Thanks again to all those who have sent their wishes! Six days down the road, my chest is still very sore at times (not at all at others), since they had to split my breastbone down the middle in order to reach my heart. Yeah, John C., that's about what it feels like!
For those who don't know what a bypass does, your heart is surrounded by tiny arteries, about the same width as a USB cable, which supply blood to the heart to keep it alive and pumping. Through a mix of genetics and/or unhealthy lifestyle, the arteries narrow due to plaque accumulations in their walls. If any become completely blocked, the result is a heart attack, where heart muscle dies. The heart is a muscle, and too much muscle death kills the person, too. Muscle doesn't come back from the dead, so the important thing is to fix the situation before it's too late.
In my case, I had my first problem twelve years ago, where I'd get chest pressure after exertion, like cutting the grass. At that time, the blockages weren't very severe and were repaired with a less invasive procedure called cardiac catheterization. That's a really cool procedure where the docs insert a tube into the groin or (now) the wrist and snake it up into your heart through a main artery. Next, they shoot radioactive liquid through the tube and watch its progress through the heart on a monitor. They can easily see where the heart arteries may be blocked or restricted.
Back then, I had three blockages. One was repaired with angioplasty, where they inflated a small balloon to reopen the coronary artery. For the other two, they inserted two stents, which are like expandable ball-point pen springs, that physically hold the arteries open. Stents are usually good for about about seven years, I'm now told, and I got twelve. Good deal!
This time, my blockages were more severe and not treatable with angioplasty or stenting, although they attempted that first. I couldn't climb two flights of stairs or briskly walk two city blocks without feeling like someone was standing on my chest. I was on the operating table the following day. They cracked open my chest like a giant clam shell (or pistachio nut), harvested sections of vein and artery from my legs and inner chest wall, then grafted them in to replace the damaged coronary arteries; four of them altogether. My only request (other than not dying) was that they not stop my heart for the procedure, as is commonly done. I'd read that doing so can have negative effects on intelligence and such, and I need all of mine that I can get! My doctor was an expert in this technique and all went well. Here's his short video: https://www.medstarhealth.org/provider/luis-andres-dibos-md-cardiac-surgery#Videos
So, now it's all done but the healing. I'm looking forward to rebuilding my physical life to what it was before the heart issues, and am confident that if something else doesn't get me (like a city bus), I'll do just that. I appreciate all the good wishes.
One more thing, the thing that first got me off my ass and into treatment back in 2001 was hearing comedian Drew Carey talk about his symptoms and the procedures he underwent to cure them. If anyone reads my words and feels even the slightest degree of resonance, see your doctor! Then see a good cardiologist. Doing so can save your life.
I'll keep you posted.
