Today, I had an angiogram done to determine the next steps in my quest to regain heart health.

My procedure was scheduled for 8am, so they told me to arrive at the hospital at 6 — the nurse’s workday, however, didn’t officially start until 6:30! Fortunately for me, he arrived early, so I only had to cool my heels for a few minutes (and that was in a waiting room, not the hallway). Once he arrived, things got started fairly quickly; I don’t know exactly when they put the IV in (about 7:30, I think — I don’t know how to get a precise time from a Facebook update, so I can’t be sure…no, wait…I just found the “My Status” app, and it tells me that I had the IV in before 7:13am), and very soon after that, they were wheeling me down the hall to the Cath Lab itself, while someone from the Business Office was collecting my co-pay from Diane (there was a discount offered for same-day payment). I remember the nurse shaving some hair in the area of my femoral artery; further, deponent remembereth not.

After being returned to the “short stay” area, Diane tells me I spoke with both my cardiologist and the thoracic surgeon she recommends (who, I now have discovered, doesn’t appear to be on my insurance! [update: I called his office, and he is on my plan. Glad to know that the “provider search” site is unreliable as well as being hard to use!]). They told us (well, mostly Diane) that, in addition to my stenosis, I also have a constricted circumflex artery (90% narrowed), and that it would be a good idea to have the surgery done soon.

My memories pick up, for the most part, after that conversation (though I must have been tracking to some extent, because I posted the name of the artery to Facebook!); I had a belated breakfast, a sketchy lunch, and then was cleared to go home. Someone, possibly the nurse, said that I should be started on statins soon, but I can’t find that in my discharge papers.

I’m not supposed to do anything more strenuous than walking for the next couple of days, and someone “suggested” that I skip golf class on Thursday, too, so it’s going to be a quiet week here at home.

I go back to the cardiologist on Monday to formulate the plan for the operation.

It’s been about a month since I found out I have aortic stenosis. I’ve spent that time doing many things, including an Alaska cruise, from which I’ve posted a few photos on Facebook — the rest will get edited and posted RealSoonNow.

Despite the cardiologist’s clearance, I haven’t tried yoga yet. But golf class continues apace at West Valley (and I’ve even played nine holes with a friend and not lost by too much). However, I have had to make some modifications to what I do; for example, I can’t be one of the Stunt Doubles when we play that game at ComedySportz San Jose Rec League. And I’ve had to consider what this means to my job search; it’s clear that it’s not the time to look for an immediate full-time gig, though I am continuing to meet with people (I hate using “network” as a verb) and go to classes.

On the medical front itself, nothing much has happened. I don’t feel any different than I did before; I’ve had one consultation with the cardiologist, and am planning to meet with another one for a second opinion. Yesterday,I had my first call with my nurse from Empire Blue Cross (the insurance company), which was very helpful; I haven’t made it through all the material she sent! I’ve also been researching thoractic surgeons and hospitals — the best hospitals in the area are at least 30 minutes from home, so it would be nice to be able to use Good Sam (5 minutes from home), but having a successful outcome is far more important than anything else. More research looms.

The next active step is an angiogram, sometime in October; that’ll let us know whether the surgeons have to do anything else for sure while they’ve got the hood open, and I guess that will also let us know if we can wait until early next year, which would be my preference at this point.

I’ve had a lot of support from friends and family, which I greatly appreciate; having knowledgable friends is a real boon!