I haven't posted apart from the odd reply for quite some time but now I've reached a milestone, 1 year since my operation which is also pretty much 1 year in lockdown. When I left hospital it was barely 2 weeks before we went into national lockdown and from that point onward there were just 4 weeks in the summer when my area wasn't either Tier 3 or in lockdown. Recovering in the middle of a pandemic has been very isolating but I went back to work last June (working from home) and I work in the pharmaceutical industry so it has been busy!
Being in lockdown has meant I've been with my family but even family need a rest from each other and what I've missed is the opportunity to go out with friends for a meal or a night out and practise talking about what has happened, sharing the ups and downs and receiving their affirmation of the progress I've made. The operation was a really big event in my life and for my family but we've had very little opportunity to acknowledge that and although we Facetime friends I don't think they appreciate the impact it has had on our lives and our outlook on life. I know that because most of them think we were mad to move house at the end of last year (and we were) but a life-changing operation makes you re-assess and we accelerated plans to move out to the countryside from our urban sprawl. Of course, my family and a few close friends know it has been a tough year, but I won't condemn 2020 as many are, i learnt a lot about myself. I appreciate the hardship for many which Covid-19 has caused and am forever grateful that I was able to have my operation just before lockdown started impacting admissions. My heart breaks for the operations that haven't taken place, the cancer treatments postponed and the dreadful impact on all sorts of illnesses as the NHS dealt with the coronovirus. But I felt really strong after the operation and empowered almost by my ability to accept and endure all that happened and the circumstances in which it happened.
I'd survived a minor heart attack in the November, had a Cardiac MRI then gone in for an angiogram/angioplasty in February, which was halted and that's when I was told to prepare for a CABG x 4. My arteries were blocked 100% and 95% blocked so the cardiologist was worried I'd last the week until the op. He drew me a diagram on the back of an envelope and helped me understand the situation. I made meals for the freezer and updated my will, but besides the practical preparations, I had decided I would just deal, and I did. I was determined not to give in to the fear and worry so I decided it was OK but would have to stay behind a wall whilst I got on with the practicality of the operation. The first few days after the operation were brutal. They were. But the rest was life and we all have to live that as best we can., with the good, the bad and the ugly.
I spoke to Molly Tresardern from BHF Heart Matters Magazine about recovering during a pandemic and the output was an article in the magazine and an online piece. bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo... It helped, to tell someone my story. Keep sharing.
A year on from my HA
3 months since triple heart bypass
Steve 6 and a half years since heart failure.
I year since my aortic valve replacement
