Wednesday, January 15, 2014

A scare, and maybe a wake-up call

A favorite picture of Larry.

Long story short, all is well.

Yesterday started out just another Tuesday. Layout day at the paper. A busy day, a long day, but a normal Tuesday.
When Larry called me a little before noon, I thought he was calling me to see if I was ready for lunch.
“You doing OK?” I asked, without even thinking about it.
“Well, I don’t know,” he said.
“What’s wrong?”
“I know it’s your busy day at work, but I think I need you to take me to the doctor,” he said.
He had been to the Y, walking on the track. He planned to walk for 45 minutes. During minute 44, he felt what he described as a “thump” around his heart, got dizzy and felt like he was going to pass out.
He was able to lean up against the wall, then sat down for a while before going home. He thought maybe he needed to see a doctor.
I rushed home.

A little background. Larry has had several episodes over the last few months where he felt weak and dizzy. Sometimes he felt pressure in his chest, but he thought it was his hiatal hernia and heartburn. He wouldn’t go see the doctor.
I knew that if he was asking me to take him to the doctor, he thought something was wrong. Which meant, to me, that something really might be wrong.

I insisted on taking him to the emergency room. There was no need to take the time to go see the doctor, I said.
Larry wouldn’t let me call EMS. And he didn’t want me to speed. Regardless of how fast I drove, though, I felt like the car was moving in slow motion.
I got him to Lynchburg General Hospital in Lynchburg, and they took him right back. They immediately hooked him up to a heart monitor and did an EKG, then blood work. Then, because he had been exercising when the episode happened, they had him do a stress test.
Everything came back normal.
They don’t know what the “thump” was. But his heart looks good.

On the way home, Larry said, “Well, I guess I shouldn’t have called you.”
“I’m glad you called me,” I said.
It’s much better to have something checked out and be nothing than to take a chance, I said.
I think Larry was most upset because he couldn’t go as long on the treadmill during the stress test as he thought he should have. He was out of shape.
But they put it on an incline, and the technician warned him ahead of time that it would be hard. They needed to get his heart rate up.
I told him that it was perhaps a good kind of wake-up call. He hadn’t been to the Y for a few months. He needed to exercise more for his health.

Larry is doing fine now. He’s watching one of his favorite TV shows, “Justified,” right now. Chase Bird sits on his lap, then jumps down and walks around, then jumps back up.
And me? I’m incredibly grateful for good test results.


Have you had any wake-up calls lately?

26 comments:

  1. Tina, first of all, this is a lovely photo of Larry! I am glad that Larry is O.K., and I think you absolutely did the right thing! Better safe than sorry.

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  2. Whew! But you did the right thing taking him to the ER. Hope all continues to go well. Peace.

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  3. Men.

    So glad they didn't find anything serious... xo

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  4. I'm glad everything was fine. Heart abnormalities are scary. Hopefully it was an isolated incident.

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  5. i think it is always best to go & get checked out when you feel concerned & worried bout a health issue(s). so important. glad to hear all is ok and i pray it will continue in good health too. ( :

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  6. how scary! glad it checked out ok!!

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  7. It's always always ALWAYS better to be safe than sorry. It's really good that he called you. Thank goodness all the tests turned out normal!

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  8. These kind of moments are not welcome, I am glad that Larry is okay and that he called you, that is important in my opinion, good for him!

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  9. Wow, glad you got him checked out. I hope he continues in good health.

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  10. i am glad it all checked out okay. still worrisome, though.

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  11. There are no two words you'd rather hear from a doc than "Everything's Fine." I am so grateful thinks are OK and that he both called you and had it checked. It's well and good to say "I could have waited to see how it goes," but it could have gone horribly wrong. He was wise and so were you. Sending blessings!

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  12. A phone call like that from my husband would've scared me, too. So glad it all checked out. Tell Larry not to overdo on the exercise. He's got to build up to a certain level, not go gangbusters on the first day. I hope that's all it was. :/

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  13. Thank goodness Tina. I'm so glad he went to the ER, did the tests and found his heart is in good shape! That is frightening, and i'm glad he called you. My husband hesitates to go to the doctor too. What is it about men sometimes??

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  14. Scary! I'm glad all is well. It might be helpful for him to wear a heart rate monitor when he exercises, to make sure he's not going over his target heart rate. Good for you for making sure he gets checked out!

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  15. Larry is the typical male. males neglect their health. You had urged him to go and get checked before. maybe now he will be a little more vigilant about his health.

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  16. Of course you did the right thing. So glad all is well.

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  17. Tina, I'm so glad everything turned out fine! You did the right thing. Better to be safe than sorry.

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  18. Whew, glad he is ok, sometimes those wake-up calls are mighty scary!

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  19. Oh I'm so glad he is ok! Those things are so frightening! Hugs.

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  20. So glad Larry is ok and that you could be with him.

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  21. i'm so glad he called you and i am so glad he is o.k.!! that's a great picture of him!!

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  22. First, Larry is Really Good looking . . . . (as in Super Nice picture.)
    Second, I'm So Glad it turned out alright.
    Third, I am glad you have each other - and you care for one another . . this is priceless.

    Love & Love,
    -g-

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  23. Oh gosh, what a scare alright! I'm glad he's okay.

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  24. Aging is not for sissies, that is for sure. I sure feel for you...my hubby has had episodes of a different sort....and it is not fun. Your heart up in your throat...not been that long ago for me and him.

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  25. Tina, I'm so sorry to have only just read this post and so not commented previously - life sure can be scary. I'm glad to have seen from today's Friday Five that all is back to normal. I hope you both have a lovely, relaxing weekend.

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