Heart Attack Symptoms and Clotting - OH MY!

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday, in case you don't celebrate.

Over the weekend, I thought I was having a heart attack. My left arm pained, I had shortness of breath, pressure in the chest, nausea, and soon enough numbness in my left arm. It was one of the scariest moments of my life. All I could think was, could I really be having a heart attack?

I decided though I could take an aspirin, after surgery and especially with those symptoms, I shouldn't fool around. I went to the ED and they ran a chest xray, ct scan, ekg, and gave me aspirin. They didn't think I had a heart attack, but were still trying to rule out a stroke. After talking to a few neurologist, they didn't believe I had a stroke either. They did admit me though.

Good for insurance at least! However, no bed until 730 in the morning?! What a night! Barely any sleep and nothing much done for me aside from some medication. Next time I might take my chances with aspirin... Although, I will say I truly believe despite the lack of diagnosis and the mystery around my symptoms,  it's still good that I went.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I will say this: I really believe that whenever someone is having symptoms of a heart attack or stoke, you cannot risk it. I hate hospitals,  hate needles, and especially hate blood now. However, my life is worth more than the temporary torment of being in the hospital. So is anyone else's.

Extra big needle for this IV - Can we say PAINFUL!

Needless to say, I'm making an appointment with my cardiologist.

My dad had his biopsy yesterday and is still bleeding today. I've redone his gauze five times, not including the nurse who visited and changed it this morning as well. It's not profusely coming out, just enough to scare me and the rest of my family. I guess the term oozing is what his Newark nurse has suggested it to be. I hate blood and I sometimes feel like I can pass out from dealing with it, but I'm trying to do all I can while taking care of him.

I think the conclusion I've come to from him continuously bleeding, is he needs to stop the blood thinners even earlier in the week and he needs a nurse who will hold his wound longer to clot it. This sadly, is not the first time he's come home and I've had to re-bandage him.

I'm currently trying ice to closes the blood vessels but if it doesn't stop, it's off to Newark tomorrow morning to get the area stitched.

Despite all the hiccups this week, I say still have a lot to be thankful for. My dad might be bleeding but, his biopsy came up as a grade zero, which is even better than a 1A.

A quote that will keep you motivated:

Everything is okay in the end, if it's not okay, it's not the end.

<3

Jess

Spicy Spinach Lasagna

It's been a little hectic with the Christmas holiday coming and it seems like it's always harder to have time to eat a proper meal. Let's face it, the holiday is expensive enough without having to spend more money eating out. I found this spinach lasagna recipe and tweaked it a bit to what I already had in the fridge. Less money spent if you use what you already have, right?!

Baking Time: 45 minutes

You'll need:
1 bag of spinach
15 or 16 oz of ricotta cheese (part skim)
1 egg
1 tsp or more crushed red pepper (I added a full tbs)
Some black pepper
1/2 cup of low fat mixed cheese or mozzarella 
1 cup of tomato sauce, low sodium if you have it
8 ounces of whole wheat or regular lasagna noodles

Set your oven to 350 degrees and put a pot to boil and add your lasagna noodles. Start mixing together the spinach, ricotta cheese, egg, crushed red pepper, and black pepper. If you can stand the heat, add more red crushed pepper. It's been proven that if you eat something spicy daily, your metabolism will speed up. Don't forget, if you're a heart transplant patient or helping one, make sure you wash the spinach in vinegar first and rinse under cold water before adding any other ingredients!

Soon enough you're ready to spray your baking dish with cooking spray and start layering your noodles. Add your mix above it and some more noodles above that. Finally add your sauce and your cheese. Like I said, I tweaked this recipe for the items I already had instead of going to buy more ingredients.

Put your lasagna in the oven for 45 to 50 minutes and you're ready to eat!

 

Hope you like it and have plenty more money with using the ingredients you already have!

Don't forget to take a moment and enjoy the season!

<3

Jess

Nine Month's Post Open Heart Surgery

Yesterday was my nine month anniversary since I had my operation. It's amazing how time flies. I really can't believe that it's been that long! It seems like just yesterday that I was waking up and going to the hospital. I remember the hugs and kisses, and the smile I had plastered on my face as I walked through the waiting room and into the operating room.

While I don't even remember the anesthesiologist name or those who assisted him, I do remember that if it had not been for this British Asian doctor, the fear that I was hiding, would have been very much present. One of the last things I remember saying to him before I fell under, was do not let me wake up.

I didn't wake up during surgery. And looking back now, nine months later, it truly is remarkable how much I have overcome and how much I have personally been able to achieve.

With being the primary caretaker of my father right now, I am reminded of how much I wanted freedom after surgery. You're pretty much confined to your house and you rely heavily on those around you to give you any relief at all from your isolation.

As much as I was an emotional roller coaster from just having so much to recover with, I can't imagine what an emotional roller coaster my dad has been on with steroids. After talking to a few people who not only have had surgery on their heart but, also in other areas, one thing has become very apparent that we all have in common -  that is, we all are living with a prominent battle in our heads of what we're feeling on a daily basis.

That was certainly something pre-op did not prep me on. The emotional ups and downs you feel post surgery are more intense than I could have ever imagined. I remember one night just yelling at my poor mom because of how much I couldn't take living in my house anymore. All because of the lack of freedom and for that moment in time, I did not see my future of a better health. Rather, I just had the one day at a time mentality. I wish on that day in particular, I did look ahead. Many other days, I certainly did, just not that one.

Those weeks following the near month stay in the hospital make me realize now how much it was a struggle to sit still. I wanted so much more out of my life that it was hard to realize, it was just a brief chapter in my life that I had to be home.

I am reminded of these thoughts once more as some days I struggle with the frustration of a recovering father.

A brief moment in time of my young life, though sometimes frustrating, it is a life full of love, happiness, and health. My friends and family have taught me despite struggle, life will move forward. Happy 9 months to me and happy 1 month and a few days to my dad!

As Dori from Finding Nemo said "Just keep swimming."

<3

Jess

Traveling Back In Time

Today seems like it's been a run around kind of day between going to work, taking my dad to the doctor, and just running some errands. Days like this with my dad being a little frustrating, make me want to take a vacation far away. In my 23 years, I've been lucky enough to have traveled a great deal despite having enough medical conditions.

My healthy tips for traveling, especially with a heart condition include:

- Train! I can't stress that enough (the more you do, the easier the transition is)
- Plan an itinerary, that way if you can't get to everything, you can at least narrow down the list to what you want to see the most
- Over pack medications, especially if you're abroad
- Take items you can throw away at the end of the trip (even shoes)
-  Use a bag with wheels, your body will thank you for it later
- Bring a bottle that can hold water and stay hydrated! (though make sure you know what places allow you to drink from the sink or if it needs to be boiled)
- Make sure you get your protein in! (If you're walking all day, you can't just survive on carbs)
- Bring that sunscreen (I came back to the states a whole different color after Italy)

When I visited Italy, I can honestly say it was an experience of a lifetime. While  I just scratched the surface of Rome on my five week study abroad program, there are a number of museums and places that are must sees!

The Capitoline Museum is a prime example of which people might be reluctant to get to or even think it isn't worth it, but if you get the chance to visit, you won't be sorry. You have to walk up more stairs than Michelangelo ever intended for people. (originally it was meant for horses to climb)
If you're an art history/history person like me, there truly is nowhere like Rome to see the transcendence of an empire for what it once was, to what the city is today.

Here is just a taste of Capitoline Museum and the views of what this hill offers.

Constantine

Roof Museum cafe

There's a "she wolf" in the closet..

Part of Michelangelo's design

Marcus Aurelius

Baby Geta

While walking within this building, you really have a lot of scenery to take in. And also, a lot of stairs. I recall thinking if I can survive this many stairs leading up to the museum, the impossible suddenly has become possible. I certainly had many major milestones on this trip, the big one - actually surviving. Climbing Michelangelo's design makes me look back on that first full day of my trip and really wonder how I survived without training myself.

This is only a small part of my travels and I hope to share more. It's funny looking back on it now how my health always seemed to be struggle, but yet I still pursued traveling despite not being 100%. I wouldn't suggest this to everyone and I know I certainly checked in with my doctor to make sure I was enough good health to go anywhere.. (though HCM just came up out of no where)

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.

Explore. Dream. Discover. 

~ Mark Twain ~

~ Happy Travels ~ 

<3

Jess

Life Doesn't Stop Friendship

While this weekend was extremely busy visiting with family, I also made time to see some of my good friends. As the holiday season is in full swing, I realize how lucky I am to have certain people in my life. Even more so this year, my friends have felt like family to me.

When life makes it hard to live, it's nice to know you always have someone to lean on. While juggling being primary caretaker of my father, I am reassured by these friends that though life isn't always easy, no life worth living, comes without some struggles. I firmly believe part of your heart health and overall emotional health, comes with taking time to be with people you can de-stress with and even just taking a moment to yourself. Lets face it, holiday's make life a bit stressful, and it's nice to have a time to kick back and relax.

Grab that glass of red wine and take a moment to yourself. Your heart and head will thank you.

Now for some heart healthy food!
I made chickpea masala for a low sodium diet and considering I've just been gaining my cooking skills, this was a pretty good meal!

It has:
- 1 can of chickpeas
- 1 can of string beans
- onion
- sugar
- olive oil
- low sodium diced tomatoes
- curry powder
- coconut milk
- cumin seeds
- turmeric

While I didn't think this meal would be filling, it surprisingly was. For being heart healthy, it was pretty good. I'm glad the more my dad and I are cooking, the more we're finding some good recipes and altering them to our needs. We're getting creative in the kitchen and I never even thought I'd be in the kitchen! Being healthy isn't easy, but I think the trick is to just start buying the right stuff from the start. After going to the supermarket about four times in the same week, mind you not even for thanksgiving food items, it's become apparent to me that everything in the fridge has suddenly turned healthy. Get rid of that junk food and replace it with healthy snacks.

Yes, that yoplait commercial about swapping comes to mind and it really is true! Not about tricking your mom into liking one boyfriend over the other, rather, switching out what you normally eat. I find when I'm not surrounded by twenty different pies of choice to eat, I make the healthy decision to have the fruit, nuts, and milk as a snack. Get RID OF THAT JUNK FOOD! (Harder to do when I don't have full control over the shopping list but, by not having it in the house, the desire for it isn't there nearly as much) That really does have to be step one in healthy eating habits.

And while you're at it, take your heart healthy exercise to an extreme. No, I don't mean shopping in the mall on black Friday (though that will certainly give your cardio for like a month) or any evening in December, I'd suggest visiting New York City. While it's chaotic as hell, no other city does Christmas quite like New York. I visited over the weekend and even though it was still November, it really put me in the mood for starting to celebrate and decorate for Christmas.

 
I'll leave you with this.

Some see the Glass as half full, some as half empty. Some of us just grab the thing and Drink.

A healthy heart and healthy lifestyle can start at any point. Why not start today no matter the circumstances?

<3

Jess