I had recently been experiencing some shortness of breath and got alerted to high blood pressure on a trip to the dentist (about 2 weeks prior). I had planned on calling around to my doctors the following Monday (21st). I went to bed that night and never could get comfortable. My symptoms escalated severely that night, but subsided after about 15 minutes and I went to sleep. I made the phone calls, as planned, but was ordered to go to the ER. Later that night, I was told that I had actually suffered a heart attack the night before and was admitted. From there, things got out of hand really quick, I was referred for a heart cath, which was expected (and my 3rd), but it seems like we had barely got started when it ended. The doctor walks around the screen and before she said anything, somehow, I knew what was coming.....bypass surgery! (CABBAGE x2 for anyone familiar with the term). Because I was stable, my surgery was scheduled out long enough for my existing blood thinners to expire, which gave me 2 days to stew, think and regret. Not so much regret though, since my weight loss and personal care, over the last 2 or 3 years, help tremendously with recovery. I got though the surgery without issue and was out of the hospital after 5 days!

In the end, this experience has, not only given me a much clearer understanding of what pain and struggle feels like, it also demonstrated to me my own inner strength. Any goal I set, going forward, I can look back to this month for assurance that I have the fighting spirit (or the heart if you prefer the obvious pun) to really go for it. Maybe that 1st goal should be to plug into local fundraising communities and maybe even form a fursuiting group for AHA events. I've done cancer and ALS walks in the past, but now it's really personal....