This week started the last day of April 2006. Mary Lou called and asked if I would swap Adoration hour with her. Perfect, I would take her 4:00 PM time slot and she would take my 10:00 AM at the precise hour I was scheduled to have an Heart Catherization. I went to sleep contented that things were falling in to place and I might make my Ireland trip on May 18 after all.
Monday morning the Cardiologist’s nurse called and said the procedure was canceled because the lab tests indicated I was anemic. What is that! She said call your Primary Doctor. That is easier said than done. I jumped thru the hoops: call Advice Nurse, leave word, Nurse calls back, she will give Doctor message, surprise, Doctor calls back and tells me that we have to find out what is causing the anemia. He’ll see if he can fit me in for an emergency Colonoscopy. Bad news! They think some kind of cancer might be the cause. A GI person calls and reports they have me scheduled at Northside Hospital for a 12:30PM procedure and be there at 11:30 and oh yeah you know you can’t eat anything after midnight tonight and only liquids Tuesday and Wednesday. Also you have to drink a gallon of Colyte, a laxative between 6:00 PM and 10:00 PM Tuesday. Also again “Don’t forget to bring someone with you to drive you home”. Bad day. Should I call brother Bob and tell him the Ireland trip looks doubtful for me. No, I don’t know what is going on, I’ll wait.
Tuesday, nothing to eat, but it gets worse at 6:00 PM. When I was college age there was a craze that said a person couldn’t drink an ounce of beer per minute for sixty minutes. This was a little like that but Colyte is not beer and beer is not a laxative. This was bad, bad. Eight ounces every 15 minutes and after 30 minutes the “john” got involved. At 10:00 PM I said I had had enough and was quitting after I had finished 80%. Mom said she didn’t blame me but she didn’t think I had finished 75%. I went to bed feeling the worst of the colonoscopy was over.
Wednesday, Mom got me to Northside Hospital on time. I checked in while Mom parked and noticed we got a free parking ticket. Very good, Mom hates to pay for parking (water and ice too). They started wiring me up and I remembered I hadn’t told Mom about the free parking ticket and she would be some kind of upset if she paid for parking when I had a free ticket. I told myself over and over “Remember the free ticket”. They wheeled me in the procedure room and the Doctor said he was going to do an Endoscopy also. I told him I would gag like crazy when they put that thing down my throat.” I gag when I go to the dentist.” He said he did too and not to worry. The last thing I remember was worrying about him doing the mouth thing first and not vice versa. (Jeb later told me they had two instruments, but I didn’t see but one and Jeb wasn’t there). I woke up talked a little bit and Mom drove me home where she fixed me what my heart and stomach desired, Eggs, bacon, grits, bagel and coffee. She told me the nurse got upset with me after the procedure because I kept saying “Make sure you get the free parking ticket”. The good news was he didn’t find any cancer, but the bad news was I still had anemia and the Ireland date was approaching.
Thursday was a frustrating day I called three Doctor offices to find out what was next on the agenda. No luck. The nurses said the report was not available.
Friday morning the Cardiologist’s called and said I should get my blood checked. This puzzled me somewhat because I knew the colonoscopy didn’t cure my anemia. As soon as I left the house unbeknownst to me Mom got into the act. She called the doctors’ nurses and told them I had been planning a trip to Ireland for over a year and three other people were depending on me to go. I received a call in the waiting room and Mom said I had an appointment at 11:40 with Dr. Simpson, my primary doctor. He had already had a conversation with the Cardiologist and they had a plan. If I still had anemia I would get a blood transfusion. As it turned out the lab tests revealed my anemia was still present. Dr. Simpson arranged for the transfusion to take place Saturday AM.
Saturday at 7:55 AM I drove into the parking garage and got my ticket. The location was on the 11th floor in a new building adjacent to the hospital. The facilities were first rate and a nice nurse named Nicole took very good care of me as I had two pints of O- dripped into my system. It was all over by 11:45 and I left at 12:15. Surprise, surprise, the parking booth was closed and I didn’t have to pay. I wished Mom had been with me , she would have appreciated that.
The week is up I’ll see if I can cut the grass then see how I feel. I thank all those who prayed for me. I know there were a lot, from Fiona to Mrs. Deckbar and many in between. I thank God that he answered the prayers and now allows me to seek His will for me for the rest of my days. Amen
So the shortness of breath was just caused by anemia? Or will you still need the procedure re-done? It sounds like your doctors really want something to be wrong with your G-I tract, that’s what they always test first.
I hope you will get to go on your trip. If you can’t go, I’ll come up there and do cross word puzzles with you. That would be almost as good.