Heart attack
Monday morning I received a call from my mother's friend Linda. I never receive calls from her friends so I knew immediately that something was wrong. My mother had been taken to the hospital via ambulance. She called me about an hour later to tell me that they thought she'd had a heart attack and that they were sending her to have a cardiac catheterization.
A cardiac catheterization is when they send a tube through the groin and up to the heart. Once in the heart they check out the arteries and if any are clogged they inflate a balloon which is suppose to clear out the arteries so the heart can pump blood properly.
As soon as she told me what was going to happen I left work, packed a bag and headed to her. I knew I wouldn't make it there before she went into surgery but I was going to try and be there when she got out. The drive to her is about five to six hours, which was probably the longest drive in history.
After about two hours I got a call from a technician of some sort who told me that she had cone out of the surgery fine. Her arteries weren't clog so they weren't sure why she had a heart attack.
I walked into the hospital room I nearly burst into tears. My mother has only been in the hospital twice in her life. Once when I was born and the second when my brother was born. Seeing my mother in a hospital bed with tubes coming out of various parts of her body was shocking and frightening. She's had colds, the flu, respiratory infections, etc., but she's never been sick enough to warrant a trip to the hospital.
When my father died I was irrationally angry with my mother for living when he'd died. Even when she guessed I never confirmed her suspicions about my feelings. I knew that I had conflicting feelings. Though I was angry that she'd lived I didn't really want her to be gone. It took me a long time to stop being angry. I still miss my father but I'm glad to have my mother.
On the drive to her all I could think about was how alone I would be if something happened to her. I would no longer have any parents. I would be an orphan to a certain degree. I didn't even want to think about dealing with the possibility. So, I drove as fast as I could to get to her.
Wednesday they released her from the hospital with a new list of medications and a suggested diet. The doctors believe the heart attack was caused by stress. There's not much one can do about stress but I'm hoping she learns not to get herself worked up over minor things as she has in the past.
I left on Thursday afternoon. I didn't want to leave but I had to come back so I could get back to work. I'm still worried that my phone will ring and it'll be Linda calling to tell me that my mother has had another heart attack. I know my mother is human but coming this close to her mortality has made me grateful that I'm no longer angry and happy that she's still with me.
A cardiac catheterization is when they send a tube through the groin and up to the heart. Once in the heart they check out the arteries and if any are clogged they inflate a balloon which is suppose to clear out the arteries so the heart can pump blood properly.
As soon as she told me what was going to happen I left work, packed a bag and headed to her. I knew I wouldn't make it there before she went into surgery but I was going to try and be there when she got out. The drive to her is about five to six hours, which was probably the longest drive in history.
After about two hours I got a call from a technician of some sort who told me that she had cone out of the surgery fine. Her arteries weren't clog so they weren't sure why she had a heart attack.
I walked into the hospital room I nearly burst into tears. My mother has only been in the hospital twice in her life. Once when I was born and the second when my brother was born. Seeing my mother in a hospital bed with tubes coming out of various parts of her body was shocking and frightening. She's had colds, the flu, respiratory infections, etc., but she's never been sick enough to warrant a trip to the hospital.
When my father died I was irrationally angry with my mother for living when he'd died. Even when she guessed I never confirmed her suspicions about my feelings. I knew that I had conflicting feelings. Though I was angry that she'd lived I didn't really want her to be gone. It took me a long time to stop being angry. I still miss my father but I'm glad to have my mother.
On the drive to her all I could think about was how alone I would be if something happened to her. I would no longer have any parents. I would be an orphan to a certain degree. I didn't even want to think about dealing with the possibility. So, I drove as fast as I could to get to her.
Wednesday they released her from the hospital with a new list of medications and a suggested diet. The doctors believe the heart attack was caused by stress. There's not much one can do about stress but I'm hoping she learns not to get herself worked up over minor things as she has in the past.
I left on Thursday afternoon. I didn't want to leave but I had to come back so I could get back to work. I'm still worried that my phone will ring and it'll be Linda calling to tell me that my mother has had another heart attack. I know my mother is human but coming this close to her mortality has made me grateful that I'm no longer angry and happy that she's still with me.
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