Heart and Lungs

Christmas is almost here. This year the goose is not getting fat - I have lost 114 pounds so far.

I saw the cardiologist last week to find out results of all of my heart tests. I am not happy with that office. They refuse to call me Ruth, and insist on calling me Mary. Yes, Mary IS my first name. But I have NEVER been called Mary. When people refer to me as Mary, I do not know who they are talking about or to. When phone calls ask for Mary, I tell them she does not live here, because obviously the caller is someone who does not know me.

When the woman tried to call me in for my appointment with the doctor, she was calling "Mary", I did not answer. Finally I said do you mean Ruth? She said No, Mary. I replied I think you mean Ruth. She finally asked what is the last name, when I said Sullivan, she said right. I told her I do not go by Mary, but by Ruth. Her response was "Well, in this office you will go by Mary!" Not a good start.

When the doctor came in, he told me all of my tests came back normal. There were no incidents of rapid heart beats. The echo cardiogram showed a healthy heart, with no blockages. The nuclear stress test was normal. There is no reason for any treatment on his part, come back in a year. I asked, since all tests were normal, no incidents of rapid heart beat, since I have never experienced any symptoms, could I stop taking the Beta blocker. He was offended and became condescending. The bottom line is I must continue to take it, it is a small dose and it is preventative. I argued for several minutes, but he was insistent. He did say if when I see the arrhythmia doctor next week, if HE says I can discontinue it, he would be all right with that.

I left there with mixed feelings. I was happy the tests were all okay and that my heart seems to be in good shape. But I also felt some uncertainty, since he wants me to continue to take this medication.

When I discussed the particular Beta Blocker I am taking with my dietitian, she informed me because it slows down the heart rate and metabolism, it makes losing weight very difficult. Neither of us are happy about that.

Today I saw my primary care doctor. We discussed the results of the CT scan I had done of my chest back in November. The nodule in my lung is GONE!!!! Thank you Lord! And thank all of you for your prayers!

When I talked with him about the Beta Blocker, I asked since it is an additional blood pressure medication, if I could cut back the dosage on one of my other BP meds. He said yes! My BP has been good - today it was 120/60. I will see him in 8 weeks to check it again at the lower dosage.

SO that is the latest health update. I see the arrhythmia doctor next Monday. I am hoping he does not want to put me through another battery of tests.

I am in the process of trying to get all of my Christmas "stuff" finished. I wish you all a Merry Christmas!

Friendly Packages

It is almost Christmas. When I was a child, it seemed like forever between Christmases. Now I feel like I blink and it is December again. It is the time of year we all do a lot of shopping.

Over the years I have evolved from catalog to online shopping. This means I have received a lot of packages. These packages have come via UPS, FedEx and USPS. As a result of the large number of packages, I have become familiar with the delivery guys.

One day the FedEX man, who had no package for me, stopped by the house. He had a killer headache and wondered if I could give him a glass of water and some tylenol. Since over the years he had made me very happy by the packages he had so promptly delivered, I was glad to oblige him. I did wonder why he chose me to ask. Then I figured maybe I am one of the few people actually home when he brings his packages.

But more recently, I became aware in an almost amusing way, how well those delivery guys know me.

I was on my way to the gym. I had turned the corner from my street on to the neighboring street. Halfway down this street, the FedEx truck was coming towards me. The driver beeped and waved. SO I waved. Then he stopped, and motioned to me. I pulled over. He had a package for me, which he delivered to my car, on a street that I do not live on. Not only does he recognize me, know what house I live in, he also knows my car (which is usually in the garage). Go figure.

In the past year, I have joined Facebook, a social networking site. Imagine my surprise when one of my UPS delivery men made a request to be my friend on Facebook! That is when I began to wonder, do I order too many packages?

Now to be fair, I must add that I found out the UPS guy goes to my church. That is actually the context in which he asked to be my Facebook friend. But when he told me how much he loves my house, and I knew he had never been there as a guest, it all came out that he delivers UPS packages to me on a regular basis.

So that is my story of friendly packages. Can you say that your packages are as friendly as mine?

Matters of the Heart

For those of you who are not followers of my blog, Recently I had another sleep test. During that test, I had one incident when my heart was beating fast for 33 beats. I was awake during the incident, but was not aware it was happening. My sleep doctor informed my primary doctor, who sent me to a cardiologist. When I met with the cardiologist, he set me up with a number of tests to see what is going on.

The first was bloodwork to check my ACE and magnesium levels. The scale for normal for ACE is 12 - 68, mine is 11. Magnesium range is 1.6-2.6, mine is 2.0.

He put me on a new medication which is a Beta blocker/ACE inhibitor. When I exercise, this keeps me from being able to get to my target heart rate anymore. I also do not understand since my ACE level is low, why I need a medication to inhibit it more.

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, I had to go to the cardiologist's office to get hooked up to a heart monitor for 24 hours. I told the nurse that I have sensitive skin and adhesives do not stick well. She prepped the areas for the leads to be attached by rubbing the skin with sand paper to help them adhere better. By the time I got home. two of the leads had come off. After several phone calls, I was told to return to have them re-attached. She taped them on this time.

When I removed them the following morning, my skin was all red and itchy, and the areas were "gooey". A week later, the areas are still red.

Wednesday morning I was back for an echo cardiogram. I waited over 30 minutes past my appointment time to be called back. I had to remove my shirt and bra, and wear an open-fronted gown top. I was told to lay on my left side, facing away from the person doing the sonogram. Although he had to prod me all around the left breast area, it did not hurt. What was upsetting was after he had begun to do the echo cardiogram, another woman came into the room and asked was he almost finished. He said no, he had just started. She asked him to come with her and help her with her patient. He did not want to , but she kept pressing him until he left.

Now I was already nervous about having all of these tests on my heart. To have him leave in the middle of it, for several minutes, and hearing him in the next room performing the test on another patient was not helping my nerves. I was becoming a bit angry, thinking why is that patient more important than me? Then I decided to be thankful I had the more competent technician doing my test.

He returned and finished my test, apologizing for having to leave me.

Bright and early on Monday, I had the nuclear stress test. I had been given no instructions about my medications. Knowing the new prescription inhibited my heart rate, I opted not to take it before the test, but brought it with me, in case they wanted me to take it. I could not eat before the test, nor have any caffeine, decaf, or chocolate for 24 hours prior to the test. I had to drink plenty of water.

First a nurse looked over my forms and medication list. She told me it was okay for me to take the beta blocker after I went on the treadmill. She hooked me up so I could get the injection via IV during the testing. Then another nurse came in and gave me my first injection of nuclear stuff. They told me it is like having a CT scan. But I can honestly say, I felt nothing throughout the testing, from either injection.

Next I had to go to the waiting area, drink 4 small glasses of water and eat a package of graham crackers. IN about 30 minutes I was taken back to a dark room, had to lie on a narrow machine, and had pictures of my heart taken. I had to lie still with my hands over my head for ten minutes.

Then back to the waiting room for another half an hour.

The treadmill was next. A nurse practitioner cardiologist began the hookup and looked over my chart. IN passing she commented that I had a sonogram of my heart and "it looked good". I know she was not giving me results, but I was happy to hear that. I asked her what was the target heart rate she was aiming for me. She said for my age 136 is 85% and that would be the minimum needed to conduct the test. Maximum is 160.

After the nurse finished hooking me up, and taking my blood pressure, I stepped onto the treadmill. There was a beautiful autumn scene on the wall in front of it. It looked like the canal path behind my house.

As I started walking, they asked what levels I usually walk on the treadmill. I told them the fastest I have gone is 3.6 and the highest incline is 6. They told me they start me out at incline of 10. Every three minutes the treadmill increases speed and incline a little more. As I was walking, they told me it was a good thing I had not taken the beta blocker or they do not know how high they would have had to make me go to get to the target heart rate. Every two or three minutes, they checked my blood pressure, which was steadily increasing. They told me not to get upset by how high it was, as exercise always does that.

The nurse practitioner kept her eyes on the electrocardiogram and the nurse kept checking the BP. They were constantly asking how I felt. When the target heart rate was reached (145), the second nurse came in and gave me another injection. I had to walk one more minute with the nuclear stuff in me.

When I came off the treadmill, they kept checking my BP until it was back to normal - which was quickly. They said it is a sign that I am fit because my heart recovered quickly. She also told me I had no incidents of racing heart during the test.

I was sent back to the waiting room and told to drink a small can of apple juice and eat a nutrigrain bar. After about 45 minutes, I returned to the dark room for one last set of pictures of my heart. The entire process took about two and a half hours.

At no time did I experience any discomfort. The treadmill workout was more strenuous than I usually do at the gym, in that because of my back, I do not set the incline that high. But I had no trouble completing the test. I was sweating and winded, but that happens every time I go to the gym.

Now the waiting begins. I do not see the cardiologist again until Dec 15th to find out results. Then I see the arrhythmia specialist at the end of the month.

Thank you to all who have been praying. I have been upset and nervous about having these tests. I have wanted so bad to turn to food for that comfort as I was not finding it elsewhere. I continued to seek God and He has sustained me and kept me from overeating.

Please continue to pray for me as I await results.

A