Cardiac Rehab

I was at an evening meeting a few days ago filled mostly with hospital folks who are making a concerted effort to improve their communication with patients and family members. Any hospital with this as a goal is to be applauded. Sitting to my left with the director of Cardiac Rehab for this hospital. As we chatted he said something that just floored me. He said that recent statistics indicated that only 13% of patients eligible to receive rehab services after bypass surgery actually go to rehab! I didn't have time have time to question him more, but I plan to. As I look back on my experience with bypass surgery without a doubt one of the most helpful things I did was rehab. It helped me regain my strength and stamina. I had people to talk to who had been through the surgery, and I got some great information from a group of caring health professionals. If you have just had your surgery or are facing it soon please talk to you doctor about cardiac rehab. I promise you it will make a difference in your recovery.

My Struggles

Everyone has struggles. That is an undeniable reality of life, and after my bypass surgery several personal struggles came into clear focus. I have come to realize that I will have to deal with depression perhaps for the rest of my life. Right now I feel great, but for me it seems to linger in the background. The reason why I started this blog was because I had faced real depression after surgery and found little in the way of help, especially in the early days. I also struggle with my diet. One reason why I needed bypass surgery is that I loved the classic Southern diet. Just think of Paula Dean. I still love that kind of food. I know my diet has improved, but I am not where I would like to be. There are other struggles in my life that relate to my bypass surgery. More to come.

Heart Disease and Smoking

I just finished talking to a woman who is scheduled for triple bypass and valve repair surgery next Tuesday. She is scared. I know the feeling. She is concerned about how soon she will be able to go back to work. I know that feeling too. She has so much on her mind, but at the top of her list is her continuing struggle to quit smoking. She feels guilty. She tells me how hard it is to quit. I know that non-smokers just can't understand how a person who is about to have open heart surgery can still smoke. We forget sometimes that smoking is an addiction, but I know that if she doesn't quit her long term prognosis is not good. I hope she can quit. Her life depends on it.

Ordinary Times

I must apologize for being so delinquent in posting. Summer has been especially good, with the exception of gallbladder surgery. I seem to not be able to make it through a year without some kind of surgery, but it was uneventful, and easy to get over. Right now I am experiencing a great time in my life. My wife and I are just loving being grandparents. There is just so much to live for.

My message for those of you who are still struggling to find your new normal after bypass surgery is that that time will come. I wish I could show you what your new life will be like in time. Sometimes I go for days and don't even think about my heart. I think that's one reason why it has been a while since I have posted. There was a time when I thought my life as I had known it was over. I felt like and emotional and physical cripple. Today I can enjoy just plain old ordinary times. I went hunting last week. My wife and I went fishing. I played with my granddaughter. I might die tomorrow, but there is so much to live for. I know that I will always have to take medicine for my heart, and I also know that I still have coronary artery disease, but I have learned to live with it, and to not allow that reality to ruin my life. My journey continues, and right now I just love having an ordinary day.

Good Doctors

I now have a general surgeon to add to my list of doctors. I needed that kind of doc last week to remove my gallbladder. That also marked the end of my New Year's resolution for 2009. I thought I would keep it simple this year. No vow to loose 25 pounds, just a goal to go through a whole year without surgery. My 90 year old mother has kept this one for each one of her 90 years. Surly I could last one stinking year without a surgery, but no not me. Even though I failed at my resolution I did find a very good doctor. There is a sense in which laymen like me don't always do a very good job at judging the quality of a doctor. but while I might be limited in my ability to offer a peer review, I can, I believe, offer a meaningful observation or two.

This whole gallbladder thing started about three weeks ago with a trip to the emergency room convinced I was having a heart attack. My cardiologist, Dr. Stacy Smith, was concerned enough to do a heart cath. The cath actually looked great which made her suspect some gut issue. Off to the GI doctor. He confirms her suspicions and sends me to Dr. Carter McDaniel. He was able to schedule the surgery quickly. It went off without a hitch, and then he did something the day after the surgery which I thought was pretty cool. He called me, not his nurse, but him. He just wanted to see how I was doing and to see if I had any questions. The call was over in less than two minutes, but I wonder how often that is done? Maybe more often than I think, but I doubt it. Like I said, I can't judge a M.D. as a peer, but I sure can tell when a doctor communicates that he or she cares, and that still matters, and it still makes up part of my definition of a good one.

Chest Tubes

Even though it has been over four years now since my surgery that are some memories about the whole event that still remain fresh. I remember how strange it looked to have two rather large tubes and a wire protruding from my chest. For me the tubes were the most uncomfortable part of my post-op experience. I couldn't wait for them to come out, but I also dreaded the experience of having them removed. I had been told that it would hurt. I think it was two or three days after surgery when the nurse came in and announced to me that the time had come for the tubes to come out. She then just walked over and started pulling. The pain was intense, but short lived. As soon as those tubes were out I cannot tell you how much better I felt. This was one of many things that I wish a survivor would have told me about prior to my surgery.

Team Inspire

I just wanted to let folks know about a great website that is a fantastic place for support and information for those of us who have gone through bypass surgery. It's called Team Inspire. Anything you can do to avoid going through this alone will help you and once you visit this site you will know you have a group of kindred spirits who have been there and are ready to listen and help any way they can.

Four Years and Feeling Great

If I live to Wednesday I will mark my four year anniversary. If someone would have told me four years ago that I would end up feeling this good I would have told them they were crazy. I can now look at every day as a blessing from God to be deep cherished. Yesterday I got to just stare at my beautiful three month old granddaughter. Last week I made my annual pilgrimage to Pepperdine University for their annual conference. That place has to be the most beautiful college campus in America. Life is good, and I am so glad I can say that, but today I visited a lady from my church who just found out that she will be having bypass surgery in the next day or so. Even though I have been through the surgery I still don't know how she feels, but I have a pretty good idea of what lies ahead. I hope I can be there for her and offer a bit of encouragement, and somehow communicate that things will be alright.

Pump Head

As I have made clear before, I am not a doctor nor the son of a doctor. Now my grandfather on my mom's side was a Vet, but I don't guess that counts. Even though I am not an expert I can tell you what has been one of the most frustrating of my recovery. I am almost four years post op, and basically feeling pretty good, but there is one residual effect of the surgery. My cognitive abilities are noticeably lacking, or in other words my memory is shot for a 50 year old, and I am not as quick on my feet as I once was. It frustrates me to no end, and in the past I believe the dulling of some of my cognitive skills was on source of my depression. 

I titled this post "Pump Head."  That refers to the possible effects of the heart/lung bypass machine. Feel free to google the term and you should have enough material to read for hours. No everyone seems to be affected, but there seems to be consensus among health professionals that the issue is real and many patients are a bit less in regards to mental capacity after bypass surgery.  

This is another one of those issues where I was so encouraged when I found out that I wasn't alone as I struggled to get back to something that approximated normal. In my case I started with a lass than desirable memory and it just got worse. The real problem can when I needed to think quickly on my feet. I found myself often searching words and responses that should have come quickly only to have the finally come to my mind long after the discussion was pointless.

I know there are many others out there, and I would love to hear from you. How have you coped? 

Sick and Tire of Being Sick

What do kidney stones have to do with coronary artery disease? Not very much I hope.  It is a little past midnight and I just got home from the emergency room after suffering complications from a kidney stone attack over two weeks ago. Last Wednesday the urologist removed a small stone and inserted a stent in my right ureter.  My body not being particularly thrilled with the insertion of a foreign object basically rebelled.  My weekend was most unpleasant, but Monday was supposed to be great because today was the day to get that stent out. Well out it came and within three hours my ureter has swollen shut and I experienced pain that I would not wish on my worst enemy, well at least most of my worst enemies.  I am no at home feeling much better, but wondering if I am just falling apart. I seem to be able to accept that reality in a much better frame of mind than I did after my heart surgery. I have said this several times on this blog, but it is so true. There is just something so different about heart surgery. I have experienced many things more physically painful than bypass surgery. Today being one of them.  At this moment I feel good. I was blessed with another day albeit a painful one. I got to look at some wonderful pictures of our granddaughter. I realization that I am married to the lady who is and has become my soulmate.

Do Doctors Really Get It?

My cardiologist gets it. A growing number of physicians are starting to get it, but many others seem to still be in the dark. I am talking about the depression that so often accompanies bypass surgery. Here is my simple wish. I want cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons to talk to their patients before and after surgery about depression and for the patient and his family to be aware that the risks for depression are real, but are treatable. A bypass patient could be screened for depression while still in the hospital. In my case I ended up suffering for weeks not really knowing what was wrong. Like is so often the case my wife's strong suggestion to seek help is what caused me to take the first step which led to a visit to my family doctor and finally to the medication that I needed to help me recover from my depression. Not everyone who has bypass surgery gets depressed, but many do and unfortunately many of those that do never get the proper care for a medical condition that is just as real as coronary artery disease.

Sickness after Surgery

I have been sick for about a full week. I feel fine now, but a few days ago I just felt rotten. Most people don't realize this, but a normal run of the mill sickness can drive a bypass survivor crazy. After surgery you already feel like you have narrowly escaped death so anything even a little out of the ordinary can really mess with your head.  "Does this have anything to do with my heart?" is usually the first thought to pop into your mind. In time you realize that you can get sick like everyone else and that a cold doesn't mean your imminent demise. There are a lot of hurdles to get over to get back to your normal, but you can get there. I promise.

Complacency

I knew it was coming, and I deserved just what I got. Over the last few months I have put on a few pounds, and yesterday was the day for my annual blood work and check-up with my cardiologist, Dr. Stacy Smith. As I approached the scales I was thinking of what I could take off and still be decent. Wallet, belt, cell phone, keys, they all weigh something and as I stepped on the scales I knew I needed all the help I could get. Those scales don't lie and they were telling me that I had slacked off, that I had become complacent. Then the nurse drew the blood and in a few minutes the numbers were there in black and white. Most were still fine, but my triglycerides were awful. Then Dr. Smith, the coolest cardiologist in the world, started talking. She would tell you that she was real nice, but in the process she let me have it. I have to go back to see her in three months and she expects me to come back lighter, as in 10 pounds lighter. She proceeded to tell me where I was heading and I heard her use the word diabetes. To say that she got my attention is a gross understatement, but to tell the truth I pretty much knew what I had done before I got the word from her. Over the last few months as I began to feel more and more like my old self I started to eat more and more like my old self. I think that one of the biggest struggles bypass survivors have is to make really lasting lifestyle changes. I remember right after my surgery I was ready to eat tuna everyday for the rest of my life. Time passes and it becomes so easy to become lax. I need to remember that I am in the middle of a never ending war with CAD, and the price of letting up could be a lost battle at the least, or worse, I could loose the war. On June 3, I will have to face Dr. Smith again. I will let you know how it turns out.

A Reason For Joy

I was thinking to myself the other day that I am no longer depressed. My life is again filled with joy. If any of you are reading this who are just beginning your journey after bypass don't forget that recovery takes time, and sometimes a lot of time. I have found that when I got back to the point when I became less focused on myself and what might happen in the future, and more focused on the present the better I got. On February 17th my daughter delivered a beautiful little girl named Savannah. She is my new joy. Today is good, and I will choose to claim all that I can from this one day I have, and if blessed with a tomorrow I will do the same with that day.

The American Heart Association

AIn my journey with coronary artery disease I have found a real supporter in the American Heart Association. For a long time I never really gave AHA much thought. That was before I got involved and started to find out that they were about helping people and not just about raising money. Oh, they raise money, lots of it, but it's what they have done and continue to do with the money that really got my attention. It wasn't that long ago that I found out that the heart lung machine was developed thanks in large measure to research grants from the AHA, and without that machine no bypass surgery, and without that machine I don't think I would be writing this now. That realization has helped me to get involved with the Memphis area AHA. I wish I could give them more of my money, because in a real sense I owe them my life.  

Keeping Your Doctors on the Same Page

Yesterday I got a call from the office of my Family Practice Doc. I had gone there last week for a problem unrelated to my heart. In the process of the visit he ordered some blood work. The call yesterday was to inform me that my CPK was elevated and I needed to lower my dose of Crestor in half. My over all cholesterol and my LDL and HDL numbers were the best ever. But there is a problem. I am not about to change my dose of Crestor without the advise of my cardiologist, and I am still wondering why the blood work was done in the first place since I was not fasting. I am saying all of this just to illustrate that it is our responsibility to take charge of our health care. I just cannot assume that doctors communicate with one another. I also cannot assume that every test that a doctor gives is administered correctly. I love my family doctor, but I don't mind at all making sure things are done correctly.

Free Gym

I was visiting someone in the hospital the other day and was standing waiting for the elevator when I noticed a sign. It was posted on the stairwell door. It simply read "Free Gym." It worked, at least for me. That day I took the stairs. Those of us who are battling CAD have got to keep moving. It's just that simple

A New Year

I have spent a good deal of time reflecting on this past year. All in all it has been a good year. I took a group of medical folks to Ghana, West Africa. These trips continue to be so therapeutic. My wife and I had a wonderful trip out West. There really is no way to describe the Grand Canyon.  Spending time with our son was a real gift. We are so proud of him. He is an officer in the Air Force and is now stationed in Minot, ND. I talked to he tonight and he mentioned that it has warmed up.  The current temperature is all the way up to a balmy zero.  I think that is a strong case for relativity. After the trip I had total knee replacement surgery. As I said in an earlier there was no comparison between the knee surgery and my heart bypass. My knee is getting a little bit better every day. Of all the events of this past year without a doubt the news of the coming of our first grandchild tops the list. I feel so blessed. 

My biggest challenge for 2009 is going to be deal with my weight. I have put on a few pounds. Exercise and eating well is tough for me. I try not looking at this as some kind of New Resolution, but just a decision to do better. I want to live long enough to enjoy our granddaughter.  I can now say with certainty that life after bypass surgery can be fantastic.