A Day at the Hospital

Yesterday was the day I had been mentally preparing myself for a few weeks. I had a cardiac procedure called a Cardiac Ablation to help diagnose either Super Ventricular Tachycardia (SVT) or just Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia (I.ST.) My parents came up for the big event.

As explained in my previous post, they entered my heart through the large veins in my legs and searched for inappropriate electrical pulses. They wanted to be sure the impulses started from the sinus node and not from a different place located inside the heart's electrical system. They also wanted to be sure the directional flow was appropriate. Basically, if I had SVT they could ablate (burn or freeze) the area which were causing the problem. If it was I.ST., that would prove the electrical system was good, but there were false signals being sent from the sinus node itself. 

After about 4 hours of testing, I was sent to recovery with the diagnosis of I.ST. My electrical system was good, but my sinus node is working inappropriately. They did not do an ablation for SVT, but they also could not fix the problem at hand, that is, unless they altered the sinus node, in which case, there is a high risk of implanting a pacemaker, which didn't sound like a good deal at all. 

Because of my age, this will all be managed with meds. 

Anyway, I went into recovery and the nurses were fine. There were three. Two working on a webinar online and one who would make personal phone calls on her cell phone. I felt a little swept under the rug but they were there when I needed them the most. Because I didn't have the ablation, they said I could leave to go home. They wanted me to sit up, eat and walk before I left. I did just that; I sat up like a big girl, at a little food, and when I got up to walk the left side of my leg hurt terribly. When we made it back to the bed to sit down, I noticed I was bleeding from the site of entry. The nurses went into panic mode. I popped the vein. I was put on my back and three nurses were above me. One said, "You are about to hate me." That is when she started to apply pressure. I screamed in pain and the nurses were holding me down, holding my hands and KP was on the other side holding my hand. It was crying so hard, I was forgetting to breathe. They pumped my iv with meds and put me on oxygen. They were coaching me, like I was in labor all over again. When the meds kicked in, I went limp but the tears still poured as the pain had been so intense. 

They stopped the bleeding and moved me to the third floor but I was confined to bed for the next 5 hours - laying flat with no excuses. They didn't want it to happen again. It was scary to say the least. I did, however, get to watch the Thunder game from the room. By about 10pm, I was able to leave, and slept in my own bed last night. 

I will admit, I feel a little disappointed and blessed at the same time. It is almost like I went through all of that for no reason at all. I didn't get fixed but at least I know what the problem is. My parents have been great. My house was cleaned, laundry done, and Hutch was fed and put down when I got home. KP cooked me breakfast in bed and as I sit here typing, I am sore, tired and ready to get back to normal. Whatever that may be. :)

I continue to track these cardiac events and am starting to see a pattern. There is still hope yet to manage these the best as possible. I appreciate all the love and prayers sent through FB, texts and phone calls. I have the best of the best family and friends. XOXO