Trip to the Emergency Room

Yesterday (Wednesday), I was feeling very fatigued and slow about the day. I thought I was just very tired from the combination of these last couple of weeks -- our trip to Oklahoma and Missouri and back, a big day at church on Sunday with an ordination service, birthday dinner and excitement with Alden on Monday evening, and then catching up on things around here and visits with church folk on Tuesday.

I did not feel there was any cause to worry, but I still did not feel well enough to be at church last night (Wednesday) and called to notify several. We were going to take the evening to have everyone come to help decorate the sanctuary with our Christmas tree and other pretty room decorations. Sondra went early and helped get some of the decorations and work organized and then came home quickly.

She informed me that she was taking me to the ER to be examined, as she and Crystal had talked and Crystal was quite concerned about some of the symptoms I was experiencing. My ankles have swollen and remained swollen since the trip, I have experienced some shortness of breath, I was quite fatigued, all this along with a high blood pressure reading.

So, at about 8 pm last night I arrived at the ER of the VA hospital at Loma Linda nearby. Because of my heart issues (open heart surgery and triple bypass last year in February) they gave me priority. After hearing my symptoms, they did the usual things such as blood pressure, oxygen percentage and temperature. Just before that, the first thing they did was an EKG there in the ER. Then, they took some blood samples to be run quickly upstairs in the lab. They even sent me up to have a couple of chest X-rays.

After waiting just a little while, they took me into a room to wait for results. About an hour later, they confirmed a diagnosis of CHF (congestive heart failure) in which the heart cannot push all the liquids out of the body (causing swelling in the lower extremities and fluids in the lungs) without some help from medications. So, they gave me some furosemide (lasix or "water pills") to help process the fluids from the body.

They told me they would release me to go home after I had begun to pee several times, to make sure all was working right with the IV of lasix. Almost immediately (probably within 10 minutes), I was starting my run to relieve myself. After three trips to the bathroom every fifteen minutes and a talk from the doctor, I was released to go home. The male nurse asked me, "How far do you have to drive to get home?" I told him that I live in Rialto, some 15 minutes away and he said, "Good." I drove home very quickly because that stuff works good ha ha!

They released me around midnight and I stayed up much of the night here at home, making quick trips to the bathroom because my body needs to get used to this lasix "stuff."

This morning I am taking it easy and taking my next lasix pill. We will see what happens today! Anyway, I am doing fine and resting and will be just fine. Thanks to all who found out early and were praying.

Oh, by the way, I won the bet with Sondra, as 90 percent (of those who returned my email) said they read my blog! Sondra says I cheated because I sent an email with the call to read my blog...she still maintains that no one will read it on their own without an email. Yeah, I know, she is probably right but I will not concede!