It's been almost 3 years since I last wrote anything for my Blog. I have tried to keep my personal life out this and only write about the crafts and such that I enjoy and keep me happy. It's been 2 years come May 25th that I had open heart surgery. My problems had started almost a year before, I even went to the ER and checked out of the ER AMA (against medical advice). Me being the stubborn person that I am chose to ignore the symptoms. It caught up to me just over a year later. I was tired all the time, had no energy and sometimes I felt like my heart was straining to beat.
So…I went to my doctor who did three EKGs. He didn’t like the looks of either of them and sent me to the ER. No, I didn’t have a heart attack which was good. A Cardiac Heart Cath done the next morning showed that I had a 95% blocked main artery that was blocking two of the three arteries that supply the heart with blood. I had a widow maker. Scary huh? Yes, but for some reason I was very calm when told this. The next day I had surgery. I ended up with what is known as a CABGx2 (pronounced cabbage). It was a rough few days, weeks and months. It’s also been hard these past two years. I still have good days and bad days as I also have other health issues.
The main reason I wanted to put this in my blog is because Heart Disease is the number 1 killer of women. Most of the times our symptoms present differently than men’s. Doctors don’t always take us seriously when we complain about chest pain or numbness in our arm, or even back pain. (Oh, it’s just gas or a strain). We as women are always so busy taking care of our families that we don’t stop to take care of ourselves or listen to our bodies. So, please if you notice that you aren’t your normal cheerful or bitchy self, just pop in to your doctor’s office and tell them you want your BP checked. And don’t balk if they say to go to the ER and have it checked out. Just do it. It may be nothing, but then again it could save your life.
So…I went to my doctor who did three EKGs. He didn’t like the looks of either of them and sent me to the ER. No, I didn’t have a heart attack which was good. A Cardiac Heart Cath done the next morning showed that I had a 95% blocked main artery that was blocking two of the three arteries that supply the heart with blood. I had a widow maker. Scary huh? Yes, but for some reason I was very calm when told this. The next day I had surgery. I ended up with what is known as a CABGx2 (pronounced cabbage). It was a rough few days, weeks and months. It’s also been hard these past two years. I still have good days and bad days as I also have other health issues.
The main reason I wanted to put this in my blog is because Heart Disease is the number 1 killer of women. Most of the times our symptoms present differently than men’s. Doctors don’t always take us seriously when we complain about chest pain or numbness in our arm, or even back pain. (Oh, it’s just gas or a strain). We as women are always so busy taking care of our families that we don’t stop to take care of ourselves or listen to our bodies. So, please if you notice that you aren’t your normal cheerful or bitchy self, just pop in to your doctor’s office and tell them you want your BP checked. And don’t balk if they say to go to the ER and have it checked out. Just do it. It may be nothing, but then again it could save your life.
