I got a new camera a while back that has time-lapse video capability. I experimented with it and got some interesting stuff that I want to share. This video was taken from our front porch on November 3, 2017. The camera was set to take one frame every 10 seconds for about three hours.
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Monday, November 26, 2018
Making Wooden Bowls
I got a wood lathe in January this year (2018). As mentioned in a previous post I got it primarily to turn a pedestal for a table I was making. Before the table was finished I started making other things. I started with fish bonkers, a mini baseball bat used to put a fish out of it's misery and keep it from flopping around. I made several out of some red cedar that grows nearby and smells wonderful.
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| Red Cedar Fish Bonker |
My next project was a bud vase. I made it for my sweetheart for Valentines Day out of black walnut.
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| Black Walnut Bud Vase |
I made a pair of table lamps also from black walnut. One is shown as they are nearly identical.
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| Black Walnut Table Lamp |
Goblets are quite easy to make and your imagination can run wild.
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| Black Walnut Goblet |
A friend wanted an urn for his father's ashes.
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| Black Walnut Urn |
My first bowl.
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| Pinion Pine Bowl with urethane finish |
I got the idea on You Tube to use root burls to make bowls. Root burls have really interesting grain patterns but have a lot of cracks and craters. My first root burl bowl turned out quite nice.
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| Scrub Oak Root Burl Bowl (unfinished) |
Finding root burls without a lot of voids is hard, so I started filling the voids with epoxy resin. It is messy but quite interesting and the results can be awesome!
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| Root Burl Bowl with clear epoxy inlay |
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| Root Burl Bowl with colored epoxy inlay |
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| Another with colored inlay |
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| This one has gold mica epoxy inlay (My finest work so far) |
A new table and a new hobby!
Sometime ago I convinced Elma Lynne to discard an old table we had in our apartment bedroom. I did that by promising to make her a new one out of local black walnut. I had cut down a couple of trees which I took and got milled into lumber. After it had dried for the requisite time I was out of excuses so I went to work on the table in January of 2018.
I cut several boards to about 48 inches in length, planed them to the desired thickness and glued them together then trimmed them to have a table top of about 39 inches square. I had a log about 8 inches in diameter that I wanted to use for a pedestal, but I needed a fairly large lathe to mill it to size. So I want to Harbor Freight and bought a lathe!
After a little practice I went to work on the log and turned a pretty nice pedestal, then made a base for it using some three inch thick walnut. After a lot of sanding I put a urethane coat on it and finally presented it for Mother's Day. It now holds a place of honor in the apartment bedroom, but I think it needs a couple of chairs. Maybe that will be my next project, or at least a future project.
Oh, turning wood on a lathe has become my new hobby. The reason the table took so long is that I had so much fun turning the pedestal that I started turning other stuff. I made lamps, vases, goblets and bowls. I watched You Tube a lot and got some neat ideas and had fun trying them out. My main focus has become making bowls. My next blog will be about my new hobby, turning bowls.
I cut several boards to about 48 inches in length, planed them to the desired thickness and glued them together then trimmed them to have a table top of about 39 inches square. I had a log about 8 inches in diameter that I wanted to use for a pedestal, but I needed a fairly large lathe to mill it to size. So I want to Harbor Freight and bought a lathe!
After a little practice I went to work on the log and turned a pretty nice pedestal, then made a base for it using some three inch thick walnut. After a lot of sanding I put a urethane coat on it and finally presented it for Mother's Day. It now holds a place of honor in the apartment bedroom, but I think it needs a couple of chairs. Maybe that will be my next project, or at least a future project.
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| Black Walnut Table - pedestal view |
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Black Walnut Table - top view |
Thanksgiving 2018
We had most all of our family here for Thanksgiving this year. The exceptions were Deedra who is completing her mission in Indiana and will be home on December 19th, and Nathan and his bride Lindsey who are with her family.
We put a turkey in the smoker around 6:00 pm Wednesday evening. This is a new thing for us. We often have bought smoked turkey before, but this is the first time we have smoked our own.
Joel and his family arrived around 8:00 pm, reporting that traffic was horrible! We were watching a BYU basketball game and he was an hour late. Jillyn and family arrived a couple of hours later, also victims of the traffic. The timer popped so we got the turkey out of the smoker around 10:00 pm. I used Mesquite wood chips because that was all I have. If I do it again I think I will get some apple chips. The mesquite smells a little too harsh for turkey, but it tastes fine. The juices spilled onto the hot metal and created some more smoke which also affected the flavor some I think.
Thursday morning we made preparations for the big feast. Another larger turkey was stuffed and put in the oven. Darin, Clay and families arrived and we ate around 1:30 pm. Everything was good. Lori and Tiffany brought pies, Jillyn made rolls and Suzanne brought a good fruit salad. Tiffany's mother joined us as she is all alone living in Hurricane.
After eating we all took a turn saying what we are thankful for, and we have so much!
Friday was kind of a casual day. Clay, Ashlyn, Joel and Desiree got up early and went to Zion and hiked Angel's Landing. Suzanne and kids went Black Friday shopping, Jillyn and family went to a movie, some played games. and we had the annual turkey (clay pigeon) shoot. I couldn't shoot because of my surgery, but it was fun watching the others, and taking photos.
I left before it was finished so I could get ready for my Temple shift. Later most of the grand kids and a few parents came to the temple and did baptisms for the dead. It was fun to have them there.
Saturday we had a talent show. Most of the grand kids participated. Some played the piano, some sang, Sydnee did a magic trick which amazed is all 😉. Jillyn, Mckenna and Ella sang accompanied by Elma Lynne on the piano and Camille on the flute. Camille is getting really good. Brevin played the ukulele while Darin and Paxton sang. Paxton has a good voice. The adults played a few rounds of Scum while the children played in the basement, then starting at 4:00 pm some watched BYU basketball and football games while some of the women went to a movie. Jillyn and family left to be home for Sunday responsibilities.
Sunday we got up and went to Sacrament meeting and then everyone changed clothes and headed home. It was a great holiday and great to have our family around us. It may be a while before we are able to have them all here again.
We put a turkey in the smoker around 6:00 pm Wednesday evening. This is a new thing for us. We often have bought smoked turkey before, but this is the first time we have smoked our own.
Joel and his family arrived around 8:00 pm, reporting that traffic was horrible! We were watching a BYU basketball game and he was an hour late. Jillyn and family arrived a couple of hours later, also victims of the traffic. The timer popped so we got the turkey out of the smoker around 10:00 pm. I used Mesquite wood chips because that was all I have. If I do it again I think I will get some apple chips. The mesquite smells a little too harsh for turkey, but it tastes fine. The juices spilled onto the hot metal and created some more smoke which also affected the flavor some I think.
Thursday morning we made preparations for the big feast. Another larger turkey was stuffed and put in the oven. Darin, Clay and families arrived and we ate around 1:30 pm. Everything was good. Lori and Tiffany brought pies, Jillyn made rolls and Suzanne brought a good fruit salad. Tiffany's mother joined us as she is all alone living in Hurricane.
Just before turkey. Tiffany's mom Karen took photo.
After eating we all took a turn saying what we are thankful for, and we have so much!
Friday was kind of a casual day. Clay, Ashlyn, Joel and Desiree got up early and went to Zion and hiked Angel's Landing. Suzanne and kids went Black Friday shopping, Jillyn and family went to a movie, some played games. and we had the annual turkey (clay pigeon) shoot. I couldn't shoot because of my surgery, but it was fun watching the others, and taking photos.
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| Clay loading the thrower |
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| Lori taking aim |
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| Ashlyn popping a bird! |
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| Darin and Joel figuring it out |
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| Ashlyn loves to shoot |
I left before it was finished so I could get ready for my Temple shift. Later most of the grand kids and a few parents came to the temple and did baptisms for the dead. It was fun to have them there.
Saturday we had a talent show. Most of the grand kids participated. Some played the piano, some sang, Sydnee did a magic trick which amazed is all 😉. Jillyn, Mckenna and Ella sang accompanied by Elma Lynne on the piano and Camille on the flute. Camille is getting really good. Brevin played the ukulele while Darin and Paxton sang. Paxton has a good voice. The adults played a few rounds of Scum while the children played in the basement, then starting at 4:00 pm some watched BYU basketball and football games while some of the women went to a movie. Jillyn and family left to be home for Sunday responsibilities.
Sunday we got up and went to Sacrament meeting and then everyone changed clothes and headed home. It was a great holiday and great to have our family around us. It may be a while before we are able to have them all here again.
Sunday, November 25, 2018
A Bump In The Road
I guess things were just going a little too good. Shortly after my last post I was out getting ready to drain my sprinklers and I leaned over to open a valve and the world started spinning. Weird sensation! I kind of toppled over on the grass until things normalized a minute or two later. A few days later I was going into the garage to get some gloves and the next thing I remember is waking up laying under the coat rack on a pile of shoes and boots. Now I'm getting concerned.
I called, or tried to call my cardiologist. If you have dealt with IHC's phone system you know what a joke that is. When I finally got to the receptionist she said she would get a message to Dr. Pulsipher's PA. Come on! I have had my chest ripped open and am now passing out and I get the opinion of a PA? This was on Friday afternoon, so I had no hope of hearing anything until Monday. I finally got a callback on Monday afternoon telling me to stop taking the metoprolol. I was taking at half a 25 mg tablet twice per day. I already had talked to Clay and he told me to half my dose again which I had done all week-end. Dr. Pulsipher's PA wanted me to switch to metoprolol ER and take half a 25 mg tablet once per day in the evening. Didn't make much sense to me but I picked up the prescription on Tuesday and took the first dose Tuesday night. Wednesday I was working at the Temple. About 10:00 am I was moving from a filing cabinet to a counter when I got a weird feeling and reached for the counter to steady myself. I woke up on the floor with people kneeling over me asking if I am okay. I was okay, and my shift was about over so my replacement took over and after talking with Elma Lynne, Joyce came and drove me home.
I guess I hit my head pretty hard when I fell. A friend at the recommend desk, which is through the wall from the office where I fell, said he heard the thump when I hit the floor. I didn't get a goose bump, but the left side of my head was tender and I kept getting headaches for a couple of weeks. I am also dealing with some vertigo, which may be a result of the fall, or maybe something else.
I had an appointment already scheduled for Friday, Nov 9th, just two days away for a post-op visit with my surgeon, Dr. Bruce Reid, and the cardiologist on his team, Dr, Kia Afshar, in Salt Lake, so I decided to go off the metoprolol completely and just wait and talk to them about it. Interesting thing, Dr. Reid was of the opinion that I didn't need to take the metoprolol anyway, so he discontinued it. Both doctors agreed that it may have caused the dizziness and passing out. Just as a precautionary measure they wanted me to wear a Holter Monitor for the next two weeks.
We spent Friday night at Joel's and Went to Jillyn's play Saturday night and stayed at her house Saturday night, returning home Sunday after church. Things seemed to be going well, although I was still having some dizziness at times. Wednesday I was again working a shift at the Temple when Elma Lynne called and told me Dr. Reid had called and wanted me at Dixie Regional immediately for a pacemaker implant. Evidently the Holter Monitor had reported some electrical blockage, which they felt was very serious. My shift was over when I got the message so I drove myself home and we packed up and went to Saint George.
Dr. Afshar had pulled some strings and had everything set up for me to be admitted and prepared for surgery the next morning. Everything went well but they wanted me to satay another night for observation so I was released Friday morning and we returned home.
The doctors will tell you that a pacemaker isn't a big deal, and that in a few months you will forget you have it. That may be, but it is life-changing in many ways. To start with, I can't keep my cell phone in my shirt pocket as it may interfere with the pacemaker. I have to stay away from anything that produces a strong electromagnetic field, including a welder! Got to talk to my cardiologist about that! There are quite a few other similar restrictions, not to mention that it is hooked to a monitor that is kept by my bedside and reports to someone, somewhere daily. I suppose when I travel that I will need to take it with me, or notify them that it will not be reporting. I have reason to question if they would even notice if it doesn't report.
Anyhow, life goes on and I am grateful for good medical care, even though dealing with IHC's phone policies can be very frustrating. So is their Cardiac Rehab. They scheduled me for 36 sessions, three per week for thirty-six weeks or there about. I went for session nine this week, November 23rd. I had a temple shift at 4:30 pm so I planned to go around 3:00. I arrived there shortly after that and was told they don't take patients after 3:00 pm. When I asked why I was told that it doesn't give them enough time to get you through all the exercise and the associated reports before they close at 5:00 pm. Give me a break! There was only one other person in the place. Why wasn't I told this before? Well, I bit my tongue and left, vowing never to return. I think I will do my own rehab.
As of today, Sunday November 25th, the headaches have gone away, but I am still dealing with some vertigo when I have certain sudden head movements. I am also experiencing a lot of muscle stiffness in the back of my thighs and up into my hips. This started prior to the pacemaker surgery and has continued for nearly two weeks. Sometimes it is so painful I can hardly move in certain positions. Sometimes it seems to be getting better, then it will return. It does seem to be getting gradually better, though it leaves me wondering what caused it and why it is hanging around.
I called, or tried to call my cardiologist. If you have dealt with IHC's phone system you know what a joke that is. When I finally got to the receptionist she said she would get a message to Dr. Pulsipher's PA. Come on! I have had my chest ripped open and am now passing out and I get the opinion of a PA? This was on Friday afternoon, so I had no hope of hearing anything until Monday. I finally got a callback on Monday afternoon telling me to stop taking the metoprolol. I was taking at half a 25 mg tablet twice per day. I already had talked to Clay and he told me to half my dose again which I had done all week-end. Dr. Pulsipher's PA wanted me to switch to metoprolol ER and take half a 25 mg tablet once per day in the evening. Didn't make much sense to me but I picked up the prescription on Tuesday and took the first dose Tuesday night. Wednesday I was working at the Temple. About 10:00 am I was moving from a filing cabinet to a counter when I got a weird feeling and reached for the counter to steady myself. I woke up on the floor with people kneeling over me asking if I am okay. I was okay, and my shift was about over so my replacement took over and after talking with Elma Lynne, Joyce came and drove me home.
I guess I hit my head pretty hard when I fell. A friend at the recommend desk, which is through the wall from the office where I fell, said he heard the thump when I hit the floor. I didn't get a goose bump, but the left side of my head was tender and I kept getting headaches for a couple of weeks. I am also dealing with some vertigo, which may be a result of the fall, or maybe something else.
I had an appointment already scheduled for Friday, Nov 9th, just two days away for a post-op visit with my surgeon, Dr. Bruce Reid, and the cardiologist on his team, Dr, Kia Afshar, in Salt Lake, so I decided to go off the metoprolol completely and just wait and talk to them about it. Interesting thing, Dr. Reid was of the opinion that I didn't need to take the metoprolol anyway, so he discontinued it. Both doctors agreed that it may have caused the dizziness and passing out. Just as a precautionary measure they wanted me to wear a Holter Monitor for the next two weeks.
We spent Friday night at Joel's and Went to Jillyn's play Saturday night and stayed at her house Saturday night, returning home Sunday after church. Things seemed to be going well, although I was still having some dizziness at times. Wednesday I was again working a shift at the Temple when Elma Lynne called and told me Dr. Reid had called and wanted me at Dixie Regional immediately for a pacemaker implant. Evidently the Holter Monitor had reported some electrical blockage, which they felt was very serious. My shift was over when I got the message so I drove myself home and we packed up and went to Saint George.
Dr. Afshar had pulled some strings and had everything set up for me to be admitted and prepared for surgery the next morning. Everything went well but they wanted me to satay another night for observation so I was released Friday morning and we returned home.
What a pacemaker looks like, It about 1.96" x 1.85" x .24"thick.
The doctors will tell you that a pacemaker isn't a big deal, and that in a few months you will forget you have it. That may be, but it is life-changing in many ways. To start with, I can't keep my cell phone in my shirt pocket as it may interfere with the pacemaker. I have to stay away from anything that produces a strong electromagnetic field, including a welder! Got to talk to my cardiologist about that! There are quite a few other similar restrictions, not to mention that it is hooked to a monitor that is kept by my bedside and reports to someone, somewhere daily. I suppose when I travel that I will need to take it with me, or notify them that it will not be reporting. I have reason to question if they would even notice if it doesn't report.
Anyhow, life goes on and I am grateful for good medical care, even though dealing with IHC's phone policies can be very frustrating. So is their Cardiac Rehab. They scheduled me for 36 sessions, three per week for thirty-six weeks or there about. I went for session nine this week, November 23rd. I had a temple shift at 4:30 pm so I planned to go around 3:00. I arrived there shortly after that and was told they don't take patients after 3:00 pm. When I asked why I was told that it doesn't give them enough time to get you through all the exercise and the associated reports before they close at 5:00 pm. Give me a break! There was only one other person in the place. Why wasn't I told this before? Well, I bit my tongue and left, vowing never to return. I think I will do my own rehab.
As of today, Sunday November 25th, the headaches have gone away, but I am still dealing with some vertigo when I have certain sudden head movements. I am also experiencing a lot of muscle stiffness in the back of my thighs and up into my hips. This started prior to the pacemaker surgery and has continued for nearly two weeks. Sometimes it is so painful I can hardly move in certain positions. Sometimes it seems to be getting better, then it will return. It does seem to be getting gradually better, though it leaves me wondering what caused it and why it is hanging around.
Thursday, October 25, 2018
Surgery +20
I walked to the post office and back today! It's about two miles, some up hill but nothing really strenuous. It felt good to be out in the cool fall air. It felt good not to have any shortness of breath, tightness in the chest or muscle fatigue. I am much more capable 20 days after surgery than I was before surgery. I am so pleased with the outcome thus far.
The doctor has limited my workouts while in the recovery mode. I can't lift anything over 10 pounds; I am to keep my pulse rate under 115 bpm. He doesn't want me driving. I have had a home health nurse checking on me for the past two weeks. Every day at first to just one final day this week. I have also had a physical therapist come a few times with his last visit scheduled for day after tomorrow. Then I "get" to go to the Cardiac Rehab Center where they will increase my workouts in a controlled setting while monitoring everything. That should be interesting.
Notes on my surgery and hospital stay while I can still remember some of the details. I checked into the hospital on Tuesday, October 3rd around noon. They ran a bunch of tests and hooked up a bunch of tubes, otherwise it was fairly quiet. John Spevak brought John Black to see his doctor in the same complex so they stopped by for a visit in the afternoon. Jillyn and Kenny, Joel & family, Darin and Clay came around 7:00 pm and my sons and son-in-law gave me a blessing. It was a really great experience to have them all there, worthy and willing to participate. Darin anointed me with consecrated oil and then Clay sealed the anointing and gave the accompanying blessing. It was very special. Elma Lynne also asked for a blessing and Kenny and Joel were voice for her.
Wednesday morning they got going around seven. I don't remember much of what happened for the next six or so hours. I have some vague recollections of coming out of the anesthesia but they are sketchy. They told me that when they pulled the breathing tube out my heart stopped. I guess that got them excited. Fortunately they had some wires inserted and attached to an external pacemaker so they just turned it on and my heart responded.
I don't remember much pain, though coughing was (and is) excruciating! They gave me Noxall (Loritab) when I asked for it which was mostly when I wanted to sleep. Food wasn't very appealing particularly when I got constipated, which was most of the time. Medication for that eventually created the opposite effect and I still didn't feel much like eating.
The staff had me up walking the day after surgery and within a couple of days I was doing laps around the halls. They had me take stairs on Sunday.
We watched Utah State thrash BYU in football Saturday night, then watched as much of General Conference as possible. I think I slept through more than I watched.
Elma Lynne stayed in the hospital room with me for a few nights, then went to Jillyn's for a few. Jillyn visited often. Clay stayed through Thursday, Darin came after work when he could. Joel brought his family a couple of times. Joyce and Dorian came Saturday, Steve and Angela came on Sunday.
They released me on Monday and we made the trip home, arriving around 6:00 pm. It is good to have that experience behind me. Now to get on with the healing.
The doctor has limited my workouts while in the recovery mode. I can't lift anything over 10 pounds; I am to keep my pulse rate under 115 bpm. He doesn't want me driving. I have had a home health nurse checking on me for the past two weeks. Every day at first to just one final day this week. I have also had a physical therapist come a few times with his last visit scheduled for day after tomorrow. Then I "get" to go to the Cardiac Rehab Center where they will increase my workouts in a controlled setting while monitoring everything. That should be interesting.
Notes on my surgery and hospital stay while I can still remember some of the details. I checked into the hospital on Tuesday, October 3rd around noon. They ran a bunch of tests and hooked up a bunch of tubes, otherwise it was fairly quiet. John Spevak brought John Black to see his doctor in the same complex so they stopped by for a visit in the afternoon. Jillyn and Kenny, Joel & family, Darin and Clay came around 7:00 pm and my sons and son-in-law gave me a blessing. It was a really great experience to have them all there, worthy and willing to participate. Darin anointed me with consecrated oil and then Clay sealed the anointing and gave the accompanying blessing. It was very special. Elma Lynne also asked for a blessing and Kenny and Joel were voice for her.
Wednesday morning they got going around seven. I don't remember much of what happened for the next six or so hours. I have some vague recollections of coming out of the anesthesia but they are sketchy. They told me that when they pulled the breathing tube out my heart stopped. I guess that got them excited. Fortunately they had some wires inserted and attached to an external pacemaker so they just turned it on and my heart responded.
I don't remember much pain, though coughing was (and is) excruciating! They gave me Noxall (Loritab) when I asked for it which was mostly when I wanted to sleep. Food wasn't very appealing particularly when I got constipated, which was most of the time. Medication for that eventually created the opposite effect and I still didn't feel much like eating.
The staff had me up walking the day after surgery and within a couple of days I was doing laps around the halls. They had me take stairs on Sunday.
We watched Utah State thrash BYU in football Saturday night, then watched as much of General Conference as possible. I think I slept through more than I watched.
Elma Lynne stayed in the hospital room with me for a few nights, then went to Jillyn's for a few. Jillyn visited often. Clay stayed through Thursday, Darin came after work when he could. Joel brought his family a couple of times. Joyce and Dorian came Saturday, Steve and Angela came on Sunday.
They released me on Monday and we made the trip home, arriving around 6:00 pm. It is good to have that experience behind me. Now to get on with the healing.
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Time to Blog Again?
This has been a strangely different year for me thus far. Some life changing experiences. It seems like sometimes we need to take a look at our own mortality to keep things in perspective. Or maybe to motivate us to blog again!
I was diagnosed with a heart murmur several years ago. It didn't seem too serious at the time. A few tests were run to see if I ran the risk of making it worse by getting infections... outcome negative. So I went about life as usual, thinking I was pretty healthy, almost to the point of being invincible. My main physical pursuit was hiking. I set a goal to hike the highest peak in every county in Utah... and almost made it. I hiked the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim four times as I passed 59 and eased into my 60's. I was also enjoying horseback riding in the mountains near home, "shed hunting", golfing, fishing, gardening and about anything else that could be done outside.
My annual wellness check in 2014 revealed the heart murmur getting worse. My doctor sent me to a cardiologist who ran test after test. I was also starting to feel some symptoms; shortness of breath, muscle fatigue, that kind of thing. Tests revealed I have a condition called HOCM or Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy. The wall between the ventricles of my heart is growing thicker to the point that it is obstructing the blood outflow to the aorta. Mitral valve function is also impaired.
Tests and more tests over the next few years along with more medications and the problem continues to get worse. In 2017 hiking with friends or golfing finds me lagging behind. It is not uncommon for the group to have to wait for me, something I am not used to. As 2018 begins I am realizing I need to get something done. My cardiologist tells me that he has done all he can for me. Next step is surgery.
When it comes to treating HOCM surgically, two options are available. The least invasive is called septal alcohol ablation. It consists of running a catheter into your heart, targeting some specific veins in the septum and releasing enough alcohol to kill some of the muscle. Basically creating a "controlled" heart attack. Option two is called septal myectomy. More invasive. They open your chest and go inside your heart and surgically trim the excess muscle.
Initially my cardiologist recommended that I go to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, premier center for this procedure. Sometime around late 2017 the Intermountain Heart Institute in Salt Lake City was awarded a "Center of Excellence" for this procedure. I decided to check them out, and was very impressed with the doctors and staff there. The decision was made to have septal myectomy in Late September 2018.
It is kind of hard to make the decision t have your chest opened and your heart stopped when you don't really have to. I rationalized that I could get along fairly well for a few more years without treatment. I would be getting old fast, my activity would be limited, but I would be alive. With surgery I could be returned to a nearly normal healthy lifestyle. The deciding factor: inevitably; it would have to be done sooner or later. Do it now while I am still relatively healthy, or wait until I "have" to have it done and risk longer recovery and more complications? The choice was not hard for me. I chose to have more good years.
Surgery was scheduled for October 3rd at the Intermountain Heart Institute in Murray Utah. I survived as confirmed by this blog. Details in my next one.
I was diagnosed with a heart murmur several years ago. It didn't seem too serious at the time. A few tests were run to see if I ran the risk of making it worse by getting infections... outcome negative. So I went about life as usual, thinking I was pretty healthy, almost to the point of being invincible. My main physical pursuit was hiking. I set a goal to hike the highest peak in every county in Utah... and almost made it. I hiked the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim four times as I passed 59 and eased into my 60's. I was also enjoying horseback riding in the mountains near home, "shed hunting", golfing, fishing, gardening and about anything else that could be done outside.
My annual wellness check in 2014 revealed the heart murmur getting worse. My doctor sent me to a cardiologist who ran test after test. I was also starting to feel some symptoms; shortness of breath, muscle fatigue, that kind of thing. Tests revealed I have a condition called HOCM or Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy. The wall between the ventricles of my heart is growing thicker to the point that it is obstructing the blood outflow to the aorta. Mitral valve function is also impaired.
Tests and more tests over the next few years along with more medications and the problem continues to get worse. In 2017 hiking with friends or golfing finds me lagging behind. It is not uncommon for the group to have to wait for me, something I am not used to. As 2018 begins I am realizing I need to get something done. My cardiologist tells me that he has done all he can for me. Next step is surgery.
When it comes to treating HOCM surgically, two options are available. The least invasive is called septal alcohol ablation. It consists of running a catheter into your heart, targeting some specific veins in the septum and releasing enough alcohol to kill some of the muscle. Basically creating a "controlled" heart attack. Option two is called septal myectomy. More invasive. They open your chest and go inside your heart and surgically trim the excess muscle.
Initially my cardiologist recommended that I go to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, premier center for this procedure. Sometime around late 2017 the Intermountain Heart Institute in Salt Lake City was awarded a "Center of Excellence" for this procedure. I decided to check them out, and was very impressed with the doctors and staff there. The decision was made to have septal myectomy in Late September 2018.
It is kind of hard to make the decision t have your chest opened and your heart stopped when you don't really have to. I rationalized that I could get along fairly well for a few more years without treatment. I would be getting old fast, my activity would be limited, but I would be alive. With surgery I could be returned to a nearly normal healthy lifestyle. The deciding factor: inevitably; it would have to be done sooner or later. Do it now while I am still relatively healthy, or wait until I "have" to have it done and risk longer recovery and more complications? The choice was not hard for me. I chose to have more good years.
Surgery was scheduled for October 3rd at the Intermountain Heart Institute in Murray Utah. I survived as confirmed by this blog. Details in my next one.
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