The visiting nurse was satisfied with how I've been, except that she believes I have been pushing myself too much in my AM & PM walks. She'd like me to cut back the number of circuits around the halls of our floor. Since she's the pro, I bow to her judgement. I suppose I ought to have thought about that possibility myself, except that I feel I ( Read more... )

My first day completely alone during the working hours has gone well so far. I had my breakfast & lunch, exercised a little, watched some Dr. Who, & took a long nap, which is probably why things went so well. I figure I spent about 2 to 2.5 hours asleep during the day. While enjoying "A Town Callled Mercy," I found our PC's speakers going on the ( Read more... )

So far, today has been going better than yesterday or the day before. As you might recall from my remarks when I visited the surgeon, I can dress myself in garments that render me no different from any other adult, now. Today, I bought the clue, & put on a turtleneck instead of a button-down. Elizabeth & I had brunch at the Hyattsville outlet of ( Read more... )

More like mistakes, really. The first mistake took place last night, when I wanted to see if I could eat Singapore Rice Noodles without effect, as they were among my favorites before my diagnosis. Answer: No. The second mistake took place today, when I wanted to see how well I could get along without my pain pills. Well, I can, albeit with ( Read more... )

A couple of notes, now that it's been a week & a day since I left the bed at Suburban Hospital ( Read more... )

Today, I had my last stitches, which held together the holes for my drainage tubes, removed. It was easy & quick-less than a bee sting's worth of speedy pain apiece-but I'd worried & worried about what they'd be like. I confused one of the drainage tube hole's long thin scab for some of the thread, which would've made it both embedded & long ( Read more... )

I tried on Sunday to catch up to the news, & as a result reached my endurance limits. I also discovered why I've got those awesome painkillers, now that I'm at home: My sleep habits have improved. I can truly rest now, & that makes Elizabeth very happy, as you can imagine ( Read more... )

Some of the things that they warned me about here are really happening. Among other things, my sleep habits continue to be fractured, to put it kindly. I've used that to good effect, by clearing out my home inbox (800+ messages down to a little under 200). On the bright side, I'm no longer paranoid about the cold, & being back in the apartment with ( Read more... )

...and that is a surprise to me. Five days ago, I was put under, cut open, my heart stilled and removed, then sliced open. Dr. Siegenthaler, the surgeon, saw that my aortic valve was punctured with tiny holes, and had hanging bits of tissue keeping the valve from closing.He made a critical decision: He carefully cut flaps of tissue from my ( Read more... )

Elizabeth & I are in the pre-operation waiting room. Her folks are crashed out at the hotel. I'll be taken for the pre-operation procedures in an hour. My operation itself will take place at 11:30.

I couldn't sleep at all last night, but that's not exactly important. I'll have plenty of time to sleep later today.