Wake up Call? I Hope so!

Not sure if having a cardiology appointment the day before Christmas Eve is a good or a bad idea. If the news they share with you is good, do you really want to have a carte blanche on eating as much ham as you want when you already have heart disease? And if the news is bad, do you really want to ruin your Holidays having a confirmation about something you already know is bad enough?! Either way you look at it: I don’t necessarily recommend it.

I had a recent echocardiogram done to check the status of my aortic valve’s condition, as this is supposed to be done every 2 years and I have not done this since 2011. The doctor appointment on December 23 followed that test, to talk about the results. I just figured there is worsening in the narrowing of my aortic valve, but that maybe the progress is probably slow, because I am medicated and I eat moderately healthy. I just figured “oh, this is just another routine echocardiogram where I have some damage, but it’s manageable”.

Well, there was progress on the worsening of the aortic valve’s condition. But the progress was much more advanced than I thought. Nothing makes more sense to me than talking in numbers. The doc said a normal adult aortic valve has an area of 3 cm squared. A section through my aortic valve is 1.1 cm squared, down from 1.3 cm squared from 2011. He did say that I am a “little person” so I can get away with a smaller opening, but if it goes lower than 0.9 cm squared, he “will have to do something” – meaning a valve replacement surgery. The velocity of my blood through the valve has gone up from 2.6 m/s to 3.5 m/s – which means it’s more of a struggle for my heart to pump blood through one of the main valves. Also, my left ventricle and atrium are enlarged, which shows the strain on my heart trying to pump through a narrowed passage.It's like looking down the barrel of a gun.

If you want a visual of what my valve looks like, I found this site that pretty much shows it: http://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/heart-surgery-blog/2010/07/02/aortic-valve-size-normal/ - and just like the second picture shows it: mine is bicuspid, too. This picture pretty much rings home and wakes me up with a jolt.

So, “happy holidays” to me, I guess. I have known about my cholesterol for 33 years now. But for the first time in my life, this news really, really woke me up! As we talked specifics about valve replacement surgery, how, when, open heart vs catheter surgery, etc, I kept telling myself “this is serious now. This is the time. This is the time when things get real”.

As much as I have loved foods, all my life, for the first time ever, I really started feeling a repulsion against all things cholesterol – even ham and bacon. Especially ham and bacon. I came home and started browsing the internet and my Dr. Ornish books for new recipes. I am working on new rules, 33 years later, and I am actually excited about kicking this in the a$$! Finally. I guess nothing wakes you up more than facing 40 and hearing that your heart is giving up. I am so blessed that I have done everything I ever wanted to do till this day. So grateful that I have not yet had a heart attack or a stroke. With every beat of the heart, and every blood drop, I cannot tell you how much gratefulness flows through my old, aged, and clogged up veins for everything that I have been allowed to do so far in my life!

So, I have stayed away from pretty much all protein that is not 100% fat free so far, in the past  couple of days – quite a feat if you knew what I had in my fridge – ham, eggnog, homemade mayo in my chicken and potato salad, and so forth. No, I don’t make all these all the time – only this time of the year. But no more! 

If I don't go on a drastic diet and a drastic (for me) exercise regimen now, I am looking at open heart surgery in 3 more years, if the progress stays the same. But it could go faster, given my advancing age. I am definitely not ready for that. 

 

I am not sure what my new “diet” is, but I can tell you I have cleaned up my fridge and freezer and simply threw away everything that was not fat free, low fat, or too much fatty meat. Done. Not looking back! Not this time. Just hope and pray it’s not too late!