09:11 3/10/2004 Tard builds strangely Pretty boring day today so far. Waiting for a decision, I guess. Pacemaker or no pacemaker? And, most importantly, when? Being me, I want to get it done as soon as I can so I can get out of here. Getting a pacemaker, though, will entail being in for at least another day, though, while they get it tuned up and tweaked. I did get a good rest last night, got awoken a coupla times for vitals but I went right back to sleep both times. Then about 07:30, an old friend came in and did an EKG. My heart rate was 37 at that time, and I was running almost exclusively in bigemini. 19:55... I got my release papers, which state that I'm not supposed to life anything over ten pounds for the next week. This is to protect the puncture of my femoral artery, which is a lot sorer this time than it has been since my very first cath. Also yesterday, speaking of punctures, I asked for and received, dope when they were pulling the catheter. I did remember how much that hurt, and the extra dope was well worth it. I'm not really sure why they didn't use the quick method on me this time, I forgot to ask. I'll ask the cath lab people that tomorrow, when I pick up my pictures, which I hope that they remembered to save for me. Anyway, came home and pretty much did nothing. Called my boss, and they're covering call for me this weekend, that's really nice of them, but I've always known that I work with a really nice bunch of people. I talked with Dr. Meyer, and he definitely recommends a pacemaker. Dr Katz will put it in for me, and it'll be a defibrillator one, it'll both regulate the heartbeat and also watch for V-tach; if it detects a run of PVCs, it'll shock me. Cool, huh? Something to look forward to. At this point, I really know very little about pacemakers, but I will be finding out all I can in the next few days. Dr. Katz's schedule was full for today and tomorrow, so it might be Friday or Monday or even later next week before it gets put in. And I don't really know if I'm looking forward to that or not. I don't really mind the surgical part of it at all, it's the afterwards that I'm concerned about, such as when I will be able to go back to work, if there are going to be any restrictions, stuff like that. The surgical part is pretty simple, they make a subdermal pocket below your clavicle, expose the subclavian vein, poke the leads down into the heart, check and make sure that they're in the right place, put the pacemaker in and sew you back up and send you away. That's the way it used to be, anyway, and I don't think the procedure could have changed much in the last fifteen years. The pacemakers have gotten smaller and much more sophisticated, though. I talked to JD tonight, he and Tyler will be coming up next Friday and staying for several days, I'm really looking forward to seeing them. JD is without internet access right now, though, poor kid, and Tyler just barely has it, from what JD said. Tyler is gonna be so happy to get his computer! Said computer is really very pretty, too, with neon lights, no less. I got them for free, since the guy lost the order after I'd paid for it. He didn't want me to give him a bad note on eBay, heh, so he tossed in some goodies. That's about it for tonight, this day has worn me out, I think that it's still that dope runnin' 'round my veins.
Laying abed does count
if it's enforced.
I got relaesed around 14:00 or so, the dope must still be running around in my brain, dammit, clarity of thinking has *not* been the hallmark of this day.