Tomorrow we leave for Mexico for a couple of weeks. I may not be back on the boards until we get home. I feel major withdrawal coming on!
It is a time of reflection too. Last year at this time I was newly diagnosed with rheumatic heart disease and as we left for Cancun I was just days past my first heart cath and my lower abdomen and thigh were black/purple. I was confused about what I was learning and I certainly didn't feel good. I used the time to rest and get over a respiratory infection that had really knocked me flat.
We usually go there for two weeks, come home for three weeks, and then go back for two more weeks. On our second trip there I noticed that I could no longer swim the length of the pool or do water aerobics without extreme shortness of breath and my heart really beating hard and fast.
In August, shortly before my valve replacement we went back down to our home away from home to relieve some of the stress of the upcoming surgery. This time I used a wheelchair in the airports.
Now, 4 and a half months post-op I am going down and am feeling so much better! No wheelchair for me this time! I have used the pool at our fitness center and I already know that I can swim again. I saw my cardiologist yesterday and my PCP today and both wished me a pleasant trip! I have no scheduled medical appointments until March! To me this is a little emotional as I have been feeling more than a little burned out lately.
So, if you don't hear from me for a little while don't worry as I will be sitting in the shade on our veranda! (No sun...still waiting on results of lip biopsy I had on Tuesday.....will deal with that only if necessary)
Adios
It is a time of reflection too. Last year at this time I was newly diagnosed with rheumatic heart disease and as we left for Cancun I was just days past my first heart cath and my lower abdomen and thigh were black/purple. I was confused about what I was learning and I certainly didn't feel good. I used the time to rest and get over a respiratory infection that had really knocked me flat.
We usually go there for two weeks, come home for three weeks, and then go back for two more weeks. On our second trip there I noticed that I could no longer swim the length of the pool or do water aerobics without extreme shortness of breath and my heart really beating hard and fast.
In August, shortly before my valve replacement we went back down to our home away from home to relieve some of the stress of the upcoming surgery. This time I used a wheelchair in the airports.
Now, 4 and a half months post-op I am going down and am feeling so much better! No wheelchair for me this time! I have used the pool at our fitness center and I already know that I can swim again. I saw my cardiologist yesterday and my PCP today and both wished me a pleasant trip! I have no scheduled medical appointments until March! To me this is a little emotional as I have been feeling more than a little burned out lately.
So, if you don't hear from me for a little while don't worry as I will be sitting in the shade on our veranda! (No sun...still waiting on results of lip biopsy I had on Tuesday.....will deal with that only if necessary)
Adios
