Heart Journey Update

Yesterday I received a phone call from the University of Michigan CVC. And afterwards, all I could do was cry.

When I saw it was Michigan, I couldn’t help but immediately think, what happened? When Michigan calls out of the blue, it’s usually because something is wrong. I’d love to give that number the benefit of the doubt, but my experiences have been the opposite. When I heard my nurse’s voice on the other end, my heart started to panic. Now what?

She began to explain that the results of my heart monitor came back. The last time, it showed a dangerous amount of PVCs (extra beats), which caused me to have yet another ablation, that was done in 9early December. It wasn’t easy, but ya gotta do whatchya gotta do, right? I left there discouraged and frustrated. I was told the procedure worked perfectly, but when I left, my heartbeats were completely out of whack. Why did this happen again? I get my hopes up and walk away discouraged.

I’ve been having an inkling that I’ve been having fewer beats compared to December, considering I’ve been able to do a lot more than I used to. I can exercise (walk for 15-20 minutes without stopping), move furniture (thanks to a house project), and just have more energy. So I was curious…

She began to explain that my PVC burden (the percentage of extra ventricular beats my heart has), was significantly lower. The last time, it was at 20% AND I’m on an anti-arrhythmia drug. This go around?

LESS THAN 1%.

Yes, that is correct. LESS THAN 1%!!!! That means the ablation I had, the hopes I had that it DID work, well, it indeed did! After I hung up the phone with her, all I could do was cry. There was this sense of relief, this sense of hope that things don’t always have to keep going downhill, and this sense of ease I haven’t felt in a LONG time. In fact, it was about a year and half ago, when I was put on an anti-arrhythmia drug, that I started to feel like I do now. Now the only issue is that the goal of the procedure was to get me OFF the anti-arrhythmia drug because it can be very dangerous to be on. To the point that it can cause organ damage/failure. I am monitored closely, but the docs want to get me off of it. In March, I will have a follow-up to discuss what to do and we just PRAY that my PVC burden stays as low as it is, if they decide I should stop taking it! No matter what they decide, I’m going to milk this time until March for ALL it’s worth! Embrace this health I am feeling. Just brings me to tears to say that. To think that after almost 2 years of having extra beats, that we may have a solution? But essentially, as much as it was the doctor who performed the procedure, it was ALL GOD.

I just keep thinking of the verse in Matthew…”WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE.”

No earthly person is in charge of this heart of mine. Only God is. I can do what I can to stay healthy and the doctors can do what they can to manage my heart failure and electrical issues. But ultimately, GOD rules it.

I know I still have significant heart failure. I’m aware of that and am living accordingly. No worries, no marathons for me. But to know that the chance of my ICD (internal defibrillator) going off has SIGNIFICANTLY decreased, put me in awe that God would choose to do this in my life, at such a time as this. Knowing I am carrying a device that could go off at anytime, telling me I am going into cardiac arrest, isn’t always easy. When I go to a “big” place, my mind right away wonders, what do I do if it goes off? I have to be mentally prepared and it’s something I think about often. But knowing the risk is barely there at the moment, makes my eyes well with tears of thankfulness and relief.

I was shocked and I could hear it in the nurses voice, the excitement in their office as well. I feel like it’s been a rough road the past year, considering I was in the hospital for a week, just 3 short months ago, with a heartbeat so out of whack. BUT. There is no stopping God and his ways, amirite?

I hope in some way, this encourages your faith, as it does mine. I know God is faithful in the hard times and the times when we don’t like the news we hear. But he is faithful in the good news too. Despite the ups and downs of a failing heart, God continues to show his might, his power, and his provisions in unexplainable ways.

Always remember…WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!