RobThatsMe
Well-known member
Hi Everyone,
The 7 year itch… I sure have it! No not that one! It’s another SPRING! Let the good times roll and take on some more of those experiences called life!
It was 7 years ago today that I was rushed to the hospital and had 6 hours of emergency surgery with only a 3 to 6% chance of surviving it. It seems like a long, long time ago these days. For the most part, I am living my life as active as I did prior to my dissection.
Yeah, I think twice before taking on some more rigorous, or risky activities, and I may take a little less aggressive approach .. but none the less, I’ll mostly go on and participate in the adventure at hand.
My dissection has remained stable, (knock on a PC), since my surgery, and I have done and seen things that I never would have imagined doing in my life over the last 7 years.
The only change in my health has been the occasional episodes of A-Fib and A-Flutter. Sometimes I can come out of it on my own, and on other occasions a quick trip to the ER and some intravenous Cardizem, (Diltiazem),, gets me back to a normal rhythm. Except that is, for the last time on Sept 11th, when it didn’t do the trick and I had to be cardio-verted. I think the fear of the process was the worst part; the actual event was painless, and I woke-up in 15 min as good a new. I was off the Germany the next morning!
This site has been an amazing part of my healing process. Talking with others in similar situations, gaining advice, sharing experiences, and becoming more knowledgeable in my personal health issues which assisted me with questions for my doctors, were all provided to me from this site. Thanks Hank for the vision of starting this wonderful place.
I can recall how at first I was so concerned about even the slightest variation in my INR levels, panicking, calling the doctor and asking them to adjust my Coumadin. Now, I realize that there is a range that is tolerable, and self-adjustments to this medication is not rocket science, and can become an easy, and non panicky type process. Home testing was first brought to my attention from this site, and QAS helped me procure my home testing unit. I also, at first, had all the fears of “mortality rates”, and life expectancy. My vascular surgeon would call me at home and help me with some good advice. He said” Don’t worry so much about what happened… Go out and start to enjoy yourself again”. Since the doctors really could not tell me what caused my health issue, other than that it was a congenital connective tissue disorder, (marfans and other known ones were ruled out), my doctor also said, that I could spend a whole lot of money trying to find out why, but when it was all said and done, there really wasn’t a cure to reverse what has been done. (My dissection runs from my aortic valve all the way down to just above my left kneecap.) WHEW! I was shocked to see that the first time he showed me my CT.
I also don't think I could have recovered as quickly as I did without all the support and help from my wife. Boy... she went through a lot with me. I had so many mood swings and depressed days for months after my surgery.
Anyway.. Just wanted to say hello to everyone who was here on the site going through all these experiences with me, and also a big hello to all those that are new to the site. There is a wealth of information and friendship here… don’t be afraid to use it. Ask your questions and use the "Search" options - It will be like breaking into Fort Knox and letting you have so much information from all of the past postings in various topics and questions.
Tonight .. My celebration will be a few German beers, and perhaps a shot of whiskey. My toast to life!
Wishing you all good health,
Rob
The 7 year itch… I sure have it! No not that one! It’s another SPRING! Let the good times roll and take on some more of those experiences called life!
It was 7 years ago today that I was rushed to the hospital and had 6 hours of emergency surgery with only a 3 to 6% chance of surviving it. It seems like a long, long time ago these days. For the most part, I am living my life as active as I did prior to my dissection.
Yeah, I think twice before taking on some more rigorous, or risky activities, and I may take a little less aggressive approach .. but none the less, I’ll mostly go on and participate in the adventure at hand.
My dissection has remained stable, (knock on a PC), since my surgery, and I have done and seen things that I never would have imagined doing in my life over the last 7 years.
The only change in my health has been the occasional episodes of A-Fib and A-Flutter. Sometimes I can come out of it on my own, and on other occasions a quick trip to the ER and some intravenous Cardizem, (Diltiazem),, gets me back to a normal rhythm. Except that is, for the last time on Sept 11th, when it didn’t do the trick and I had to be cardio-verted. I think the fear of the process was the worst part; the actual event was painless, and I woke-up in 15 min as good a new. I was off the Germany the next morning!
This site has been an amazing part of my healing process. Talking with others in similar situations, gaining advice, sharing experiences, and becoming more knowledgeable in my personal health issues which assisted me with questions for my doctors, were all provided to me from this site. Thanks Hank for the vision of starting this wonderful place.
I can recall how at first I was so concerned about even the slightest variation in my INR levels, panicking, calling the doctor and asking them to adjust my Coumadin. Now, I realize that there is a range that is tolerable, and self-adjustments to this medication is not rocket science, and can become an easy, and non panicky type process. Home testing was first brought to my attention from this site, and QAS helped me procure my home testing unit. I also, at first, had all the fears of “mortality rates”, and life expectancy. My vascular surgeon would call me at home and help me with some good advice. He said” Don’t worry so much about what happened… Go out and start to enjoy yourself again”. Since the doctors really could not tell me what caused my health issue, other than that it was a congenital connective tissue disorder, (marfans and other known ones were ruled out), my doctor also said, that I could spend a whole lot of money trying to find out why, but when it was all said and done, there really wasn’t a cure to reverse what has been done. (My dissection runs from my aortic valve all the way down to just above my left kneecap.) WHEW! I was shocked to see that the first time he showed me my CT.
I also don't think I could have recovered as quickly as I did without all the support and help from my wife. Boy... she went through a lot with me. I had so many mood swings and depressed days for months after my surgery.
Anyway.. Just wanted to say hello to everyone who was here on the site going through all these experiences with me, and also a big hello to all those that are new to the site. There is a wealth of information and friendship here… don’t be afraid to use it. Ask your questions and use the "Search" options - It will be like breaking into Fort Knox and letting you have so much information from all of the past postings in various topics and questions.
Tonight .. My celebration will be a few German beers, and perhaps a shot of whiskey. My toast to life!
Wishing you all good health,
Rob
