hasn't happened in a while. Hope you enjoyed them.
--Paul
Sunday, August 06, 2006
The Report Remains the Same
Nothing new to report on this week. We still don't have my blood thinner regulated. We had several good weeks where things seemed to be normalizing and we had decided it was safe to go down to checking it once a week and then Friday it shot up real high (too thin), so now we're back to as often each week as it seems necessary. Hopefully tomorrow it will be better.
I'm sure you've all noticed that as things have improved, the frequency of the posts to the blog has slowed. In all honesty, I'm not quite sure what to do with it now. The general idea right now is to keep posting from time to time and to leave it up in the future for anyone who happens to stumble upon it. However, as many family and friends have made known, there are more than a few of you that have come to rely on the blog as a means of keeping up with Dee and I. As to that, I believe that I may start a new blog on which to keep you all updated as to what's going on in our crazy lives. Thoughts/comments on this idea would be much appreciated.
That's all I got for now.
--Paul
I'm sure you've all noticed that as things have improved, the frequency of the posts to the blog has slowed. In all honesty, I'm not quite sure what to do with it now. The general idea right now is to keep posting from time to time and to leave it up in the future for anyone who happens to stumble upon it. However, as many family and friends have made known, there are more than a few of you that have come to rely on the blog as a means of keeping up with Dee and I. As to that, I believe that I may start a new blog on which to keep you all updated as to what's going on in our crazy lives. Thoughts/comments on this idea would be much appreciated.
That's all I got for now.
--Paul
Sunday, July 30, 2006
And Now for Your Regularly Scheduled Update...
I seem to be on a once/week schedule with the updates. Sunday must be the only day that I have time to post. Anyway, I'm still doing well. I think we've just about got my blood thinner regulated. The last 3 or 4 tests have come back slightly low, but close enough to the range we want that we haven't really changed the way I'm taking the medicine. Hopefully we can get the number up just a little bit and then we'll be set and I can quit having blood drawn 2 or 3 times a week.
As to how I feel. I think I've reached a point now where I have begun to actually feel better than I did before the surgery. It's going to take a bit more time to get completly over it, but things are going well and I know without a doubt that I'm going to feel great in a couple of months.
In other news...DeAnne's home improvement drive continues. We bought a new light fixture for the dinning room yesterday and spent all evening hanging it, determinging that it was too low, taking it down, hanging it back up and finally wiring it.
That's about it for this week. Work is still going well. We're busy as ever. Dad came out Friday and cut the grass for me. I'm still a few weeks out from being allowed to use a lawnmower or a weed eater again.
Till next time...
--Paul
As to how I feel. I think I've reached a point now where I have begun to actually feel better than I did before the surgery. It's going to take a bit more time to get completly over it, but things are going well and I know without a doubt that I'm going to feel great in a couple of months.
In other news...DeAnne's home improvement drive continues. We bought a new light fixture for the dinning room yesterday and spent all evening hanging it, determinging that it was too low, taking it down, hanging it back up and finally wiring it.
That's about it for this week. Work is still going well. We're busy as ever. Dad came out Friday and cut the grass for me. I'm still a few weeks out from being allowed to use a lawnmower or a weed eater again.
Till next time...
--Paul
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Also...
As a side note, the last post with the picture of the dinning room was the 50th post for the blog. Nothing really major, but I thought it was worth noting...
--Paul
--Paul
Saturday, July 15, 2006
This One's For You, Courtney
We made a trip to Mobile yesterday to see Dr. Mayer. Everything went well. It was actually the shortest visit I think we've ever had at his office. We didn't wait long to be taken back, they got my blood pressure and weight (both good), and then before we knew it, he was coming in to see us. He listened to me and went over the PVC incident from a few weeks back and then told us he wanted to see me again in 6 months. The greatest part, he told me I could drop the low-sodium diet and go back to eating what I wanted to! Domino's here we come...
So after we were done at the doctor's, we went and saw Courtney and Edwin and had a great time. Courtney got on to me for not posting more often than once a week, so I'm dedicating this post to her. I also promise to get some pictures up of the dinning room. We've still got a few spots to touch up, but it's nothing that would be visible in pictures.
That's about it. I'm back at work full time now and everything's going well. It didn't take long to get back into the swing of things. It's been pretty busy, but I've not been overwhelmed. I feel really good overall. At least as good as I did before the surgery and Dr. Mayer says that by the time 6 months rolls around I should be amazed at the difference in the way I feel compared to then and before the surgery. Alright...off to make some pictures...
--Paul
So after we were done at the doctor's, we went and saw Courtney and Edwin and had a great time. Courtney got on to me for not posting more often than once a week, so I'm dedicating this post to her. I also promise to get some pictures up of the dinning room. We've still got a few spots to touch up, but it's nothing that would be visible in pictures.
That's about it. I'm back at work full time now and everything's going well. It didn't take long to get back into the swing of things. It's been pretty busy, but I've not been overwhelmed. I feel really good overall. At least as good as I did before the surgery and Dr. Mayer says that by the time 6 months rolls around I should be amazed at the difference in the way I feel compared to then and before the surgery. Alright...off to make some pictures...
--Paul
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Seeing Red...
I did indeed go back to work on Friday. It went well. I only worked from 8 to 12, but I managed to get a good bit done. Being able to keep up with my email at the house was a huge advantage. If I hadn't been able to check my email, it would have taken 2 days just to go through it all. Having it all read though allowed me to go in and file it away and then get right to work. There was a lot of news and things to catch up on, but I think tomorrow I'll be able to get right to work. I'm going to work just 8 to 12 this week and of course we're off Tuesday for the 4th, so it should be a pretty easy going.
We still don't have my blood thinner regulated. Just when we thought we had it figured out, the number shot up on Friday, so Dr. Kerr had me go to the hospital this morning to have it checked again and it was the highest it's ever been, which means my blood is as thin as its ever been. So now we're backing off of the pills for a day or two and basically, we're just going to have to start over. Maybe one day we'll figure out the magic combination of pill sizes to get things where we want them to be.
The home improvement projects roll on. I think DeAnne has watched enough HGTV this summer that it's killing her when she's not working on something. The current project: painting the dinning room red. We know that a lot of people have red dinning rooms, but she's always wanted a red dinning room, so now she'll have one. She got started Friday night by taking down the wallpaper border around the top of the room. Saturday she primed and put on the first coat of paint. I helped when and where I could, but there's still not a lot that I can do. I'm pretty pleased with it myself and Dee's really excited. It looked really good after the first coat dried. We're doing a second coat today to even everything out and get it looking really good. I'll post pictures after we're done and have everything cleaned up.
--Paul
We still don't have my blood thinner regulated. Just when we thought we had it figured out, the number shot up on Friday, so Dr. Kerr had me go to the hospital this morning to have it checked again and it was the highest it's ever been, which means my blood is as thin as its ever been. So now we're backing off of the pills for a day or two and basically, we're just going to have to start over. Maybe one day we'll figure out the magic combination of pill sizes to get things where we want them to be.
The home improvement projects roll on. I think DeAnne has watched enough HGTV this summer that it's killing her when she's not working on something. The current project: painting the dinning room red. We know that a lot of people have red dinning rooms, but she's always wanted a red dinning room, so now she'll have one. She got started Friday night by taking down the wallpaper border around the top of the room. Saturday she primed and put on the first coat of paint. I helped when and where I could, but there's still not a lot that I can do. I'm pretty pleased with it myself and Dee's really excited. It looked really good after the first coat dried. We're doing a second coat today to even everything out and get it looking really good. I'll post pictures after we're done and have everything cleaned up.
--Paul
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Long Time Coming
Well it's been almost 2 weeks since the last post, so I figured it was time for an update. I'm still doing well. I'm still having to have my blood checked 2 or 3 times a week, but it should start dropping off even more the next week or two (hopefully). I'm off my potassium (biggest pill I've ever seen in my life) and fluid pills so now all I'm taking is the beta blocker and my blood thinner. The beta blocker I'll probably be on for about 6 months, but it's have of a 50mg pill twice a day, so it's no big deal.
We had a small scare 2 Sunday nights ago. My heart started doing something called a PVC where it contracts early. It's kind of like having 2 beats in the time it would normally only beat once. We went to the ER and they told me I was okay and that I should just go see my doctor the next day. So the next day we went to Dr. Kerr and he called Dr. Pacifico and Dr. Pacifico said that it wasn't unusal for this to happen and that it should last no more than 6 or 8 weeks. So nothing to be worried about, unless you're the one with the heart doing the crazy click pattern that you can hear.
I got a card in the mail the other day from St. Jude. It's to carry around with me so that EMTs will know what they're dealing with should anything ever happen to me. Evidently they keep a "confidential" database of everyone in the country that's recieved one of their valves. Hopefully this "confidential" database never makes it onto a laptop that gets stolen or gets posted to the web accidently.
Probably the biggest news of the week; I'm going to go back to work tomorrow. I'll be 5 weeks post-op. I'm ready to go back. There's a lot to do and I'm ready to get going on it all. I'm only going to go half-days to start with. If that goes well for a week or two then I'll start back full time. I don't think DeAnne's ready for me to go back yet, but once I'm at work, she'll just start spending time doing stuff up at the school.
Let's see...anything else I've left out?...
I think that's about it for now. I can't think of anything else that's happened the last couple of weeks. We've just been relaxing. We usually get out once a day and go to the post office or Wal-Mart or the grocery store or something just to get out of the house for a little while. I'll try and post this weekend and let you all know how my first day back at work went. I imagine I'm going to be talking about the surgery a lot and just trying to catch up on all the news. Take care till next time.
--Paul
We had a small scare 2 Sunday nights ago. My heart started doing something called a PVC where it contracts early. It's kind of like having 2 beats in the time it would normally only beat once. We went to the ER and they told me I was okay and that I should just go see my doctor the next day. So the next day we went to Dr. Kerr and he called Dr. Pacifico and Dr. Pacifico said that it wasn't unusal for this to happen and that it should last no more than 6 or 8 weeks. So nothing to be worried about, unless you're the one with the heart doing the crazy click pattern that you can hear.
I got a card in the mail the other day from St. Jude. It's to carry around with me so that EMTs will know what they're dealing with should anything ever happen to me. Evidently they keep a "confidential" database of everyone in the country that's recieved one of their valves. Hopefully this "confidential" database never makes it onto a laptop that gets stolen or gets posted to the web accidently.
Probably the biggest news of the week; I'm going to go back to work tomorrow. I'll be 5 weeks post-op. I'm ready to go back. There's a lot to do and I'm ready to get going on it all. I'm only going to go half-days to start with. If that goes well for a week or two then I'll start back full time. I don't think DeAnne's ready for me to go back yet, but once I'm at work, she'll just start spending time doing stuff up at the school.
Let's see...anything else I've left out?...
I think that's about it for now. I can't think of anything else that's happened the last couple of weeks. We've just been relaxing. We usually get out once a day and go to the post office or Wal-Mart or the grocery store or something just to get out of the house for a little while. I'll try and post this weekend and let you all know how my first day back at work went. I imagine I'm going to be talking about the surgery a lot and just trying to catch up on all the news. Take care till next time.
--Paul
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Saturday, June 17, 2006
Staples, No More!
Everything went really well yesterday in Mobile. They were running really far behind though, so it took forever for anything to happen. We got there around 11:30. The appointment was for 11:45. Around 1:00 they took us back and got my weight and blood pressure (both good). Then they put us in an exam room. There happened to be a rocking chair in the room they put us in (he's pediatric remember), so DeAnne took that and I got on the table. Eventually I laid down and we were both asleep before long.
Eventually the tech that does the echoes came and got us and we did an echo. It was pretty wild. Even I could tell an immediate difference in the way it looked and sounded compared to what it was prior to the surgery. DeAnne even noticed the difference and she only saw one echo before the surgery.
So after the echo, we were put back in the exam room and we didn't have to wait long after that for Dr. Mayer. He came in and checked my pulse and listened to me and said the echo looked great. I don't have any fluid around my heart and the new valve is neither leaking or blocking anything. He then had me lay back down on the table and he started pulling the staples. It really wasn't that bad. There were a few that stung and usually those were the ones that bled a little, but overall it didn't really hurt.
It feels a lot better to have them out. I'm not so scared to wear a pull-over shirt anymore and overall I just feel more comfortable now that they're gone. The scar is a little red and irritated from the staples, but it looks pretty good. Most of the scabbing that was left came off in the shower last night and this morning I've noticed on small spot where it's oozed some during the night, but it's stopped and I don't think it's large enough to be concerned about it. It's amazing to me that after only 3 weeks a place where they cut me open and pulled my chest apart has now closed back up. It just seems like something that traumatic to your body would take longer to heal up.
We took some pictures of the staples being pulled and a couple of after shots to go along with the post-op pictures from the hospital. I'll see if I can get them up sometime during the next couple of days. I'm also going to try and finish the recap of our time in the hospital sometime soon. Dr. Mayer gave me two more weeks before I can start going back to work, so I've got plenty of time on my hands still. I was hoping I could go back after next week, but he shot that down pretty quickly.
One last note: We're getting closer to getting my blood-thinner regulated. It's been right where it needs to be for the last 2 days. They gave me instructions for the weekend and they're letting me skip on getting my blood drawn on Monday, so I'll actually get a 3 day break from the vampire starting today. I'll be glad when we get everything straight. Now that the staples are out, getting the blood-thinner right is really the last major thing to do. I'm just glad to catch a break from the lab work. My arms don't look near as bad as I thought they would, but I'm still tired of having needles shoved in them.
All for now.
--Paul
Eventually the tech that does the echoes came and got us and we did an echo. It was pretty wild. Even I could tell an immediate difference in the way it looked and sounded compared to what it was prior to the surgery. DeAnne even noticed the difference and she only saw one echo before the surgery.
So after the echo, we were put back in the exam room and we didn't have to wait long after that for Dr. Mayer. He came in and checked my pulse and listened to me and said the echo looked great. I don't have any fluid around my heart and the new valve is neither leaking or blocking anything. He then had me lay back down on the table and he started pulling the staples. It really wasn't that bad. There were a few that stung and usually those were the ones that bled a little, but overall it didn't really hurt.
It feels a lot better to have them out. I'm not so scared to wear a pull-over shirt anymore and overall I just feel more comfortable now that they're gone. The scar is a little red and irritated from the staples, but it looks pretty good. Most of the scabbing that was left came off in the shower last night and this morning I've noticed on small spot where it's oozed some during the night, but it's stopped and I don't think it's large enough to be concerned about it. It's amazing to me that after only 3 weeks a place where they cut me open and pulled my chest apart has now closed back up. It just seems like something that traumatic to your body would take longer to heal up.
We took some pictures of the staples being pulled and a couple of after shots to go along with the post-op pictures from the hospital. I'll see if I can get them up sometime during the next couple of days. I'm also going to try and finish the recap of our time in the hospital sometime soon. Dr. Mayer gave me two more weeks before I can start going back to work, so I've got plenty of time on my hands still. I was hoping I could go back after next week, but he shot that down pretty quickly.
One last note: We're getting closer to getting my blood-thinner regulated. It's been right where it needs to be for the last 2 days. They gave me instructions for the weekend and they're letting me skip on getting my blood drawn on Monday, so I'll actually get a 3 day break from the vampire starting today. I'll be glad when we get everything straight. Now that the staples are out, getting the blood-thinner right is really the last major thing to do. I'm just glad to catch a break from the lab work. My arms don't look near as bad as I thought they would, but I'm still tired of having needles shoved in them.
All for now.
--Paul
Friday, June 16, 2006
Staples
Today marks 3 weeks since the surgery. We're going to Mobile today to see Dr. Mayer and to get my staples out. I'm really excited. They've been really bothering me all week and I'm ready for them to be gone. A couple of them have started to work their way out and they're just driving me crazy over all. They itch pretty much all the time and they sting when Dee cleans the incision, so I'm hoping that all that improves once they're out of me. I'm also interested in seeing what the incision looks like without them. I think it's going to look pretty good from what we can see at the moment.
Also, yesterday was the last day for home health to come and get my blood. Now we're going to have to get up and go to Dr. Kerr's office to have it done. I would have loved for home health to have kept coming, but insurance wouldn't reapprove them now that I can drive and we can't afford to pay to have them come so off to town we go each morning now.
Speaking of that, it's time to go and get the lab done. We'll take some pictures post-staples and let you all see the grossness :)
--Paul
Also, yesterday was the last day for home health to come and get my blood. Now we're going to have to get up and go to Dr. Kerr's office to have it done. I would have loved for home health to have kept coming, but insurance wouldn't reapprove them now that I can drive and we can't afford to pay to have them come so off to town we go each morning now.
Speaking of that, it's time to go and get the lab done. We'll take some pictures post-staples and let you all see the grossness :)
--Paul
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Picture Mania!
As you can probably see, I've posted several pictures from our time at the hospital and from when we got home. They're in some what of a chronological order, but they posted in reverse, so you may want to scroll to the bottom and work your way back up. One warning: There is a picture of the incision that some may consider to be a bit graphic. View at your own risk.
In other news, we got out yesterday and hit the town pretty hard. We went to Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie and did all of our shopping for the next couple of weeks. I did good and I had a good time and enjoyed being out of the house. It took us a little longer in Winn-Dixie than I thought it would though and by the time we were finished and we got home, I was pretty tired. It was well worth getting out of the house though.
We go back to Mobile on Friday to get my staples out. I'm pretty excited about that. They're really starting to bother me and I'll be glad to see them go.
Finally, the biggest news, DeAnne has been offered a job teaching 4th grade next year at Andalusia Elementary. We're both really excited. She's already been up to the school to see what room she's getting. They're re-painting the hall she's on though, so she wasn't able to get down to it. She's chomping at the bit to get in there and get set up. I don't know that she even really slept last night. We're both just so thankful for all that God has done for us. Just in the past month, I've been given a promotion, made it through surgery and am having a great recovery and now this. It's just amazing how the Lord has blessed us.
--Paul
In other news, we got out yesterday and hit the town pretty hard. We went to Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie and did all of our shopping for the next couple of weeks. I did good and I had a good time and enjoyed being out of the house. It took us a little longer in Winn-Dixie than I thought it would though and by the time we were finished and we got home, I was pretty tired. It was well worth getting out of the house though.
We go back to Mobile on Friday to get my staples out. I'm pretty excited about that. They're really starting to bother me and I'll be glad to see them go.
Finally, the biggest news, DeAnne has been offered a job teaching 4th grade next year at Andalusia Elementary. We're both really excited. She's already been up to the school to see what room she's getting. They're re-painting the hall she's on though, so she wasn't able to get down to it. She's chomping at the bit to get in there and get set up. I don't know that she even really slept last night. We're both just so thankful for all that God has done for us. Just in the past month, I've been given a promotion, made it through surgery and am having a great recovery and now this. It's just amazing how the Lord has blessed us.
--Paul
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Waking Up
I was asleep before they even got me out of my room. After that, everything was very surreal. I remember waking up and DeAnne being there and I remember having the breathing tube in. With it, I wasn't able to talk. I slept in between visits from DeAnne and everyone else. I didn't think they were ever going to take the tube out. They eventually did though and I was able to talk after that. The rest of the day was much the same. In and out of sleep, mainly waking up when visitation was allowed. They eventually let me have some ice to wet my mouth with and that led to later having an actual sip of water every so often. Like I said, it was very surreal coming in and out of sleep and not really knowing what was going on.
Every so often they would come and take a chest x-ray. They used a mobile x-ray machine and in order to get the image they had to push a board that had the film in it up under my back. This meant that I had to roll towards one side while they pushed the board under me. Not something I looked foward to.
Saturday morning they decided I was ready to go to a room so they pulled the chest tubes and after a little while they took me to the room where we would spend the rest of our visit.
On a side note, today is our 1 year wedding anniversary. We've been talking about it and we both agree that the last year has flown by. It's hard to believe that we've been married a year already. I know that marraige has it's ups and downs, but if the future is as easy and wonderful and blessed as the last year has been for us, then we shouldn't have any problems whatsoever.
--Paul
Every so often they would come and take a chest x-ray. They used a mobile x-ray machine and in order to get the image they had to push a board that had the film in it up under my back. This meant that I had to roll towards one side while they pushed the board under me. Not something I looked foward to.
Saturday morning they decided I was ready to go to a room so they pulled the chest tubes and after a little while they took me to the room where we would spend the rest of our visit.
On a side note, today is our 1 year wedding anniversary. We've been talking about it and we both agree that the last year has flown by. It's hard to believe that we've been married a year already. I know that marraige has it's ups and downs, but if the future is as easy and wonderful and blessed as the last year has been for us, then we shouldn't have any problems whatsoever.
--Paul
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Mobile
We went to Mobile yesterday to see Dr. Mayer. He was pretty pleased with everything. He didn't do an echo, but he wants us back on the 16th so he can take my staples out. I'm guessing that he'll do an echo after he gets them out.
I was a little worried about making the trip, but everything went well. I was tired by the end of the day so after we left the office, we made a quick pit stop to get some food and then headed for home. I was tired enough that I slept the entire night without getting up. That marks only the second time that's happened since we got home from the hospital.
My blood pressure's starting to get back to normal. It's been running a little high since the surgery, but it's been better the past couple of days. Also, we're starting to get my blood-thinner regulated. We've been pretty close to the target range the past 2 days. I'm guessing that today it's going to be a little high and that we'll bring the dose down a notch. I think then that we'll probably have it and maybe they can quit coming and sticking me every day.
The pain is starting to get better also. I've cut back to taking one pill instead of two at the time and I've been able to go longer than the 6 hours required between taking them. Hopefully in a few more days I won't need them at all.
I'm going to try and get some pictures up either today or tomorrow. We've got some that Dee took while we were in the hospital. See if we can't gross you all out one good time.
All for now.
--Paul
I was a little worried about making the trip, but everything went well. I was tired by the end of the day so after we left the office, we made a quick pit stop to get some food and then headed for home. I was tired enough that I slept the entire night without getting up. That marks only the second time that's happened since we got home from the hospital.
My blood pressure's starting to get back to normal. It's been running a little high since the surgery, but it's been better the past couple of days. Also, we're starting to get my blood-thinner regulated. We've been pretty close to the target range the past 2 days. I'm guessing that today it's going to be a little high and that we'll bring the dose down a notch. I think then that we'll probably have it and maybe they can quit coming and sticking me every day.
The pain is starting to get better also. I've cut back to taking one pill instead of two at the time and I've been able to go longer than the 6 hours required between taking them. Hopefully in a few more days I won't need them at all.
I'm going to try and get some pictures up either today or tomorrow. We've got some that Dee took while we were in the hospital. See if we can't gross you all out one good time.
All for now.
--Paul
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
Day One Memories
As everyone knows, we had to be at the hospital the day before the surgery. We got there and after waiting forever to get through admitting, they moved us up to the cardiac floor and put us in a room.
The first thing was the heart monitor they hooked me up to. It was a small pack that transmitted my vitals wirelessly to the nursing station. I got to tote the thing around with me the whole time we were in the hospital. I eventually gave it the nickname "Sparky".
After that, we went and had a chest x-ray done. Either before or after that, Dr. Pacifico, his residents and Nurse Practicioner came in. Dr. Pacifico went over what they were going to do and how he expected things to go.
After talking to the doctor, a couple of guys came in to do an echo. This was easily the coolest thing that happened in the hospital. It was a new echo machine capable of displaying a 3D image. We were actually able to see a 3D representation of my heart and how the blood was flowing through it. Awsome.
Not long after, they took me down to see another cardiologist who did another, traditional, echo and confirmed all that Dr. Mayer had said in his recomendation to have the surgery.
After getting back to the room, they started an IV in my left hand. By this time it was after 6:00 and things started getting quiter. DeAnne and her mom and grandmother made it around 8:30 and after they got there, pretty much everyone left and DeAnne and I just relaxed and watched some TV. Later that night, the nurse let DeAnne shave me. She got a kick out of that. It's kind of strange being shaved from neck to toe (including arms), but they wouldn't have it any other way. It was an electric trimmer though, so it wasn't like getting shaved with a razor. Thankfully, it's not itching as it grows back.
Other than that, they came in and started some antibiotic during the night through the IV. Then at 5:00 Friday morning they came and gave me a pill and a shot and before long I was in la-la land and on the way to surgery.
Up next...Post Op.
--Paul
The first thing was the heart monitor they hooked me up to. It was a small pack that transmitted my vitals wirelessly to the nursing station. I got to tote the thing around with me the whole time we were in the hospital. I eventually gave it the nickname "Sparky".
After that, we went and had a chest x-ray done. Either before or after that, Dr. Pacifico, his residents and Nurse Practicioner came in. Dr. Pacifico went over what they were going to do and how he expected things to go.
After talking to the doctor, a couple of guys came in to do an echo. This was easily the coolest thing that happened in the hospital. It was a new echo machine capable of displaying a 3D image. We were actually able to see a 3D representation of my heart and how the blood was flowing through it. Awsome.
Not long after, they took me down to see another cardiologist who did another, traditional, echo and confirmed all that Dr. Mayer had said in his recomendation to have the surgery.
After getting back to the room, they started an IV in my left hand. By this time it was after 6:00 and things started getting quiter. DeAnne and her mom and grandmother made it around 8:30 and after they got there, pretty much everyone left and DeAnne and I just relaxed and watched some TV. Later that night, the nurse let DeAnne shave me. She got a kick out of that. It's kind of strange being shaved from neck to toe (including arms), but they wouldn't have it any other way. It was an electric trimmer though, so it wasn't like getting shaved with a razor. Thankfully, it's not itching as it grows back.
Other than that, they came in and started some antibiotic during the night through the IV. Then at 5:00 Friday morning they came and gave me a pill and a shot and before long I was in la-la land and on the way to surgery.
Up next...Post Op.
--Paul
Monday, June 05, 2006
Doing Good...
Still at home recovering. We've had a good bit of company and we want to thank everyone for coming by and checking in with us. We've really enjoyed all the visits. I'm doing good. The pain is dropping off a little each day and getting more active each day. I've begun walking the dog some and I'm enjoying that. My blood thickness number is getting closer to the target. The target is 3.0 to 3.5 and it was at 4.0 yesterday, so we're getting closer. We go back to Dr. Kerr today for a follow-up and then Wednesday, we'll be going down to Mobile to see Dr. Mayer. All in all, I would have to say that I'm feeling really good. The incision is healing well and everything's looking good. I've still got two more weeks before the staples can come out. I think after I get those out, I'll fell a lot better. If nothing else, at least I won't look like I've got a zipper running up my chest.
We've got a few pictures from the hospital that I want to put up. I'll try and do that this week. I'm also going to try and start recounting what I can remember about the hospital stay. For now though, the home health nurse is here to drain some more blood out of me. Be back later,
--Paul
We've got a few pictures from the hospital that I want to put up. I'll try and do that this week. I'm also going to try and start recounting what I can remember about the hospital stay. For now though, the home health nurse is here to drain some more blood out of me. Be back later,
--Paul
Thursday, June 01, 2006
We're Back!
We got back from the hospital late Tuesday afternoon. Everything went well and I'm doing good. I'm going to go back over everything when I feel more up to it, but for now I just want to say thanks to everyone for all the prayers and a big thanks to everyone who went to Birmingham to see us. It really meant a lot to DeAnne and I to have so many friends and family around us at such a hard time in our lives. I've got a long recovery ahead and plenty of time to write later, so that's going to be all for now.
--Paul
--Paul
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Here We Go
Well, here we go. I'll be leaving early tomorrow morning with Dad to go to Birmingham to the hospital. DeAnne's got to go to in-service tomorrow so she's going to follow behind us with her Mom and Grandmother. Keep us in your prayers the rest of this week. We've got a lot of people traveling up to be there, so if you're coming, be ready for a crowd. I don't know how many of you I'll actually see, but I'll know you were there even if I don't get a chance to see you. I'll post when we get home. If all goes well, I think we'll be home between Sunday and Tuesday.
One other note...Anyone reading this prior to Wheel of Fortune coming on tonight, my good friend Courtney's Mom and sister are going to be on the show tonight. Watch and cheer them on.
See you all after the surgery.
--Paul
One other note...Anyone reading this prior to Wheel of Fortune coming on tonight, my good friend Courtney's Mom and sister are going to be on the show tonight. Watch and cheer them on.
See you all after the surgery.
--Paul
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Info!
At long last, we have the packet of information about UAB and the surgery. Basically, I have to be there on Thursday at 11:00 and I won't leave again until they release me to go home. Dr. Pacifico will come and talk with me about the surgery sometime Thursday afternoon and then the surgery will be between 6:30 and 10:00 Friday morning. A specific time will be set Thursday afternoon when we talk to the doctor. After surgery, I'll spend a minium of 24 hours in ICU and then they'll move me to a room. 3 to 5 days later, I should get to go home.
The packet also included info on parking and hotels, so if anyone that's planning on coming needs that information, call or email me and I'll get it to you.
We've got less than a week to go now. The nerves are starting to kick in a little, but I think I'm doing pretty well. All of the reading and research I've done about it has helped I think. There's also been a lot of prayers offered up on my behalf, and I can't thank all of you enough for that and I just thank God Himself and praise Him that He's blessed me with people around me that care so much. It's meant so much to not only me, but to DeAnne as well.
I'll try and post again on Wednesday, but if I don't, it'll be after we get home before I get another chance to write. I'm going to try and remember everything I can and I hope to take some notes so that I'll be able to better post the experience here, but without a direct link to the internet so that I can get things up right away, I may forget something.
--Paul
The packet also included info on parking and hotels, so if anyone that's planning on coming needs that information, call or email me and I'll get it to you.
We've got less than a week to go now. The nerves are starting to kick in a little, but I think I'm doing pretty well. All of the reading and research I've done about it has helped I think. There's also been a lot of prayers offered up on my behalf, and I can't thank all of you enough for that and I just thank God Himself and praise Him that He's blessed me with people around me that care so much. It's meant so much to not only me, but to DeAnne as well.
I'll try and post again on Wednesday, but if I don't, it'll be after we get home before I get another chance to write. I'm going to try and remember everything I can and I hope to take some notes so that I'll be able to better post the experience here, but without a direct link to the internet so that I can get things up right away, I may forget something.
--Paul
Sunday, May 07, 2006
After Pictures
I'm a day late with the after pictures, but better late than never. As you can tell, the floors really lightened up the house. We went with a maple, but it's more finished looking than some maple that you see that's very, what I would call, raw looking. DeAnne wanted a light color and I think she made a good choice. As I said before, we're really pleased with the way they turned out. It's nice too to get them in before having my surgery. It took the guys that did it from about 7:00 to 5:00 friday to get them done. If I had done it myself, it'd probably taken a week at least and probably wouldn't look half as good, so I would say it was well worth the extra to have them put in.
We're coming up on 3 weeks till surgery. Still no packet from UAB, so nothing else to report at this time.
--Paul
We're coming up on 3 weeks till surgery. Still no packet from UAB, so nothing else to report at this time.
--Paul
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Before Pictures
I posted the "before" pictures below. They were able to get all the floors installed yesterday and they look pretty good. All we've got left to do is to put some quarterround down to cover the gap next to the walls. Hopefully we can get that done next week. I'll take some after pictures later today and get them posted. All in all, we're really pleased with the way it turned out.
--Paul
--Paul
Sunday, April 30, 2006
No News (is good news?)....
It's been a pretty busy week. Dee's best friend got married yesterday and between work and helping her help her friend get ready for the wedding, I haven't had much time for anything. We're still waiting on the packet from UAB. I'm guessing it'll be closer to time for the surgery before it comes.
Big thanks to Carrie for being the first person to leave a comment. I appreciate your kind words and I want you to know that we've been praying for you and your son and we're glad to hear that he's doing good.
One side note completly unrelated to the main subject of the blog...We're getting new floors put in. They're supposed to deliver the laminate on Wednesday and begin putting it down on Friday. I wanted to install it myself but Dee convinced me that with the surgery coming up that it might take to long and that it would be less stress if we just had it installed by someone. We're pretty excited. It's going to go in the dinning room, living room and hallway. I'll post some pictures when it's finished.
Later,
--Paul
Big thanks to Carrie for being the first person to leave a comment. I appreciate your kind words and I want you to know that we've been praying for you and your son and we're glad to hear that he's doing good.
One side note completly unrelated to the main subject of the blog...We're getting new floors put in. They're supposed to deliver the laminate on Wednesday and begin putting it down on Friday. I wanted to install it myself but Dee convinced me that with the surgery coming up that it might take to long and that it would be less stress if we just had it installed by someone. We're pretty excited. It's going to go in the dinning room, living room and hallway. I'll post some pictures when it's finished.
Later,
--Paul
Saturday, April 22, 2006
One More Post
Well, since it's Saturday and my last post was last Sunday, I figured I would write something just so I could say I got two posts in this week.
Things have slowed down now after the initial activity surrounding the checkup and the cath and all. We don't have to go down to Mobile again until after the surgery. We should be getting a packet in the mail from UAB sometime. It's supposed to give us instructions about when to be there, what to expect and all that good stuff.
I've not done any more research lately. We did see an open-heart surgery on the Discovery Channel last week. It was a two year old boy that had a deformed heart. They went in and fixed the deformity and after three weeks he was doing good. I guess they can only show so much of the actual surgery, but they did show the boys heart when it started beating again after they finished up and they showed the heart-lung machine working. I don't think I'll ever get over my amazement at the fact that they can actually stop your heart, do something to it and then start it back up like it's no big deal.
If I get time I'll do some more looking around and see if I can find some new information on the surgery. I'll also post again when we get the packet of information from UAB. Hopefully it'll come within the next week or two. Until then...
--Paul
Things have slowed down now after the initial activity surrounding the checkup and the cath and all. We don't have to go down to Mobile again until after the surgery. We should be getting a packet in the mail from UAB sometime. It's supposed to give us instructions about when to be there, what to expect and all that good stuff.
I've not done any more research lately. We did see an open-heart surgery on the Discovery Channel last week. It was a two year old boy that had a deformed heart. They went in and fixed the deformity and after three weeks he was doing good. I guess they can only show so much of the actual surgery, but they did show the boys heart when it started beating again after they finished up and they showed the heart-lung machine working. I don't think I'll ever get over my amazement at the fact that they can actually stop your heart, do something to it and then start it back up like it's no big deal.
If I get time I'll do some more looking around and see if I can find some new information on the surgery. I'll also post again when we get the packet of information from UAB. Hopefully it'll come within the next week or two. Until then...
--Paul
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Stats Update
Quick update on the stats.
# of EKG pads: 29 (at least)
# of trips to Mobile: 4
They used 10 on me at the office last Tuesday. These were nice though. They were small squares that didn't stick as well so they weren't so bad to take off and they didn't leave any glue or marks on me. If only the same could be said about the first 19 they used.
--Paul
# of EKG pads: 29 (at least)
# of trips to Mobile: 4
They used 10 on me at the office last Tuesday. These were nice though. They were small squares that didn't stick as well so they weren't so bad to take off and they didn't leave any glue or marks on me. If only the same could be said about the first 19 they used.
--Paul
After Much Delay
I told you I would write more about our trip later on. I admit, I didn't think it would be this much later, but hey, better late than never.
Our trip went well. Our appointment was at 1:45 and we got there about 1:15 or so. We didn't have to wait long and I would say we were called back before 1:45 even rolled around. They took my blood pressure, weight and did another EKG and then we waited to see Dr. Mayer. Dr. Mayer came in, listened to me and checked my leg where they did the cath and then told us to hold on while he called UAB. He came back after a few minutes and asked if we wanted to do it Thursday. After picking myself up off the exam table, I told him I thought we were going to be able to wait till June. At that point he remembered DeAnne was a teacher and apologized. He asked when the last day of school was (the 25th) and came back and told us they could do it on the 26th. After all was said and done, we were out of the office by 2:30.
We did a little shopping and at 5:00 we went over and ate with Courtney and Edwin again. A big thanks to them for cooking, it was great. We had a great time with them, so good if fact that we lost track of time and didn't leave till after 8:00.
The bill for the cath came from the hospital this past week. We paid the copay that day and the insurance is going to cover the rest. All of a sudden, insurance looks pretty cheap.
Sorry for the delay between posts. I got a stomach virus thursday night and it kept me down thursday and friday. With DeAnne teaching, I'm sure it won't be the last time she'll bring something home for me. I'm still not 100%, but I would call it at least 95.
All I got for now.
--Paul
Our trip went well. Our appointment was at 1:45 and we got there about 1:15 or so. We didn't have to wait long and I would say we were called back before 1:45 even rolled around. They took my blood pressure, weight and did another EKG and then we waited to see Dr. Mayer. Dr. Mayer came in, listened to me and checked my leg where they did the cath and then told us to hold on while he called UAB. He came back after a few minutes and asked if we wanted to do it Thursday. After picking myself up off the exam table, I told him I thought we were going to be able to wait till June. At that point he remembered DeAnne was a teacher and apologized. He asked when the last day of school was (the 25th) and came back and told us they could do it on the 26th. After all was said and done, we were out of the office by 2:30.
We did a little shopping and at 5:00 we went over and ate with Courtney and Edwin again. A big thanks to them for cooking, it was great. We had a great time with them, so good if fact that we lost track of time and didn't leave till after 8:00.
The bill for the cath came from the hospital this past week. We paid the copay that day and the insurance is going to cover the rest. All of a sudden, insurance looks pretty cheap.
Sorry for the delay between posts. I got a stomach virus thursday night and it kept me down thursday and friday. With DeAnne teaching, I'm sure it won't be the last time she'll bring something home for me. I'm still not 100%, but I would call it at least 95.
All I got for now.
--Paul
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
The Verdict Is In
May 26th.
We'll have to be at the hospital on the 25th for admitting and pre-op tests and then they'll do the surgery on the morning of the 26th. I'll post more about our trip yesterday later on. I just wanted to get the date up before we had to go to church.
--Paul
We'll have to be at the hospital on the 25th for admitting and pre-op tests and then they'll do the surgery on the morning of the 26th. I'll post more about our trip yesterday later on. I just wanted to get the date up before we had to go to church.
--Paul
Friday, April 07, 2006
Heart Valve Diagram
I've had some people ask me about the valve and how valves work and I've never been able to explain it in a way that those people were able to envision it. I found the picture below on a this site. It's a pretty nice diagram. You can see the arotic valve and how the three leaflets are arranged.
Edit: I found another picture on the site that helps the visualization even more. This is more of a straight-ahead look that should be more familiar. To the right, you can see how the aortic valve is positioned.
Edit #2: The last image didn't copy over so well. It's hard to read the text on the image, but the aortic valve is the one kind of pointing south-east just above the second set of characters that are aligned vertically. Maybe that helps
--Paul
Edit: I found another picture on the site that helps the visualization even more. This is more of a straight-ahead look that should be more familiar. To the right, you can see how the aortic valve is positioned.
Edit #2: The last image didn't copy over so well. It's hard to read the text on the image, but the aortic valve is the one kind of pointing south-east just above the second set of characters that are aligned vertically. Maybe that helps
--Paul
Get Well
Just a quick post to say thanks to the girls in DeAnne's fifth grade class. They made me a great "get well soon" card. I tried scanning it, but the scanner and crayon don't seem to get along very well. Anyway, Thanks girls!
--Paul
--Paul
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Stats
The 2006 stats so far:
# of Echos: 1
# of Stress Tests: 1
# of Caths: 1
# of times Blood drawn: 1
# of brusies: 2
# of EKG pads: 19 (i think)
# of I.V.s: 1
# of shots given directly: 3
# of shots given though I.V.: 2 (that i'm aware of)
# of X-rays: 4 (if you count each individual image)
# of razors: 2
# of hospital gowns: 1
# of hospital meals: 1
# of trips to Mobile: 3
# of Echos: 1
# of Stress Tests: 1
# of Caths: 1
# of times Blood drawn: 1
# of brusies: 2
# of EKG pads: 19 (i think)
# of I.V.s: 1
# of shots given directly: 3
# of shots given though I.V.: 2 (that i'm aware of)
# of X-rays: 4 (if you count each individual image)
# of razors: 2
# of hospital gowns: 1
# of hospital meals: 1
# of trips to Mobile: 3
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Memories
So in the last post I just put up a minute ago I mentioned some memories that Dad reminded me of when we were talking last. I thought I'd go ahead and post one while I had it in mind.
They were preping me in my room for the surgery. As I've mentioned before, I'm terribly afraid of needles. They had told me that they had to give me one shot in my leg to get me to go to sleep. They came to take me to surgery and gave me one shot in my right leg. They then proceeded to try and give me another shot in my left leg. I told them they were crazy (keep in mind I was 9 at the time) and that they had already given me the only shot that I had agreed to. After several minutes of Mom and Dad and more than one nurse coaxing me, I let them give me the other shot and we were able to move on to the O.R. Dad says they told me I had to have two shots, but I only remember them telling me I had to have one. There was something about what they were giving me that the two shots couldn't be mixed, they had to go in through seperate channels.
So that's the memory of the shots to knock me out that they gave me when I was nine. I hope that in the ensuing 16 years since then, they've come up with a better way of doing this part of the deal.
--Paul
They were preping me in my room for the surgery. As I've mentioned before, I'm terribly afraid of needles. They had told me that they had to give me one shot in my leg to get me to go to sleep. They came to take me to surgery and gave me one shot in my right leg. They then proceeded to try and give me another shot in my left leg. I told them they were crazy (keep in mind I was 9 at the time) and that they had already given me the only shot that I had agreed to. After several minutes of Mom and Dad and more than one nurse coaxing me, I let them give me the other shot and we were able to move on to the O.R. Dad says they told me I had to have two shots, but I only remember them telling me I had to have one. There was something about what they were giving me that the two shots couldn't be mixed, they had to go in through seperate channels.
So that's the memory of the shots to knock me out that they gave me when I was nine. I hope that in the ensuing 16 years since then, they've come up with a better way of doing this part of the deal.
--Paul
Rolling On
The leg is healing up nicely. There are only a couple of little spots left where they went in. There really wasn't much bruising and what there was is pretty much gone. The place on my arm where they blew out my vessel when they drew blood looks worse than my leg does. Lsst night we went to town and after a couple of stores my leg started hurting, but since then I've been fine. I walked normally all day and there's not any stiffness or pain tonight, so I'm guessing I should be 100% by tomorrow evening.
I've been getting some feedback from a few people on the blog. All of it's been positive so far and I appreciate all the support that everyone has shown us. It's really become a waiting game of sorts. We're waiting for next Tuesday to plan the surgery and after that we'll be waiting for the surgery. In the meantime, I'm busy preparing stuff at work for me to be out. It's going to be tuff to get everything ready for me to be gone for at least a month and it'll probably be even harder to catch up when I go back. Thankfully I'll have the laptop at home and can at least keep my email checked. When I checked Friday after just being out Thursday for the cath, I had over 10 messages to read. I can only imagine what it would be like if I didn't check it for 6 weeks.
I was talking with Dad the other day and it brought back a few more memories from the first surgery. I'll see if I can remember the well enough to post them later. Till then, thanks for reading.
--Paul
I've been getting some feedback from a few people on the blog. All of it's been positive so far and I appreciate all the support that everyone has shown us. It's really become a waiting game of sorts. We're waiting for next Tuesday to plan the surgery and after that we'll be waiting for the surgery. In the meantime, I'm busy preparing stuff at work for me to be out. It's going to be tuff to get everything ready for me to be gone for at least a month and it'll probably be even harder to catch up when I go back. Thankfully I'll have the laptop at home and can at least keep my email checked. When I checked Friday after just being out Thursday for the cath, I had over 10 messages to read. I can only imagine what it would be like if I didn't check it for 6 weeks.
I was talking with Dad the other day and it brought back a few more memories from the first surgery. I'll see if I can remember the well enough to post them later. Till then, thanks for reading.
--Paul
Sunday, April 02, 2006
New Links!
I added a couple of new links this morning. The first is for Cardiology Associates of Mobile. This is the group that my cardiologist, Dr. Mayer works with. I'm sure some of you will notice that he is pediatrics. As you know, I've been going to a cardiologist all my life. When my first one retired, he suggested Dr. Mayer. We've talked to Dr. Mayer before in the past asking if we needed to switch to just a regular cardiologist and he told us that as long as we didn't "mind the teddy bears on the walls", we could keep coming to him for as long as we liked.
The other link is to a description of valve replacement/repair surgery from the Texas Heart Institute. It's pretty amazing to me that they can let a machine take over your heart and lung functions for you, stop your heart, do something to it and then start your heart back up and hand the job of keeping you alive back over to it. Simply amazing.
--Paul
The other link is to a description of valve replacement/repair surgery from the Texas Heart Institute. It's pretty amazing to me that they can let a machine take over your heart and lung functions for you, stop your heart, do something to it and then start your heart back up and hand the job of keeping you alive back over to it. Simply amazing.
--Paul
Followup
I forgot to mention it last time, but I go for a followup with the cardiologist on the 11th. I'm not really sure what all we'll do, but I'm assuming that it'll include identifying possible dates for the surgery and a check to make sure my leg is healed from the cath.
I can walk pretty well today and I was able to turn and lay on my side some last night. It was nice to be able to sleep some other way than flat on my back. I'll also drive some today for the first time since Wed. Looking foward to that.
Man, Daylight Savings Time is a pain.
--Paul
I can walk pretty well today and I was able to turn and lay on my side some last night. It was nice to be able to sleep some other way than flat on my back. I'll also drive some today for the first time since Wed. Looking foward to that.
Man, Daylight Savings Time is a pain.
--Paul
Saturday, April 01, 2006
I Can Move My Leg...
Well, after sitting around with my leg up all day yesterday and sleeping flat on my back for two nights, my leg's a little stiff, but I'm able to move it a little more this morning. I feel pretty sure I'm past the point of opening the puncture back up, but I'm going to take it easy today just to be safe.
Getting the bandage off yesterday was a nightmare. They used a pressure bandage and it was put on in a fashion so that when my leg was stretched straight out, it applied pressure to the wound with a ball in the middle of the bandage. To accomplish this, they started with it on the inside-back of my knee and brought it around and up all the way to the right side of my stomach. All totaled, the thing was probably a foot long and I think they only shaved about 4 to 6 inches of that. I had to get in the shower and soak the thing to get it off and I still think that having my whole leg waxed would have been less painful.
I did go out for a few minutes yesterday. DeAnne wanted to go to the store and get some ice cream, so I rode with her to Corner Market and sat in the car while she went in. It was nice to get out of the house for a few minutes after being in the recliner all day. Cabin fever was setting in quick. I hope to be able to go to church tomorrow. The only potential problem could be standing during the song service, but I can probably just put my weight on my good leg and be fine.
I began telling people about the blog yesterday and judging by the profile views (32 this morning), some of you are checking it out. I hope you find my writing to be bearable. After all, I am a programmer, not an author. Thanks for reading though and a special thanks to everyone who called yesterday to check in on me and see how I was doing.
I think that's all I've got this morning. See you all later.
Paul
Getting the bandage off yesterday was a nightmare. They used a pressure bandage and it was put on in a fashion so that when my leg was stretched straight out, it applied pressure to the wound with a ball in the middle of the bandage. To accomplish this, they started with it on the inside-back of my knee and brought it around and up all the way to the right side of my stomach. All totaled, the thing was probably a foot long and I think they only shaved about 4 to 6 inches of that. I had to get in the shower and soak the thing to get it off and I still think that having my whole leg waxed would have been less painful.
I did go out for a few minutes yesterday. DeAnne wanted to go to the store and get some ice cream, so I rode with her to Corner Market and sat in the car while she went in. It was nice to get out of the house for a few minutes after being in the recliner all day. Cabin fever was setting in quick. I hope to be able to go to church tomorrow. The only potential problem could be standing during the song service, but I can probably just put my weight on my good leg and be fine.
I began telling people about the blog yesterday and judging by the profile views (32 this morning), some of you are checking it out. I hope you find my writing to be bearable. After all, I am a programmer, not an author. Thanks for reading though and a special thanks to everyone who called yesterday to check in on me and see how I was doing.
I think that's all I've got this morning. See you all later.
Paul
Friday, March 31, 2006
Yesterday...
The cath went well yesterday. I'm at home today resting. I'm supposed to stay off my feet as much as possible which I believe equates to "be as bored as possible". It was pretty interesting. We made it to the hospital at 6:00, got checked in and I was in the cath holding area by 7:00. We went over some questions, they started an IV and when the doc got there, we got started. I was pretty tired from having to get up and ride down that morning, so when they gave me the narcotics, I pretty much passed out. I woke towards the end of the procedure. They inject some dye into your blood stream and take an x-ray to get a better picture of your heart and when the injection hits you it feels like your body is on fire. They had to do that twice and that was really the worst part of the procedure itself. I was back in the holding area by 10:00. I had to then lay completly flat for serveral hours. At around 12:00 they allowed me to incline some and at 2:00 I was allowed to sit all the way up. At 3:00 they had me swing my feet off the bed and when I was ready, I was able to get dressed and then we were gone.
As to the results, the cath showed pretty much the same thing that the echo showed. We're going to have to have surgery this summer. We go back in about a week or so and at that point we'll set up a time frame for when we want to do the surgery and we'll talk about what will actually be done. I'm not terribly surprised. I still feel fine and don't have any symptoms, but the tests all say otherwise.
It's going to be a tuff summer, but we'll make it. Now that the inital shock has passed, we've put our trust in the Lord and I know that this is what his plan is and that whatever happens, he'll be glorified in it. We ask that you all continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers and we want to once again say thank you for all the prayers that have already been said.
I also would like to say thanks to Joy for bringing over dinner for us last night and to her mother for the wonderful cake. It was very kind of you both and we can't express our appreciation with words alone.
We forgot to take the camera again, so once again, no pictures for the public to laugh at. Surely we'll be able to remember the thing when I go for my surgery. Anyway... I'm still doing research on the net about the condition. I'm going to turn my attention now and see what I can find on the surgery itself. I'll continue to post any good links I find. I'm also going to start telling more people about the blog. Now that it's a done deal that I'm having the surgery, I don't see any reason not to tell everyone about it. Till next time,
Paul
As to the results, the cath showed pretty much the same thing that the echo showed. We're going to have to have surgery this summer. We go back in about a week or so and at that point we'll set up a time frame for when we want to do the surgery and we'll talk about what will actually be done. I'm not terribly surprised. I still feel fine and don't have any symptoms, but the tests all say otherwise.
It's going to be a tuff summer, but we'll make it. Now that the inital shock has passed, we've put our trust in the Lord and I know that this is what his plan is and that whatever happens, he'll be glorified in it. We ask that you all continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers and we want to once again say thank you for all the prayers that have already been said.
I also would like to say thanks to Joy for bringing over dinner for us last night and to her mother for the wonderful cake. It was very kind of you both and we can't express our appreciation with words alone.
We forgot to take the camera again, so once again, no pictures for the public to laugh at. Surely we'll be able to remember the thing when I go for my surgery. Anyway... I'm still doing research on the net about the condition. I'm going to turn my attention now and see what I can find on the surgery itself. I'll continue to post any good links I find. I'm also going to start telling more people about the blog. Now that it's a done deal that I'm having the surgery, I don't see any reason not to tell everyone about it. Till next time,
Paul
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Comments!
I turned comments on. I was reluctant to do so but I figured I would give it a shot. I intend to moderate them so be warned that any comment posted is subject to being deleted by me if I find it unacceptable. If things get out of hand I'll just turn comments off again. So please, don't be that guy that ruins it for everyone else.
thanks,
Paul
thanks,
Paul
Under Pressure
Well we had the stress test yesterday. They didn't run me to hard. We only went to level three so I was only on the treadmill for about 7 minutes. My legs were starting to burn and I was short of breath but I didn't have any chest pain, dizziness or numbness. However, my cardiologist did see signs of my heart's oxygen demand outstripping the supply I was able to give it. This is due to the increased work my heart has to do to push blood across my aortic valve. So, the stress test provided more evidence that surgery may be necessary in the near future. Not exactly the news we were hoping for, but it wasn't totally unexpected either.
As for pictures, well, I kind of forgot to put the camera in the car, so we didn't get any pictures. Of course there wasn't much to it really. They did shave a couple of spots on my chest where they had to put the little pads for the EKG readings and now they're itching like crazy. Other than that, getting blood drawn was really the only bad part of the day. My arm still hurts a little. Let me tell you, vampires are real and they can come out in the day as long as they're disguised as nurses. I'm kidding, but still, you would think they could come up with a better way of doing things.
It's kind of weird writing the blog at the moment. I haven't actually told many people I know about it yet. I guess I'm waiting for the cath results to know for sure what's going to be happening with me and surgery and everything. I don't want to send anyone into a panic. There's nothing anyone can really do about it. It's something that I've known I was going to face ever since the last surgery and it's not like I'm handicapped or anything. I'm still able to lead a normal life.
I do appreciate all the prayers that have already been said on my behalf and for the prayers said on DeAnne's behalf. I don't think it took but about 3 days for us to land on every baptist prayer list in the county. We really do appreciate and we draw strength from knowing that so many people care and are praying for us.
I want to say thanks to Courtney and Edwin for going out to eat with us last week after we finished up at the cardiologist's. We had a great time and look foward to doing it again under happier circumstances. We were really still shell-shocked from the news and you guys really helped to distract us and get us past the initial fear that had set in. Thank you.
I think that's all I've got for now. When I do start telling people about this blog, at least there will be plenty for them to read. If I don't post again before the cath, I'll see you afterwards. Keep us in your prayers.
Paul
As for pictures, well, I kind of forgot to put the camera in the car, so we didn't get any pictures. Of course there wasn't much to it really. They did shave a couple of spots on my chest where they had to put the little pads for the EKG readings and now they're itching like crazy. Other than that, getting blood drawn was really the only bad part of the day. My arm still hurts a little. Let me tell you, vampires are real and they can come out in the day as long as they're disguised as nurses. I'm kidding, but still, you would think they could come up with a better way of doing things.
It's kind of weird writing the blog at the moment. I haven't actually told many people I know about it yet. I guess I'm waiting for the cath results to know for sure what's going to be happening with me and surgery and everything. I don't want to send anyone into a panic. There's nothing anyone can really do about it. It's something that I've known I was going to face ever since the last surgery and it's not like I'm handicapped or anything. I'm still able to lead a normal life.
I do appreciate all the prayers that have already been said on my behalf and for the prayers said on DeAnne's behalf. I don't think it took but about 3 days for us to land on every baptist prayer list in the county. We really do appreciate and we draw strength from knowing that so many people care and are praying for us.
I want to say thanks to Courtney and Edwin for going out to eat with us last week after we finished up at the cardiologist's. We had a great time and look foward to doing it again under happier circumstances. We were really still shell-shocked from the news and you guys really helped to distract us and get us past the initial fear that had set in. Thank you.
I think that's all I've got for now. When I do start telling people about this blog, at least there will be plenty for them to read. If I don't post again before the cath, I'll see you afterwards. Keep us in your prayers.
Paul
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Profile Pic
Finally found a picture to use for the profile. This is me and DeAnne on our honeymoon. It was the night of the captian's dinner on our cruise so that's why we're all spiffed up. Later,
Paul
Child's Play
Following on the line in the last post about the NES and playing Zelda before my surgery. For the past couple of years two guys that run a popular website about video games have run a charity called Child's Play. What they do is each year they gather cash and toys and video games and donate them to various children's hospitals around the country and even the world this past year. Everyone knows I like to play video games and I think this is a wonderful idea and a great way to cheer up some kids that don't have a lot to be happy or excited about at times. Please check out the website @ http://www.childsplaycharity.org or click the link in this post or to the right in the links section. They take donations year round, but around September or October they'll create Amazon wish lists for the hospitals they're working with for you to buy toys and send them directly to the hospitals.
Thanks,
Paul
Thanks,
Paul
A Long Time Ago...
So not long after I was born, the doctors heard a heart mumer. After some echos and a cath, they determined I had aortic stenosis. The condition progressed until at age 8, the cardiologist decided we needed to take a closer look. I had a cath done and the results showed that I needed surgery. I had a birthday between the cath and the surgery so when I went in for the open heart surger, I was 9.
As I said in the first post, I don't remember much about it. I remember being thirsty when I woke up in ICU and then throwing up after convincing the nurses to give me some grape soda. I remember not allowing them to pull the second stomach tube out after they pulled the first one because the first had hurt so bad. I remember they had a NES and a TV on a cart and they brought it to my room before the surgery and it was the first time I ever played The Legend of Zelda. I remember not wanting to laugh becuase it hurt so bad to laugh and we watched America's Funniest Home Videos (back when Bob Saget hosted it) one night and it hurt so bad I cried. And I remember being on a no salt diet while in the hospital and the food was so terrible that I hardly ate anything they brought me. Then when we got out I made mom and dad take me to a McDonald's and order me a large fri. But other than that, it's all a blur.
We go tomorrow for the stress test. Hopefully they won't run me to far into the ground. I'm going to have Dee take some pictures, so maybe Tuesday there'll be a picture of me on a treadmill for everyone to laugh at. We have to be at the doctor's office at 8:30 so it means an early morning for us. We also have to do chest x-rays and blood work. Anyone that knows me, knows how I hate needles. I think I'm more worried about the blood work than anything. Needles just freak me out. Take care and say a prayer for us.
Paul
As I said in the first post, I don't remember much about it. I remember being thirsty when I woke up in ICU and then throwing up after convincing the nurses to give me some grape soda. I remember not allowing them to pull the second stomach tube out after they pulled the first one because the first had hurt so bad. I remember they had a NES and a TV on a cart and they brought it to my room before the surgery and it was the first time I ever played The Legend of Zelda. I remember not wanting to laugh becuase it hurt so bad to laugh and we watched America's Funniest Home Videos (back when Bob Saget hosted it) one night and it hurt so bad I cried. And I remember being on a no salt diet while in the hospital and the food was so terrible that I hardly ate anything they brought me. Then when we got out I made mom and dad take me to a McDonald's and order me a large fri. But other than that, it's all a blur.
We go tomorrow for the stress test. Hopefully they won't run me to far into the ground. I'm going to have Dee take some pictures, so maybe Tuesday there'll be a picture of me on a treadmill for everyone to laugh at. We have to be at the doctor's office at 8:30 so it means an early morning for us. We also have to do chest x-rays and blood work. Anyone that knows me, knows how I hate needles. I think I'm more worried about the blood work than anything. Needles just freak me out. Take care and say a prayer for us.
Paul
Friday, March 24, 2006
It Begins Anew
So let's talk about what brought this all about. Every year since I've been born (sometimes twice a year) I've made a trip to Mobile to see my cardiologist. This year's trip was this past Tuesday (March the 21st). After seeing the doctor, we did the normal echo. The results weren't as good as they've been being and so the doc decided we needed to do a stress test (Mon. the 27th) and a heart cath (Thurs. the 30th). If you check out the wikipedia link on the right, you'll see some graphs and an explanation that the severity of the condition is based on an estimate of the pressure gradiant between the left ventricle and the aortic valve. Ignoring the units of measure, 40 is considered pretty good, 50 okay but not great, the 60s are border-line and anything above means it's time to take a closer look, hence the heart cath. The bright spot in all of this is that the echo only provides an estimate of the pressure, not an absolute reading. It's entirly possible that when we do the cath, the actual pressure will be found to be much less than the 72 they estimated last Tuesday. If that's the case, then surgery can be deferred and all is well. If the actual turns out to be closer to the estimate, then we're looking at surgery to replace the valve.
In the next couple of posts, I hope to recount what memories I do have from when I had my first surgery. I've also got some more links to post to the right of the page. I did add an article I found at the UAB website about the doctor that did my first surgery. Dr. Pacifico is retiring at the end of June this year and the article talks about his history and the work he's done in his time as a doctor. After reading it, it's pretty wild to me to think that this guy has actually worked on me.
Anyway, that's all for now. Hopefully I'll find a picture to put up in my profile one of these days.
Thanks for reading,
Paul
In the next couple of posts, I hope to recount what memories I do have from when I had my first surgery. I've also got some more links to post to the right of the page. I did add an article I found at the UAB website about the doctor that did my first surgery. Dr. Pacifico is retiring at the end of June this year and the article talks about his history and the work he's done in his time as a doctor. After reading it, it's pretty wild to me to think that this guy has actually worked on me.
Anyway, that's all for now. Hopefully I'll find a picture to put up in my profile one of these days.
Thanks for reading,
Paul
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Welcome
Hi,
My name is Paul and I have a heart condition called aortic stenosis. When I was nine years old, I had open heart surgery to repair my aortic valve. The surgery was successful and got me 16 years of health and happiness. The repair was never meant to be a permanate fix however, and now at 24, I face the possibility of having another open heart surgery to replace the valve. This blog is really intended to keep friends and family updated on my status and progress. I also wanted to do it for me, so that I would have a way of better remembering the events as they happen. I was nine the last time I went through this and my memories of that time are pretty much a blur due to what I believe to be a combination of time and my mind blocking out what is a pretty traumatic event for a nine year old. Having said that, anyone that stumbles across this blog and finds it interesting or has gone through this or knows someone who has gone through this or anyone else for that matter is more than welcome to join me.
Thanks,
Paul
My name is Paul and I have a heart condition called aortic stenosis. When I was nine years old, I had open heart surgery to repair my aortic valve. The surgery was successful and got me 16 years of health and happiness. The repair was never meant to be a permanate fix however, and now at 24, I face the possibility of having another open heart surgery to replace the valve. This blog is really intended to keep friends and family updated on my status and progress. I also wanted to do it for me, so that I would have a way of better remembering the events as they happen. I was nine the last time I went through this and my memories of that time are pretty much a blur due to what I believe to be a combination of time and my mind blocking out what is a pretty traumatic event for a nine year old. Having said that, anyone that stumbles across this blog and finds it interesting or has gone through this or knows someone who has gone through this or anyone else for that matter is more than welcome to join me.
Thanks,
Paul
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