A Worthwhile Entry

Written by Mike on August 18th, 2010

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The winners of the poetry book drawing, hosted by Lee Ann Thill over at The Butter Compartment, have been announced.   My congratulations to the winners, Virtue and Sherry .

While my entry wasn’t one of the chosen two, I’m still glad that I took the time to put it together and submit it.   I had a lot of fun making it, so it was definitely worthwhile.

Interesting Horoscope

Written by Mike on August 17th, 2010

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I was looking through the newspaper this morning, and came across this little gem in the horoscope section.  While I’m not a big follower of them nor a real believer, I do occasionally come across one that has a real air of truth to it.  This is one of them:

“Aries (March 21-April 19). -  Because of the unique circumstances of your recent years, you have information to impart. You’re a teacher, and the world is your classroom, filled with students – some willing, some difficult. You’ll make an impression on all.”

I’ve certainly had some interesting things going on in my life in the last couple of years, and I definitely have a thing or two to say about it.  Whether I’m really teaching anyone anything, well, that’s debatable some days.  I certainly hope that someone is listening to,  er… reading what I have to say, and that they are getting something useful out of it.  And if not, well, that’s OK, too.

There’s a song lyric that goes “If I can help somebody as I pass along, then my living shall not be in vain.”  And if I help no one but myself by sharing my experiences, I’m still helping somebody. That definitely counts for something, because you can’t help someone else, until you’ve learned to help yourself.

I like to think I’m good at both.

Better Safe Than Sorry

Written by Mike on August 1st, 2010

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So, I ended up at the hospital again late last Saturday night after I started feeling pretty bad.  My heart was racing and my chest was hurting, I was having problems breathing and my blood pressure was sky high;  it was 156/109 when I checked it the first time, and even higher by the time I reached the hospital.

Now, I was rather familiar with those symptoms, as they are the exact same ones that landed me in the hospital in April 2009.  They are, in fact, some of the symptoms of a heart attack.  I was also aware that those symptoms could be brought on by digestive issues like severe acid reflux, because that’s what caused the problems I had last April.  So, I knew I was either having a heart attack or another reflux attack.  More importantly, though, I knew that there was no way to tell the difference between the two without medical tests.  And given that I have congestive heart failure anyway, I couldn’t leave anything to chance.  So, I did the smart thing, and went to the emergency room.

Upon arriving and telling the desk nurse what was going on,  I was immediately wheeled to a room in the ER where they attached a blood pressure cuff to my arm, listened to my heart, did an EKG, and drew blood for enzyme tests that determine whether a heart attack has occurred. They also brought in a portable x-ray machine and took an picture of my chest.

In the time it took for the results of all the tests to come back, a nitroglycerin patch was placed on my chest to help bring my blood pressure down, and I saw the physician’s assistant and the ER doctor.  After a brief chat, the doctor went to call my cardiologist, and he in turn admitted me to the hospital, and said he’d see me the following afternoon.

In the back of my mind, I knew exactly what the cardiologist was going to say.  He’d want to do a heart catheterization to get a better idea as to what was going on with my heart.  And I was right about that.  While I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea, I knew that it had to be done, so I might as well go along with it.  So they took me down for the procedure around 5:00 p.m. Monday.

Honestly, the procedure itself wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.  I was awake through the whole thing, although they did give me a sedative to help me relax.  The worst part of the ordeal was recovery time after the heart cath was finished.  I was so stiff and sore after laying on my back for 6 hours it was not funny.  I’ve never enjoyed walking the halls of a hospital as much as I did when they finally let me get up either.  And as bad as that was, I’d have to say that the good news I got as a result of the procedure was more than worth it.

All of my coronary arteries looked good; there were no blockages whatsoever.  In fact, the doctor said things looked so good that I could stop taking the Plavix he’s had me on.  And the other bit of good news is that my heart has gotten stronger; it’s now pumping at 50%, which is what my doctor says is a normal level and the minimum that he wants to see.  AWEsome!

So, it turns out that it was yet another severe acid reflux attack that led me to the hospital.  And while that bothers me, the fact of the matter is that things could have gotten a lot worse if I hadn’t gone to the hospital.   With the reflux driving my blood pressure higher and higher, I could have very easily had a heart attack or stroke, and, well, you wouldn’t be reading this post.

Like the title says, Better Safe Than Sorry!

PS: Many thanks to all of those in the DOC who expressed their concerns, prayers, and well wishes last week.  I can’t tell you how much that meant to me, and how much it helped get me through.  Lots of love everyone!

A test drawing

Written by Mike on July 9th, 2010

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Decided to try my hand at drawing again late last night. It’s been years since I’ve done so. Diabetes and BG testing were on my mind, so this is what ended up on the paper. And that 188 mg/dl reading on the meter? That’s a real number from around 3:00 a.m. this morning.

Part of the motivation behind my drawing last night was the fact that Fort Wayne’s Three Rivers Festival is starting this weekend, and every year they host a chalk walk event, during which artists from all over the area gather downtown and draw pictures on the streets and sidewalks using various types of chalks. At the end, the pictures are judged, and prizes are awarded.  It’s a pretty cool event, and I’ve seen some great works of art there.

I got to thinking about the event, and what I would attempt to draw if I entered the contest.  Would I draw something whimsical and fictitious, or would I draw something more realistic and make a statement.  The more I thought about it, the more I was drawn to the later option.

What a great opportunity it would be to inject a little diabetes awareness into an event where it would be completely unexpected, and provide a little food for thought for those in attendance.  It’d be a great opportunity for promoting the diabetic online community, too.  I have another drawing in mind for that.

I guess I’m just looking at the big picture here (no pun intended), and trying to see what I might be able to do to expand awareness in my area.  This event would certainly be one way; maybe not this year, given the time frame, but certainly in the future.  Then again, who says it has to be this event, or even in my area.

Maybe my drawings could be transferred to t-shirts, posters, hats, etc… that could be sold to raise money for diabetes research.  Surely someone would buy one of those things.  Well, I can hope so, anyway.

And, you never know what you can do until you try.

A Day to Remember

Written by Mike on May 31st, 2010

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Remembering those who have served and those who are currently serving is what Memorial Day is all about.  This video is from 2006, and has a reference to Veterans Day at the end, but it is rather fitting for this day.  Today, I remember.