Not ME!

To quote one of my favorite Toby Keith songs…”I wanna talk about ME…ME…ME”! I’ve had hypertension (high blood pressure) for well over a year. My Internist in Ohio had ME taking a handful of pills daily in an attempt to lower my blood pressure. It just wasn’t working for ME…I was tired all day…I had headaches…I just didn’t feel good. I decided to get an appointment with a young (not Doogie Howser, MD young…but young), highly respected Cardiologist who practiced in the Texas Medical Center. I was POSITIVE that he could just tweak my medications…maybe even discontinue most of them…and I’d feel like a pup again!

It’s only takes about 45 minutes to get to the TMC from the Waterford Harbor Marina where we live on Prime Time…our Selene Ocean Trawler. If you’ve been reading my blog, you know the story…worked hard for years in a highly stressful environment…recently took an early retirement (no kids to send to Harvard or Notre Dame!)…sold everything…bought a boat…dodged 2 hurricanes moving it to Texas…and live aboard with our two cats while preparing to do some extended cruising…WHEW…big year!

My wife Anneke and our dear friend Sharon Wilson are both Registered Nurses. They monitor my health like I’m a full-time Intensive Care Unit patient! Both were ecstatic when the day came for my appointment. I had worked with this group of physicians extensively in my “old life”, so it was kind of a homecoming for ME…only different!  I knew all of the doctors…the receptionist…the administrator…the nurses and technicians…everyone! This time…I was the patient…ME!

After the warm welcome and hugs all around…it started. Weigh in…TILT! Blood pressure…HIGH! Medications…not enough room on the form! Finally my physician comes into the room and we chat. He reviews my medications and immediately wants to make some changes. YES! I knew this would be a breeze…a quick fix…a snap! He then asked ME when I had taken my last stress test. I gulped and said… “Never”!

Fast forward one week…same place…same people. I’m back for blood work, a nuclear study, and a stress test. I’m a little anxious about all of this, but I know that I have a very good family medical history. Your gene pool plays a HUGE part in whether or not you get heart disease! I make it through all of the tests OK. The plan is for ME to come back in a week to discuss everything with my physician. I’m more than a little anxious, but several days pass with no calls from their office telling ME to get to the closest emergency room as soon as possible! That’s a GOOD sign!

Finally it’s time to meet again with my doctor. My blood work looked fine…nothing that losing weight and getting on a lipid statin wouldn’t fix. My cholesterol levels…while OK…could be lower. I’m feeling pretty good about everything. Then…very directly and matter-of-factly…my doctor tells ME he has some concern with my stress test and nuclear study. Without getting too technical…I had an abnormal heart rhythm  and some morphology changes during the stress test. The nuclear study photos also showed some irregularities on the back of my heart. He said that he would like to do a cardiac catheterization on ME! He doesn’t think that I have a real problem, but there’s no way of knowing with this invasive study. I’ve seen thousands of these procedures over the years…on OTHER people…Not ME! When I’m finally able to speak, I ask if we need to go to the Cath Lab right away. He says “no” and we schedule ME for the procedure one week later.

I’m freakin’ out! It’s time for ME to head to The Methodist Hospital and check in for a heart catheterization procedure…YIKES! The Methodist is one of the premier institutions in the world, and its DeBakey Heart Center is the BEST. I’d recommend this place to anyone…but this is ME! Anneke and I valet park and take the elevator up to the tenth floor to check ME in. It’s 10:30 AM. I’m given a beautiful room…the prerequisite gown to put on (snaps to the back…of course)…and wait for my turn.  Sharon…who was seeing patients at the Methodist… shows up and we do a crossword puzzle. My ex-partner Ben Raymond…who was also working there…stops by to wish ME well. Ditto for Lori Buschmann…another friend working here today. Even with all of this support, I’m getting even more anxious.

Finally…its time for ME to be transported to the Heart Catheterization lab for the procedure. Once there, I slide over onto the table…have a blood pressure cuff and ECG electrodes attached…get my groin shaved and prepped…and wait for the doctor. He comes in….asks how I’m doing…hears the fear in my voice…and orders 2mg’s of IV Versed  for ME! Nice doctor…

Well…thanks to the Versed…I was oblivious to most of my 30 minute heart catheterization. My next recollection was my doctor giving ME the great news…my coronary arteries were 100% clean. What a relief! My hypertension is being much better controlled with the new medications. Now, if I just continue to exercise, eat better and lose some weight all my cruising dreams can still come true. After all…It’s all about ME…ME…ME!