During the underwear debacle, I also picked up a foam topper to add to my chair/bed in an attempt to make it more bearable. I woke up with a sore back but did not need to take anything for it. I have one more trick up my sleeve to get better sleep in that thing. I’ll figure it out sooner or later, and it looks like I’ll have the time.
On my coffee run, I talked with my security guard buddy. There was a crazed homeless man wandering around, screaming at everyone. I said crazy day to the security guard, and he said just another Friday! The homeless are rampant in Houston and are bad in the medical center, too. There is always something crazy going on here. On my afternoon run to the car, the same man was still causing issues. Four HPD cruisers were there to take him on, and I almost pulled up a chair to to watch the show.
We started our yearly Bible reading plan this year but were a couple of days late. So, this morning, we caught up on the past two days. We started it last year, but we both fell off track this year and got too far behind with the craziness of 2024.
Before cardio made its rounds on us, we made a couple of laps around the floor. However, Amanda still can’t make it too far before her rate increases. We made two laps, and that’s all I could get out of her this morning. We did pass the cardiologist. He was pleasant and said to keep it up. I still don’t like him, though!
We are still having trouble getting pain medications. You push the button, and it seems like nothing has changed. After about 30 minutes, someone wanders in and asks what we need. Then, it takes forever to get our nurse and more time for the medication. The nurse finally came in, got other medications ready, and then said, “Oh, your light is on.” She doesn’t have a clue; it’s like they are immune to the light and beeping.
We heard a call for all available staff to the front desk; this meant someone was “ringing out.” I can remember the emotional time Amanda stood up to ring that bell on the way out of the hospital after transplant. That was the longest hospital stay she’d had, too, 41 days in total. We are on the second longest right now as we ease up on 3 weeks, a far cry from the one-day outpatient stay we planned.
The budding EP fellow stopped by late afternoon. He came just after Amanda went into the bathroom; great timing, it’s a doctor thing! He sat down, and we chatted for a while. I noticed him looking at my Mac as I put it up. He saw a Jackson sicker and asked if that was Mississippi or Wyoming. I said Wyoming and expanded how we go on heartiversary trips every year, and that was one of them. He mentioned he had been there often. When I told Amanda, we thought the same thing: his family must be well off! That place is expensive, and we went in the off-season. I remember a bartender telling us he rented just a room for $1500 a month! We have plans to revisit that area in 2027 as part of a bigger trip I have planned for our 25th wedding anniversary.
The EP stayed for a while, leaning back with his legs crossed, just chatting about our current issue. He mentioned the lead EP’s plan for the new medication. I feel he foresees another ablation, just as we do. This isn’t our first rodeo with rhythm issues; we know the motions. I mentioned maybe trying the meds over the weekend to speed things up. I may have jumped the gun, but Amanda voiced her preference for waiting for our cardiologist to return.
Speaking of the pacemaker, he said it’s not the end; Amanda and I both agreed. It wasn’t that bad to have one before. It’s something we have both accepted, I think. He did mention there was a chance she might not need a pacemaker with the ablation. I asked if we were sure the antibody-mediated rejection wasn’t still the cause and if it might go away with more immune treatments. He differed to our cardiologist’s expertise on that. There is also a chance that the sinus node is the culprit of the current high rate, and the earlier ablation could have just taken care of the previous higher rate.
We spoke with the EP about how similar these issues are to Amanda’s previous arrhythmia problems. He said it defies all things known about heart transplants and arrhythmia issues persisting in a new heart. I joked about how Amanda would be the one to have an issue like that, leave it to her!
I’ve been in the hospital too long. I pestered Amanda all afternoon, and she was ready for me to take a walk or something. The food delivery lady even gave Amanda sass. She brought the tray in, and Amanda asked her just to set it by the sink. Looking at her with a smirk and a tilted face, she said are you not going to eat this? Usually, when someone says to set it there, they don’t want it! We were actually going to eat this tray; I’d ordered a fruit plate.
We’re still having issues getting pain meds. Amanda started her cough, so I knew the chest pain was coming. She waited to call the nurse, and of course, it took forever. When the nurse came in, I don’t think she had a clue about Amanda’s call; she was just there to give her the scheduled meds. They have also been a pain with her morphine because her blood pressure is low. It is always low and has been since we have been here. The day nurse has been a pill about it, too. I really do not like the nurses on this floor. I know they are overloaded with patients, but for some, it’s their attitudes.
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