🎜There's got to be a morning after🎝Yes, this morning I am rejoicing to be home, easing into the day. The coffee tasted especially good this morning too. The sunlight hit the trees at our neighbors just right and the window is filled with golden and bright yellow brilliance. A beautiful fall day in the mountains and just the view to refresh the soul.
Why waxing so poetic over coffee and leaves? Because this time yesterday morning I was at Asheville Cardiology preparing for an echocardiogram and a stress test. Call time, 7:40 am. Really, it could be called a pleasant experience because everyone was so friendly and very informative. Think my last echo was in 2018 and the last stress test in 2008. This morning I went back to read about that stress test and thought I would share a paragraph or two on today's post.
A funny green glow is emanating from me tonight. I touched my iPod and it was instantly recharged. The lap top is performing faster than usual. I am faster than a speeding bullet and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This funny green doesn't mean I am not celebrating Fall Festival Day early, but I had a nuclear stress test today. The thing sounds worse than it is. I always bring a book with me to waiting situations and I was the only one of our group today who had a book. Everyone else was punished by having to watch CNN at an ear drum shattering level. I also got in a lot of Face book reading on my phone and some texting. It was an amazing thing to see how efficient this ran. There were four over sized comfortable chairs in our area and not one person ever had to stand and wait for a chair to be vacated. A treadmill stress test patient nearly rocked the boat on efficiency. He was really ticked that everyone else sitting around him got the injection to make the heart look like it had exercised, he had to do it the old fashioned way.
Once you get hooked up with the IV portal and get injected, you mainly wait. Then you lay or lie down (I don't remember the correct usage. Don't mess with me, I am Radioactive Girl!) The tech tries to get you comfortable and situated. The arms over head thing is difficult. My advice for whenever you get one of these, make sure you are in a position that is comfortable, don't think about what if I need to cough, don't start thinking about that little tiny sized pin hole of an itch on your right cheek, and if you fall asleep, don't do the leg jerk thing. I saved up prayer requests and prayed those minutes away. The first run went by quickly. Then you go back and wait your turn to get the electrodes on and the radiation injected to make your heart exercise. After hearing about some experiences from friends, this was the thing I was most afraid of. Thanks to all my praying friends, it went well and much better than anticipated.
Now here is the funny thing, they get you all hooked up and the woman tech says, I need to undo your bra for this. So I sit up a little, her hand is behind my shirt and that woman has the bra undone in 2 seconds. I told her this is a skill that most men wish they had. You could run a little Learning Annex class on the side here and make Christmas money. She was laughing so hard, other techs and nurses came in cause they thought a patient was having a bad reaction to the stress test. The second time, I was back to lay or lie down. It didn't seem to go as fast. But, I still prayed and then did a lot of thinking. Then a lot of watching activity out of the corner of my eye. I did not follow my helpful hints from above and had my right arm at a non comfortable angle.
Truthfully, what I remembered the most about that long ago stress test was the nurse who could undo a bra in two seconds. When they called me Wednesday to go over what to do and what not to do, I asked about the no underwire thing from back in the day. Thankfully, modern medicine has gotten past that and the gel on the echo wand ultra sound thing, it's warm. Technology keeps advancing. My goodness, I wanted some of that gel for my shoulders when they are tensed up. For the waiting time, I once again had a book, well I had two books. I am such a mood reader. Had my snacks and my water. I was set for the morning. Echo went quickly, then the IV port installed and then 45 minutes to wait. Once I was under the machine, I did use that time to pray for all those on my prayer list. Didn't even think about my arms, until the second run through. Stephanie was the tech and we had a great conversation on shoe sizes. Her daughter is tall and starting to wear 11s. I told her all the online companies that carry a good supply of 11 and 12s. Went back to the waiting room to tarry until a stress test room opened up. I met the most delightful woman who was having the same tests and she is from Burnsville. She had a book too so our conversation began about reading and then progressed to other subjects. We both love Gail Godwin and Anne Rivers Siddons. We talked about the Outer Banks and she gave me some great tips on where to go. On my bucket list to finally see what I have read about in so many books. Talking with her made the time pass quickly. She and her husband own Fox Country Store. I have seen their store when traveling to Burnsville and now I will stop in. Their daughter and son run the store now, but curious to go by. Lois's daughter Megan stopped by and we visited for a few minutes. That was fun. She is in that department. It came time for the injection that causes the stress and once again it wasn't at all bad. Had a little shortness of breath and light headiness but it passed soon enough. Waited, had the picture done again and Stephanie said nothing stood out to detain me, I was free to go. Yahoo! Praise the Lord! I think the last part went well because right after injecting me they asked if I wanted some caffeine. Yes please. I was able to enjoy a Coke Zero. I had a cold Diet Coke waiting in the car for me as well. I left in the rain and decided to go straight home. A nap was calling my name.
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