A Bump In the Road

Ah, Sunday... We had an entire day planned with fun things outside with the girls, a little grocery shopping, maybe some ice cream after dinner...

But something happened.

I got a phone call from my dad around 9:30 in the morning.

Mom (Dianne) had a heart attack this morning.

My knees almost buckled as he proceeded to tell me the few details he could muster.  He said they were still in the ER, and he didn't have many answers yet.

I immediately made arrangements for the girls to head to their Bumpa & Gwi Gwi's for a few hours.  I called both of my brothers to let them know what had happened, and we left for the hospital.

This time seemed different.  My dad seemed a little more "out of it", like he needed me.

When we got to the hospital, I gave hugs and surveyed her well-being.  She seemed ok.  She was unable to move, they were making her lie still until they determined it was okay for her to move or sit up.

I started asking questions.  This is what happened:

Last night she had been suffering from some pretty severe joint pain.  Severe enough that it brought her to tears.  She took some pain meds and went to bed.  When she woke this morning, her knees were still in a lot of pain.

They were drinking coffee this morning and throwing the frisbee for the dog.  Suddenly, Mom said that her chest was starting to hurt.  It got to the point that Dad felt the need to have her checked out by an EMT, so he called their neighbor, who is a firefighter for their city.  When he didn't answer, dad left to go over to his house.  As he walked out the front door, his neighbor was also, coming toward dad's house.  Dad explained what was going on, and the neighbor immediately called it in as a Priority 1. 

When the EMT crew showed up, they checked her out and determined she needed to be taken to the hospital.  They put her in the ambulance, my dad followed, and off they were.

She had just had an EKG this past Tuesday in preparation for her tumor surgery, and was completely cleared for surgery.

But on the way to hospital, she went into v-tach (Ventricular tachycardia - rapid heartbeat) and had to be shocked.

When they got to the hospital, she had many tests.  Of course, my dad was swift about letting them know about her brain tumor, and the upcoming surgery.  That obviously changed their course of treatment for the heart attack.

Initially, they were thinking her brain surgery would have to be postponed, that she would need stints placed in or near her heart and that she had major heart issues that have been overlooked.

However, all of the tests came back normal... boring.

No blockages, no stints, NOTHING.

They feel it was maybe some plaque that had broken loose, got stuck, and passed through.  They're not really sure, because nothing showed up in the tests, but they feel there was a blockage at some point that passed.

We thought maybe the stress on her body from the tumor had contributed to her heart attack.

Either way, they admitted her for the night.  She will be in the hospital until tomorrow.

At this point, we were told no stints are necessary, no heart surgery, Asprin for medication as she can't be on any blood thinners, and her surgery is still on for Friday.

She's a little cranky - understandably, tired and really ready to go home.

We could really use your prayers at this time.  We are hoping for no more hiccups before her tumor surgery.  Please pray for a smooth week.  Please pray for healing and peace for her.

Please pray that my dad continues to be her rock.  Please also pray that he is able to balance this situation, his full time job, the added responsibilities at home - and that he is blessed with the help that he needs right when he needs it.

I thank you for your thoughts and prayers sincerely - we couldn't get through this without them.

This week will be crazy, long, calm, short, whatever... it will just be.  Friday is such a big day - we just want to get her to that point.  Then we will hopefully have more answers, and hopefully have more of an understanding of what we're dealing with.

I'll keep you posted.  And I'll put this post up a couple of times so that everyone who needs or wants to see it can - no matter what time of day it is.

Till next time...