What’s new with everyone as the heat of summer approaches?
So far for me, it has been very interesting. My cousin and I had planned a mini vacation the first week of June with swimming, beaches and one theme park. She had planned for her young son to be babysat by his grandmother here in Florida while she attended a job related conference out west. Imagine my surprise when I receive a phone call from her at the airport. No one has come to pick them up!
Her Mother had a massive heart attack that A.M. and was in ICU. After checking on her mother for a few days, I encouraged her to continue on to her conference while I watched her 4 year old for 5 days. Her mother ended up having 3 surgeries and then was discharged. Thank goodness in ok health with 3 stents and new meds. I had help with her child since my husband was around.
After many delays she finally was able to fly back here and we all checked on her family. Then our vacation started! All I can say is she kept saying how much better my color was and how I looked better! Now she hasn’t spent time with me since I my ASD was repaired. I am not 100% but pleased with her comments. I was repaired at almost 58 years old so had suffered for a long time. I still have some weird symptoms but know I was repaired long after I should have been. Doctors know better now then to let this go on for a long time. I often wish I was younger when repaired but her words are encouraging. All the “what ifs” and “why me” don’t change or make it different. All I can say is push your doctors if you have symptoms, don’t take excuses and get repaired! I can’t say what is the best way to be repaired but my life would have been very different if I hadn’t been so ill for so many years. Again, I cannot change the past or find blame in others. Times are different now. I would not have ended up with the person I love so dearly. I can’t say my life would have been happier but it would have been different. Just remember no one stands in our shoes, so if you aren’t feeling well, only you, not your partner or family, can stand up for you. Some of those crazy phrases our parents had are true, such as " don’t put off till tomorrow what you can do today" and " live life like each day was your last". Do it!
All the best, Linda
When I found out several years ago about my ASD I did long for the life I never had. I was mad. Who knows what I would have done had I felt good. I went to many doctors. Not one ever connected all the dots. I knew as soon as the technician found it, that it explained everything that had gone on with my health my whole life. There is no getting the time back.
“O, that way madness lies; let me shun that; No more of that.”
Do you mean they knew about your ASD and did not fix it? I did not know about mine and when it was found I had to have several ablations first before it was fixed. The ablation for Afib worked and the Afib has not come back. The ablations for the PVCs have not worked and I am going next week to the University of Penn. to have another ablation that I hope works. Either way I have to stop taking amodarone. Wish me luck. I have not seen this doctor before. My heart doctor thinks he is very good. My GP thinks Penn is great so maybe I can get out from under all these beats for a few of the years I might have left. It will take many months for the amodarone to get out of my body. I am not sure it ever get out of my eyes. It is terrible stuff DO NOT TAKE IT! I should have told my doctor no I would not try it but I did not think I was going to be on it this long and the really awful thing is that it is not stopping the extra beats.
Hi,
Sorry if I wasn’t clear about my time frame. We are born with these holes and most don’t get diagnosed until their 30s. The new thought is that all holes should be repaired when found or symptoms first appear. If not, repair by age 25. This is from 2014. 2013 recommended that all ASDs be repaired by 40 years of age. So even one year showed such advancement. Often doctors allow a few months if found as infant for development. Occasionally, there is the hope that the hole is small enough to close on its own. Every case, as every doctor, is different.
My hole became a big problem in my 30s but I had symptoms in early childhood of passing out. Making excuses was everyone’s justification for my health, including my own! This appears to be a common problem with heart problems. They can present in many ways that are not always the expected.
Well said Linda. Glad you had a nice time and that you are "looking good!" Have a great summer!