Some of you may have noticed that I haven't been quite myself lately. Well I thought I would let you in on what has been going on in my life. I am so full of gratitude for modern medicine. A couple months ago my father was supposed to receive knee surgery. Well in the pre-surgical check up they noticed my father had heart problems. The doctor wouldn't operate with out getting the that corrected. He was diagnosed with an abnormal heart rhythm. Which really isn't a big problem. It can be corrected with a procedure where they stop your heart and then with in the same second they start it back up with a Defibrillator. It has a 90% success rate. Well with the luck of my family it didn't work the first time. So my father underwent some more tests and they decided that he needed to have another procedure called a Catheter Ablation. Which is a pretty intense surgery.
Basically our heart has an electrical system that produces tiny impulses to the lower chambers of the heart. Telling them when to contract and pump blood. My fathers heart wasn't working in sync with each other. One side was trying to keep up with the other. The impulses normally begin in the sinoatrial node. SA Node. AKA the hearts natural pace maker. This is where the problem was so they had to go into the heart and ablate (destroy) the area were the problem is. So my father under went this surgery. It lasted for about 6 hours, with a recovery for 6 hours where he wasn't allowed to move his legs. He had catheters in his legs because that is where they entered his heart.
All went well with his procedure. I am so grateful that we have this modern medicine to make it possible for my daddy to be with us a little longer. But I did spend quite a lot of time worrying and stressed over the possibilities that may had happened. Kurt and I went down and saw my dad in the ICU afterward and my dad proudly proclaimed that he finally had my mom initials tattooed in the corners of his heart. Leave to my dad to put a lighter side on things. It has now been a week and all is well. His legs are bruised really bad and he is a little slower, not in his brain, but walking and getting around. But he sure is feeling a lot better. His skin looks better. I know that sounds funny but he is getting the proper amount of oxygen and blood into his body. He can really notice a difference with his heart.
We are so grateful that you are still here dad. We love you a lot.
Basically our heart has an electrical system that produces tiny impulses to the lower chambers of the heart. Telling them when to contract and pump blood. My fathers heart wasn't working in sync with each other. One side was trying to keep up with the other. The impulses normally begin in the sinoatrial node. SA Node. AKA the hearts natural pace maker. This is where the problem was so they had to go into the heart and ablate (destroy) the area were the problem is. So my father under went this surgery. It lasted for about 6 hours, with a recovery for 6 hours where he wasn't allowed to move his legs. He had catheters in his legs because that is where they entered his heart.
All went well with his procedure. I am so grateful that we have this modern medicine to make it possible for my daddy to be with us a little longer. But I did spend quite a lot of time worrying and stressed over the possibilities that may had happened. Kurt and I went down and saw my dad in the ICU afterward and my dad proudly proclaimed that he finally had my mom initials tattooed in the corners of his heart. Leave to my dad to put a lighter side on things. It has now been a week and all is well. His legs are bruised really bad and he is a little slower, not in his brain, but walking and getting around. But he sure is feeling a lot better. His skin looks better. I know that sounds funny but he is getting the proper amount of oxygen and blood into his body. He can really notice a difference with his heart.
We are so grateful that you are still here dad. We love you a lot.
4 comments:
Good grief! I am so sorry Kati! What is up with our ward this semester? Lots of prayers your way. Hope your dad continues to improve. Man, that would really scare me. You are amazing!
p.s. I was wondering lately if you were okay. Thanks for posting this so I can understand. I wish I could have been of some help earlier.
I am so glad that everything is going to be okay! He sure is lucky to have a daughter like you! I hope that everything continues to go well.
Kati - I'm so glad he's doing better. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all. We love you! We'll see you at Bear Lake in a couple weeks! - Diana
You guys are all so great! Thank you for your prayers. Dad is doing great. He is getting better.
But one thing is for sure....say dad heart and problem in a sentence and it sure makes you scared.
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