Welcome to my Heart Blog.

One Persons's journey to a Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) and hopefully beyond.

I Began this diary while I was sitting in hospital recovering from a quadruple coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). The aim was to track my progress and think a bit more about the National Health Service acute services, what we should appreciate about it and where we might do better.

I stopped writing when there was, frankly, not much else to record. However in June I signed up for a half marathon and thought I would re-open the blog as a training diary. It may even include a few health and exercise tips along the way.

I am neither a health-care professional nor a sports and fitness guru. What I write is no more expert than some of the things you might here from that bloke in the pub, so I take no responsibility for how you might use my ramblings. Be warned!

If you want to you can read the "back story", from hospital to rehab in earlier blog posts. One thing I have learned is that most people are not interested in reading my ramblings so, for those who do, I promise in future to keep them short.

Tuesday, 18 August 2015

Tuesday 11th August. Physio Phase 3

Busy day today.  I walk down to the Sobell Centre, the local municipal sports centre for a physio assessment before starting the cardio rehab programme.  I have been logging lung capacity, blood pressure and pulse together with the length and time taken on my walks (very anal I know but the physics did ask that I keep some sort of record).  The physio is very impressed with the record keeping but somewhat alarmed by the fact that My pulse was going so high on my walks.  I was aiming for 120-130 on my faster tempo walks - what I called my "cardio range". and it was up to 140 on steep hills (even peaked once at 150).  Apparently it should not go above 100, which because of the Beta blockers is at least 20 beats lower than it would normally have been.  I am disappointed because I though my exercise programme was a good one, but I will comply anyway.  At 6 weeks it is still apparently too early to push the heart.

From the physio I go on to Stepney Green to the London Independent to see the surgeon.  Mr Shipolini is also delighted with my progress, and tells me that the soreness at the top of the sternum is  due to the damage caused to cartilage and other soft tissues during the operation.  This takes much longer to heal than the broken bones.  He also  wants me to take stronger doses of Statins and beta-blockers, "as much as I can stand". Unfortunately side effects may include tiredness, dizziness and even impotence!  Hopefully the drugs can be cut back until normal service is resumed.

But at the end of the day he signs me off (or over to the NHS cardiologist).  I give him a bottle of Arran single malt "founder's reserve" (I still had 3 bottles at home which I bought in 2000, when visiting Arran.  Made in 1995 it was bottled after 5 years so I had to wait to receive the bottles).   It seems to me that just saying thank you to someone who possibly saved my life and definitely extended it by 20 years, is not enough.  Unfortunately I don't think he likes whisky, but he said he knows someone who does.

Onward and upward then.

Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)