Okay, I have put this off long enough, lol, but heres an update on my health. As many of you know I was having trouble breathing last month. On Tuesday, Nov. 11, Veterans Day, my doctor sent me to the Jackson County ER. They ran a few tests and determined that I had suffered a heart attack. They contacted the VA Medical Center in Oklahoma City , the VA told them to get me the Medical Center ASAP, so they loaded me into an ambulance and 2 hours later I was in the VA ICU. After running several tests I was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure aka CHF on Wednesday. I was scheduled to undergo an angiogram on Thursday but I was still having difficulty breathing. Well, Wednesday night it caught up with me, and I went into full pulmonary edema. What that means is my lungs were so full of fluid that there was no room for oxygen, and I was drowning in my own fluid. I was fully aware the whole time, and it was pretty rough, in fact I was on the brink of death. However, thanks to 4 outstanding individuals, 3 VA nurses and a VA breathing specialist who knew exactly what to do, they pulled me back and saved me. So big thanks and blessings to my heroes, my nurses Dexter and Shannon, nurse Julia, and specialist Debbie. Talk about grace and cool heads under pressure, theyve got it. Needless to say, it all took a toll on my heart and body. Thursday , Nov. 13 I spent resting and letting the meds take the fluid off my lungs, and I underwent angioplasty on that Friday, when they inserted a stent into one of my blocked arteries. At that time I was told that the CHF and pulmonary edema had further damaged my heart, and that it was down to about 20% capacity. Although I can go short periods without it, I am on oxygen for the duration, and am quite happy about it. Ive decided that Im quite fond of breathing, hahaha. Well, this past Friday I went back to the VA for an EKG and a followup with one of the great VA cardiologists on Oklahoma City. After reading my EKG results and after a short discussion, Dr. Khan went and consulted with his boss, Dr. Pedro. He came back and told me that my heart is very weak, in fact he said it 3 times for emphasis, lol. He said that if my heart has not strengthened in 3 months that they might implant a cardioverter defibrillator in my chest. I was shocked !!! bahahaha, well not yet , really lol. So, Ill continue to take my meds and take it easy, and hope for the best. Oh, and I received an appointment notification from the OKC VA just today. On Wednesday, January 7, Im scheduled for some type of pulmonary/function test. This was the first I heard about it, so I guess well see what its all about in a couple of weeks. I truly believe that all of the Love, support, and prayers from all of you helped pull me through this last ordeal. No matter what happens in the future, always know that I appreciate all of you greatly. Blessings all around, I love you all mucho. :)
Posted on: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 06:43:26 +0000
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