Skip to main content

2021

Medical Stuff... 

Mike moved doctors in 2020 and started the evaluation process with Dr. Gonzalez at the Spectrum Health Heart Optimization and Evaluation Clinic. With more detailed testing over the period of 2020 and 2021 we started to see a decline in Mike's heart function and ejection fraction (EF); this measures the amount of blood that is pumped out of the left side of the heart with each heart beat. As time went on Mike's EF got lower and lower and doctors became worried about a sudden death event, which occurs with Cardiomyopathy. Mike's EF was down to 20% (now 18% in Nov of 22) with a normal person's being 50%-70%. To help ensure there is a back up to this event, Mike had an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) (Boston Scientific for the exact brand) put in September of 2021, this would restart his heart if it were to stop. 

There are some fun benefits to having an ICD: He gets to carry around an official card to let everyone know, gets fun pat downs at the airport because he can't go through metal detectors, can't use a chainsaw any longer (we had just bought one), can't go on wooden bumpy roller coasters (don't want it going off and shocking him), has some cool scars, and has to connect to the mothership every Monday - that's what I call it at least. He has this box that sits next to him on his bedside table, it records all events and connects to the monitoring station at the heart clinic. If he feels funny he can click a button and it will send details immediately to the clinic. Mondays are upload day and all the week's info will be sent to the clinic when he connects...to the mothership. 

Now, Mike's heart has always been enlarged and is used to working hard. Imagine his heart is the size of a gallon of milk pumping out 20% liquid, and a normal heart is the size of a water bottle pumping out 20% liquid....there is more liquid coming out of gallon of milk than the water bottle. However, that is still a third less than normal people and a bit to be concerned about. Mike's strength, heart size, and health has kept him doing normal activities and living a normal life, he has great reserves his doctors would say. But of course we were given a list of things to look out for...shortness of breath, sleeping with more than one pillow, not being able to do normal tasks in the same amount of time, and of course the heart attack symptoms as well. 

All was well...until August of 2022

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Miracles Do Happen

 It's been 3 days since Mike got his new heart, and I can hardly believe that it actually happened.  On Thursday September 5th Mike was told we had another match. Dr. Hooker said he was bound and determined to get Mike a new heart by the Michigan game that Saturday. At this point Mike was a level one on the Unos Heart Transplant List and basically top of the top. With both sides of his heart being supported he needed a new one badly. Mike, the boys, and I shared this little secret that Friday and went on about our day. The more we learned the more we became excited that this was actually the heart. This heart was a DBD heart (Donation after Brain Death). Througout the day we learned that it was a great match and Mike's OR time was set for Saturday, September 7th at 10am. We were confused that we were not given a donor OR time, and as time went on we realized there was no transport time for the heart...the heart was in the same hospital as Mike.  I got to spend time with Mike th

Lub-Dub Lub-Dub

 A normal resting heart rate is between 60 to 100 beats per minute. If you listen to a heart it often is describe as if saying Lub-Dub Lub-Dub. Mike's heart rate is between 120-140.  If he laughs hard (which is often), gets agitated, or someones gets him on his favortie topic of finace it starts to soar about 140+. Every once in a while it will peak up to 180 when he gets into V Tach and it skips a few beats. The nurses watch him carefully as he walks on the treadmill and talks away or while he is working, and sometimes they have to shut him down for a bit. Except for some weight and muscle loss Mike's body and mind are in good working condition, but his heart is just failing him.  I had previously reported that on August 7th Mike recieved the Impella Pump to support the left side of his heart. Since then the left side has significantly decreased in function and is almost not moving at all on its own. Over the past few weeks they have been watching the right side of heart and s

Free Ice Cream & A New Heart

 As we celebrated 7 months off the heart transplant list we quickly found ourselves back on the list. Many of you will be shocked by this news...and I won't lie...we were too Mike came down with the tiniest of colds and a little cough at the end of June 2024. His appetite dwindled and he just wasn't interested in being super active. By the devine grace of God and His perfect timing Mike's doctors office called and randomly wanted a blood panel completed. The results caused them to call and Mike expressed his concerns about his little cold and other small symptoms. They had him come into the office gave him an IV to help get some fluid off his body. He lost 10 pounds in less than 24 hours...and his cough went away. They set up a right heart cath for the next day to see what was going on. The results came in a bit worse than the previous November 2023 cath, but not too alarming and they released him to go home.  We took the boys to SpringHill, enjoyed some alone time, picked