I don't know why I was so nervous for this morning, but I was. I woke up at 6:15 so we could get to the hospital by 7. We got there bright and early, checked in, then waited for the nurse to come get me and take me to the cath lab.
The nurse, Rhonda, came and got me and took me back where I had to get undressed and put on the hospital gown. Then I sat on the bed and waited. She asked me a few questions, then tried to get an IV hooked up. She also had to draw some blood. Holy cow. I haven't had a needle hurt me so bad. After digging for a bit she got it enough to draw some blood, but it wasn't in well enough for the IV. One of the other nurses came over and he poked my other arm, which also hurt, but he was able to get it in fairly quickly. With my skin being so tight, and my veins small, it's a little bit harder to do that kind of stuff.
Dr. Saul, the doctor who would be performing the procedure came in and talked with me a little able the procedure. He was very nice and made me feel a little at ease. He said that my echo results were borderline, but sometimes they underestimate or overestimate the pressure. The right hear cath would get a better reading of the pressures. Once he left, the had me sign the consent form and we were off.
They wheeled me to the room where the procedure would take place, where I was greeted by a few more nurses. They were all super nice and made me feel a little more at ease. The guy nurse talked to me a bit more about what was going to happen, and was just friendly, and funny. He told me about their pre-surgery rituals (slapping the butts of the ones who "scrubbed"), and joked with me about the doctor and how he was like 800 years old, so he'd done this a few times before, and his buns of steel. It was really great seeing people like him do a job he loves.
They transferred me from me bed to the table (that was fun. I love not being able to lift my head and get myself comfortable). Then they had me turn my head to the left so they could prep the insertion site. I don't know why they chose the neck instead of the groin, but it worked. They placed this 'tent' over my face and neck, and I stayed that way for a little while so they could finish with the other prep. There's something about not being able to see what's going on around you, and you hear things like "blade" and "I think I broke that" that can be kind of nerve wracking. But I survived.
Finally Dr. Saul came over and got started. He pinched my neck then inserted yet another needle to numb the area. Once that was over I really didn't feel anything. It was kind of neat because there was a big screen where I could see what he was actually doing. I could see the catheter going around my heart, and I could also feel it when he pushed it in further. It didn't hurt, but was a really weird sensation. Kind of cool to be honest. It's really weird to think that they can get that close to my heart and I didn't feel a thing. After they got the images and readings they need (took maybe 5-10 minutes), they had me lay still so they could remove the cath. The other nurse applied pressure around the insertion for a bit, then bandaged me up, cleaned me up, and that was it.
They wheeled me back to my room where they had me lay there for about 3 hours to make sure there was not any bleeding. I started coughing within the first half hour of being back, which apparently caused a little bleeding, so she kept me a little longer to make sure it was all okay. I really just laid there. I tried to fall asleep, but my head was hurting from my pony tail, and like I said, I can't really lift my head to adjust, so it was a little awkward, but I survived. I got to have like ten warm blankets, which are the absolute best.
Dr. Saul came in shortly after I was done, and let me know that the pressures in my heart are normal, so that's a relief. Once the three hours were up, my nurse called Greg to come get me, and wheeled me out to the car. It was a simple procedure, just time consuming. The IV's were the worst, and the warm blankets the best. Check off another procedure I hope I never have to have again!
The nurse, Rhonda, came and got me and took me back where I had to get undressed and put on the hospital gown. Then I sat on the bed and waited. She asked me a few questions, then tried to get an IV hooked up. She also had to draw some blood. Holy cow. I haven't had a needle hurt me so bad. After digging for a bit she got it enough to draw some blood, but it wasn't in well enough for the IV. One of the other nurses came over and he poked my other arm, which also hurt, but he was able to get it in fairly quickly. With my skin being so tight, and my veins small, it's a little bit harder to do that kind of stuff.
Dr. Saul, the doctor who would be performing the procedure came in and talked with me a little able the procedure. He was very nice and made me feel a little at ease. He said that my echo results were borderline, but sometimes they underestimate or overestimate the pressure. The right hear cath would get a better reading of the pressures. Once he left, the had me sign the consent form and we were off.
They wheeled me to the room where the procedure would take place, where I was greeted by a few more nurses. They were all super nice and made me feel a little more at ease. The guy nurse talked to me a bit more about what was going to happen, and was just friendly, and funny. He told me about their pre-surgery rituals (slapping the butts of the ones who "scrubbed"), and joked with me about the doctor and how he was like 800 years old, so he'd done this a few times before, and his buns of steel. It was really great seeing people like him do a job he loves.
They transferred me from me bed to the table (that was fun. I love not being able to lift my head and get myself comfortable). Then they had me turn my head to the left so they could prep the insertion site. I don't know why they chose the neck instead of the groin, but it worked. They placed this 'tent' over my face and neck, and I stayed that way for a little while so they could finish with the other prep. There's something about not being able to see what's going on around you, and you hear things like "blade" and "I think I broke that" that can be kind of nerve wracking. But I survived.
Finally Dr. Saul came over and got started. He pinched my neck then inserted yet another needle to numb the area. Once that was over I really didn't feel anything. It was kind of neat because there was a big screen where I could see what he was actually doing. I could see the catheter going around my heart, and I could also feel it when he pushed it in further. It didn't hurt, but was a really weird sensation. Kind of cool to be honest. It's really weird to think that they can get that close to my heart and I didn't feel a thing. After they got the images and readings they need (took maybe 5-10 minutes), they had me lay still so they could remove the cath. The other nurse applied pressure around the insertion for a bit, then bandaged me up, cleaned me up, and that was it.
They wheeled me back to my room where they had me lay there for about 3 hours to make sure there was not any bleeding. I started coughing within the first half hour of being back, which apparently caused a little bleeding, so she kept me a little longer to make sure it was all okay. I really just laid there. I tried to fall asleep, but my head was hurting from my pony tail, and like I said, I can't really lift my head to adjust, so it was a little awkward, but I survived. I got to have like ten warm blankets, which are the absolute best.
Dr. Saul came in shortly after I was done, and let me know that the pressures in my heart are normal, so that's a relief. Once the three hours were up, my nurse called Greg to come get me, and wheeled me out to the car. It was a simple procedure, just time consuming. The IV's were the worst, and the warm blankets the best. Check off another procedure I hope I never have to have again!
