Big Setback, Holding Pattern, Some progress

From my last post, I came into the new year with a plan.

That plan fell apart quickly when I found my shortness of breath accompanied by nausea and fatigue, enough that I left work around 5pm and endured a 2 hour commute to get home.  I slept horribly that night, and though Marie was able to help some with backrubs and such, when I was unable to sleep I was also struggling to breathe. I upset her by saying I slept both better AND worse; she couldn’t accept the “worse” part, no matter how I tried to explain it.

The events of the next few days helped explain it to her.

I called in sick and called our doctor. She gave me a referral to a pulmonologist since i have a bipap machine, and after listening to my lungs sent me to get an x-ray. I got in the same day, and after having it done headed home.

The next day I got the x-ray results back, along with a terse “congestive heart failure.” (note to doctors – don’t pawn this sort of news off on a phone call from a secretary.  Blood test results? Sure. Hey, your life just took a dramatic turn for the worse? NEVER. I was too scared at the time to be pissed, but when it took all day to hear back from her, I was increasingly upset at the way that bombshell dropped.  I had questions, which her assistant wasn’t equipped to handle, and the delay in response was maddening.

I was given two referrals – another to the pulmonologist with a bit more urgency, and to a cardiologist. I got lucky and they were able to squeeze me in that day, probably so I didn’t blow up my heart with anxiety. The doctor was reassuring and professional; the news wasn’t great – atrial fibrillation – but better than the initial diagnosis, if only in jargon. I was prescribed a trio of medications and some coupons for taking most of the sting out of the name brand blood thinner, potentially dropping at least $100 from the monthly cost. The others were actually free under our insurance.

In addition to the new drugs, I was scheduled for an echocardiogram and told to stop some of the meds and supplements i had been taking, including the Vyvanse.  So at the moment, the adhd is on its own.

I saw the pulmonologist the next week. The  near-week on the new drugs had had a good effect. I’d weighed 506 at the cardiologist, and one of the drugs I’d been given was a water pill. I was down nearly 20 pounds a week later. (I was just under 480 this morning.)  I took a breathing test, which was normal, but my heart rate was still erratic and elevated. The pulmonologist and cardiologist conferred, and my heart prescription was doubled. I was also put on the list for another sleep study.

The increased dose of the heart meds has been a rough adjustment. On the one hand, I found myself able to sleep through the night for the first time in forever. On the other, I felt sluggish and slow brained. Working from home didn’t work out, so I focused on napping and adjusting to the new dosage.

I’m waiting for the results of the echocardiogram, which I hope I’ll get this week in my follow up with the cardiologist. The water pills have helped a lot with the bloating in my legs and the feeling of waterlogged lungs. The need to fix the diet has led to some positive changed as well. I’m eating a lot more protein again, and I’ve had only two glasses of well-iced ginger ale since my pledge to curtail soda.  Dropping the 26 pounds has made several things easier, including the seatbelt in the car and tying shoes. I’m not quite down to the low I’d hit just after Ireland, but I’m most of the way there. It’s good that with the near-total halt in exercise, the nutrition changes have been serving me well.

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