Got back from the hospital a bit ago, went for visiting around 1130. Momwolf was sleeping. Her nurse pulled me aside and let me know that they are having trouble stabilizing her heart rate. She'll spike up into the 130s or better. Then some Nitro and Serax later, she's back down into normal range. Happened again while I was there. I got shuffled out into the family waiting room and called back in about 15 minutes later. The hospitalist and cardiologist are monitoring her carefully.
She slept most of the time I was there, which is fine. She needs that right now. I left after she woke up for a bit, because I didn't want her to awaken and just find me gone.
She's very frightened.
One of the things that they told her they wanted to do was a cardiac catheterization. So far she is refusing. The last time she had one down was at HUP/Presbyterian, back in 2006. At the time it revealed what we already knew ... the grafts from her 1985 cardiac bypass have lost elasticity, and they are also partially occluded. At the time they had considered placing a stent, but the architecture of her veins was such that they wouldn't be able to maneuver one into place without a strong possibility of busting through the vessel wall, so no go on that.
Frankly, I don't expect that much has changed there in the last three years. This is also the opinion of her cardiologist.
I can't wait until the darn holiday weekend is over and this hospital's guy can talk to her guy.
What I have to figure out is what to do ... do the paperwork and initiate FMLA now, or when she's ready for discharge home?
(It's really my only option. I am totally out of vacation at this point (momwolf's breast cancer, shingles, and my visit to The Mouse), and if I don't work the minimum number of hours per week I have to pay out of pocket for my insurance. At least with FMLA they can charge the time against sick rather than vacay. And I have plenty of sick.)
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