Gwen's Update - almost entirely non-Asherman's related

July 14, 2002

Wow Gwen,

I hope that they sort you out soon, that sounds v scary your little one

wasn't with you when it happened I hope?

On the good news front though I'm doing my happy dance for you, while I wire

up the web cam hah hah hah.

Take care of yourself and make time to take it easy once in a while.

((((HUGS))))

Lesia

July 14, 2002

Hello All:

Well, the good news is that I GOT THE JOB! I am very excited about

it! I got the news on Friday and will be officially accepting the

position and quitting on Monday (I'd better hurry-up and get that web-

cast set up! I will start this new position on August 5th and am

really looking forward to it. I will be working in a near-suburb of

Chicago called OakBrook which is very close to home for me and will

reduce my commuting time almost in-half of what it is now. The

salary is higher, the people are wonderful and it looks like a place

where I might actually be valued and treated with RESPECT! What a

CONCEPT!!

Okay, now the bad news....I ended-up in the hospital this weekend. My

heart is " freaking-out " . I have this fairly rare arrythmia called V-

tach (ventricular tachycardia). Usually I go into it for 10-30

seconds and my heart races at about 150-200 beats per minute and then

as quickly as it starts, it stops on its own. Once, when doing Tae-

Bo, I went into this rhythm and it didn't stop on its own. So I tried

this deep bearing cough called a valsalva maneuver and it didn't work

so I then tried putting something cold (in this case a bag of frozen

peas) on my chest and lying flat on the floor and that worked and I

came " out " of the rhythm about 10 minutes later feeling a little

faint and kind of dizzy but otherwise okay.

Well, on Friday morning I went into this rhythm again and could NOT

come out. I tried everything, valsalvas, frozen entres (a Healthy

Choice I had brought for lunch) even a bag of ice on my chest and

nothing was working and my heart was pounding at about 150 beats a

minute and wouldn't stop. I hadn't been running flights of stairs or

anything at the time, just sitting at my desk. So, I called my

doctor who told me to go to the emergency room. There, they

discovered that my potassium and magnesium levels were dangerously

low and that was what had caused my heart to go into " overdrive " .

They started me on an IV with Potassium and Magnesium drips and got

my heart rate back under control. This time I felt awful, I was in

this super-fast rhythm for almost 2 hours with no break and couldn't

catch my breath, was dizzy, nauseous, had a horrible headache and

some " tightness " in my chest that was very uncomfortable. I seriously

thought I might have been having a heart attack.

And apparently, had they not been able to get the heartrate under

control that was the possible outcome....

So, they admitted me to continue the Potassium/Magnesium drip and to

continue to monitor my heart rate. I have had a few more " episodes "

since then but they have all been very short in duration and

haven't " lasted " like this scary episode on Friday.

SO, I am now on some medication to regulate my heartrate and I will

keep the appointment with the cardiologist I had previously scheduled

for Wednesday to discuss surgery. They want to perform a form of

cardiac catheterization where they use tiny electrodes to purposely

scar the heart in certain places to " interrupt " or act as a road-

block to this abnormal electrical signal that is occurring in my

heart for some unknown reason. They have done an echocardiogram of my

heart and my heart itself appears to be perfectly healthy. They have

no idea why this is happening but it apparently does happen to some

people with no known heart defect....this odd electrical " misfiring "

of the heart....

So, I am going to try to " put off " this procedure until the week

after next because we are supposed to travel to North Carolina at the

end of this week for a family reunion to see my Grandmother on her

85th birthday but I will hopefully be able to get this done before I

start the new job....

So, things have been kind of shaken-up around here. My poor 4-year

old was in a panic and cried so hard when she came to see me in the

hospital. She was also very disappointed because she and I were

supposed to be up in Wisconsin this weekend visiting my sister and he

daughter but we obviously had to cancel.

Anyway, that is my update. I still have an appointment with the new

RE on the 1st of August, but to be honest, the Asherman's issue is on

the " back burner " right now until we figure out what's going on with

my heart as pregnancy is pretty much out of the question right now

until and unless they can get my heartrate under control without

medication because the medication they are using is counter-indicated

for pregnancy as it causes birth defects. SO, we'll have to wait and

see what the next few weeks bring.

Thanks for listening...I am okay but worried and a bit nervous but

taking my medication carefully and hoping for the best.

I'll post again when I can...I expect the next few weeks to be quite

busy with doctors appointments and quitting and trying to get ready

to start a new job....take care everyone!

GWen

July 14, 2002

Gwen,

First, congratulations on your new position! Sounds like it's the

fit you were seeking. As for your heart arrythmia - I'm so glad to

know that the echo shows your heart to be healthy! Certainly AS will

have to take a back seat to this situation while you get it

resolved. You've got so much going on, but it's clear from all of

your posts that you're up for the task. Keep us posted when it's

convenient. These days I spend an average of 3 days+/per week at

doctors or PT appointments, but I have no children and am officially

on summer vacation right now. You've got a lot on your plate.

Although my health problems (non-AS related) which led to part-time

work have hit us hard, I don't think I could manage a full-time gig.

You've got a 4 year old! What I'm saying it that I'm impressed an

inspired! I have no doubt that you'll get the heart " misfiring "

under control. I'm sure the cardiac catheterization sounds scary.

I've been amazed to recently assist family members going through open

heart surgery to deal with and to prevent heart attacks. It's truly

amazing what cardiac surgeons are able to do these days!! You'll get

this behind you. You'll be in my thoughts and prayers. All of you

women are now a huge part of my life. Take care, Gwen.

- J.

July 14, 2002