continued…
After a five day period in hospital I return home with a selection of medicines, a weary body and a mind of mixed emotions. I have a collection of British Heart Foundation leaflets covering the various issues/solutions to my new problem. These include detailed guides to angiograms, surgery, reducing cholesterol, medication and diet. There are many books in the series and they are really informative. I also have a guide written by the local health authority explaining the various phases of rehab and am told I will be receiving a letter in due course to confirm a angiogram. I will also get a visit from a rehab nurse to see how I’m coping.
Despite the trauma. I actually felt generally okay. Slight pressure on the chest and tired, physically and emotionally, but not bedridden. Guidelines for week one and two are quite strict and very rest based. 10mins walk per day, no lifting, no using arms above head when showering, no work, no sex. Basically chill, do bugger all. The weird thing is that you cannot see any damage. And the best way to describe how to react is consider the heart like a broken arm or leg. It’s put in plaster and you avoid bending it until it mends. In a way the heart is the same, but you cannot see that you’re “bending” it. I’m glad I had this analogy or I would probably be back in hospital by now.
My company had placed strict no-go restrictions on my access to work, as they knew I’d be back in straight away! So TV called. It was a chance to watch lots and lots of TV. About five minutes of Jeremy Kyle made me realise how well I’d been protected from such stuff by working. So I relived some DVD moments. I watched the set of Planet of the Apes movies, Bang Bang Reeves and Mortimer, Monkey Trousers, first to third series of Peep Show and mixed this with some History channel, Dave repeats and a bit of reading.
Time actually flew by. Each day I spent 10mins walking around the house until I felt comfortable going outside. The first few days outdoors (freezing cold) brought back the pain I’d experienced prior to the heart attack. I couldn’t determine if this was angina or the next stage of early warning signs The a would determine the state of my heart so the consultants would have a clear idea of the next stage. A letter came through to let me know that my angiogram would be done on 24th December.
to be continued…
