Georgianna Kalinowski:  

I hope everyone gets a chance to read this. Especially the women. If it can prevent just one person from going through what I did, then it will have helped. For years I have gone to the doctor whenever they have said they wanted me to come in for a follow up, or annual physical. My cholestrol was a little high, my blood pressure was very good. Maybe a little on the low side. And my type 2 diabetes was under control. Even if I was about 15 pounds overweight. Everything looked good. Then came November 1, 2008 and my world came apart. I did not know what was wrong, but I told my husband that I needed him to take me to the emergency room. He went out to turn the car around so that I could just walk out and get in. By the time he was finished and came back to get me I told him that I couldn't walk that far. My husband called 911 for an ambulance. They took me to the nearest hospital which is just up the road from the house less than 2 miles. In the emergency room they ran a blood test and told my husband that I had had a heart attack. Within a couple of hours they decided that they could not care for me so they put me into another ambulance and had me transported to West Florida Hospital. When I got to West Florida Hospital they knew exactly what needed to be done and started taking actions immediately. They entubated me, and started monitors and IVs, and a catheter. Then put me into a drug induced coma. I don't remember much of what happened during the next 11 days. The one thing that I do remember is that every time they let me surface from the effects of the drugs my husband was there. Some times one of my daughters was there when I woke up. Because I did not fully understand what was happening to me that tube in my throat was really distressing. They would let me surface from the drugs long enough to check my progress, run some tests, check for any new problems then the medication in the IV would get turned on again and I would be back asleep. I now understand that all of this was done because I was suffering from Congestive Heart Failure. My heart had not stopped but it was unable to pump blood as it is supposed to. There was alot of fluid in my lungs and in the heart sack. That was the reason for the drugs they were giving me, they had to get the excess fluid out of my lungs, and away from my heart. At some point during the first week my husband was told that if there was family that needed to be contacted that he should do it. Since the doctor felt he could not promise that I would live through another 24 hours. Other than knowing my husband and one of my daughters was beside me, my first clear memory is on November 13, when I met my flight nurse. I was being transferred to The University of Alabama Medical Center - Cardiac Care Unit. The University of Alabama has a Medical School Department, with their own fleet of planes for transporting patients when needed. As a side note I would have enjoyed that flight alot more if I had been able to sit up and see things. As it was I was strapped down, and medicated for the trip. I will always be grateful that these planes and people exist, they turned a 4 1/2 hour drive into a 45 minute flight. During the next 8 days my luck turned around. I'm not sure of how many trips I made to the Cath. lab, other than to say it was enough that the Dr and technicians were able to tell me that each time I was there they saw improvement. After seeing copies of the bills that were sent to my insurance company I now know that I went 4 times in Florida and 5 times in Alabama. The doctors at UAB, were able to place 2 stents in my heart. And blood began to flow almost immediately. Which allowed me to avoid the need for bypass surgery. The day before I came home they let me watch the ultrasound of my heart functioning the way it was supposed to. Thanksgiving was minimal, I came home from the hospital late on the Friday before. And my energy level while higher than the doctors anticipated is still very low. Christmas was minimal as well. But my husband and I have the most precious thing that we could ask for; we are both alive and enjoyed the holidays together. Up until the day I was hit by that heart attack and congestive heart f...Expand for more