From Where I Sit

By Pat Spilseth, Columnist

Winter doesn’t last forever; spring will arrive eventually. Hang onto that hope for a brighter tomorrow.

However, to add to winter’s misery, Covid is still around. This past month it hit my husband Dave. Thank goodness for PAXLOVID the amazing medicine that cured his high fevers, sore throat and aches. My husband felt better almost immediately with this miracle drug. Making this winter even more chilling has been news of friends’ serious health problems: Alzheimers, difficulty breathing, brain bleeds, Parkinsons, arthritis, shoulder surgery, gallbladder issues and even deaths. What an amazing body we have, but so many things can go wrong. 

As we add another number to the years of our life, our health is more fragile as we age. Illness compounds the problem. Who doesn’t think about dying when faced with an operation or a debilitating illness? Recently, I became aware that I had issues with my heart. No wonder I felt so lethargic. My heart rate hit the 40 beat mark rather than the normal 60 plus beats for healthy living. Pauses between my heart beats caused the surgeon to recommend that a pacemaker be inserted under my skin. 

Everything happened so fast! There was a cancellation in surgery appointments so I was able to secure a much faster date with surgery, only a week later. The anxiety began…

Though I simply accepted the doctor’s advice as the date for the operation, as it approached I could feel my body tense. I made sure I talked to friends and family. I got on prayer chains. 

A nurse informed me that the 11:30 a.m. procedure was held up as there were complications with the surgery of the patient scheduled before me. I got a bit anxious as I waited for the doctor alone in my sterile, silent room. I tried to silence my nerves by recalling and endlessly repeating the words to each of the Christmas carols and hymns I’d memorized back in school and Sunday school. Next came names of states and capitals, countries and capitals. 

Thank goodness for all the memorizing we did years ago in school. I recalled reading about POWs reciting old poems and songs in prison to calm their nerves.

Wheeling into the operating room I was prepped with sterile washings, intravenous tubes and waited for the surgeon who was having a short break to recover between surgeries. The nurse told me I was getting drugs for pain from the incision for the pacemaker and another that would wipe out any memory of the surgery.

She was right. I remembered nothing of the cutting, bleeding, attendants hovering over me as Doctor Simonson cut, slid the pacemaker into the pocket he’d prepared in my chest and stitched. I slept peacefully and woke up feeling refreshed with a new weight on my chest. Tylenol worked with the pain, and I was able to function the next day just fine, though I can’t drive for several days One thing I have to be more conscious about it remembering not to lift my left arm higher than my shoulder. I’m doing great.

Our bodies function so well. It’s amazing how a device about the size of a half dollar with two tiny wires attached to my heart can control my heart beats and improve my life. Thank goodness for modern medicine!

Spring is a welcome renewal of life. With my heart now beating with a healthier rhythm, it’s definitely time to celebrate the miracle of life.

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To contact Pat, email: pat.spilseth@gmail.com.