My Ride in an Ambulance (Conclusion)

August 24^th, 2012  (around 11:30pm?? Don’t know really)

I was awake, I knew that. I was rolling on a hospital bed through the hallways, I was not sure where, I was confused. I listened to what the people that were pushing me were saying. I heard them say that “the family” was in the waiting room. I figured it out. I was on the way to the cardiac care ward, and my family was in the same waiting room that I sat in February when Mom was here. Weird, I thought. I heard a nurse say that they need to get me settled before the family comes in. They wheeled me by the room, the nurse told “the family” (I still didn’t know who was there) I heard Patti say “I love you Mike”. I needed that. They wheeled me into a room, I had IV’s and tubes and every other thing you see on tv attached to me, I was not comfortable. After I was settled the nurse told me that some people wanted to see me. They told me Patti and Tristen and the Dimarcos were there. I asked them to send in Patti and Tristen. Tristen is also a fourth year of nursing and just finished a summer job at the cardiac care unit in Owen Sound. Tristen and I have a mutual respect for each other. We care about one another, and I knew she would be strong for her Mom, and Patti would need that.

 I was so happy when I saw them. I felt better just to see them walk in. Tristen immediately began doing what nurses automatically do. She started to organize my tubes and wires etc, that somehow get so twisted. I remembered seeing my sister Laura (a nurse) doing it for my Mom, I think it is what nurses do. The nurse said they would have to go now…it was getting late. I asked the nurse if Patti could stay the night, and she said yes. I knew I would be ok.

 

August 26^th, 2012.   (10am)

I am leaving Trillium Hospital (Mississauga Hospital) today by ambulance and being transferred to Oakville Trafalgar. Trillium is for Critical Care patients that have had a heart attack. After you are stable enough, they have to transfer you, they simply do not have the space. They do on average 20 angioplasties a day. (20!) – Are you kidding me? That is a staggering number. So…when you have some strength, you are – out the door. The Trillium staff was great, caring people, although my two days there were, well, scary. I was tired, uncomfortable, anxious, etc. And I was pissed off. Why did this happen to me? What is going to happen to me? Will I play sports again, will I enjoy life again? – So much going through my head. I wanted answers, I wanted to go on my vacation (which by the way was to start today).

 

August 26^th, 2012 (8pm)

My sister (the nurse) my favorite sister (and only one too) from Colorado came tonight. She is the best….and by that I mean The Very Best! Compassionate, giving, caring….ok, you get the idea. I love her, and she flew in to help out her big brother. We had a good visit, and I was excited she would be back in the morning to “take care of me”.

 

August 29, 2012

I get out of the hospital today. It is my birthday, I turned 55, and the dietitian comes into my room singing happy birthday. It was incredibly cute, and made me smile. I told her in was exactly 55 years ago today that I was born at this very same hospital…Oakville Trafalgar. My buddy Stu visited me the day before and nicknamed me “The Phoenix”.  He said, tomorrow The Phoenix will rise again, 55 years after he was born, he is reborn again. Incredibly corny, yes….but it too made me smile. The Dr. came in and checked me all out again; she grabbed the diagram of my heart and explained to me again what happened. She pointed out that all my arteries around my heart looked great, clear, no plaque buildup, nothing. She explained to me the artery that was affected. A major artery going down the front of my heart, and also a tributary from there. There was some build up here, and it sounds like there was a blood clot that somehow released into my system and could not make it through this artery, the blood flow started to get more difficult, and eventually stopped getting through all together. This was my heart attack. They did an angioplasty and put two metal stents in the big artery and one in the smaller one…..and the blood began to flow. Amazing.

Patti took me home, I was so happy. There was a “small” McMillan function at my place that night. (13 people – typical McMillan overage of people) – it was too much (for sure) – but it was all people I love, my kids – my family. They wanted to wish me happy birthday. (but more importantly – they wanted to be there to welcome me home) – I hung in there….we eventually kicked them all out, and I crawled into my own bed for the first time in 5 days. I was exhausted. I was happy.

Life just does not get any better than this.

 

....and Patti and I are getting married in less than a month. Yahoo!

Did you ever read the blog Patti wrote - right after my heart attack? It was really good.
Click here.


Thanks for reading My story. I appreciate it.

Mike