Happy Birthday Sir Valveington

I have christened my new value, Sir Wilbur Valveington. I am pleased that we have gotten along so splendidly for the last two weeks and hope that this is an indication of things to come.

At now a full week home and two weeks post op, I would be flagrantly dishonest to say that any of this was easy. It is not easy. It is frustrating and boring and exhausting and messy and contemplative and meditative and challenging and very humbling. It’s the kind of journey that you think “In one year from now I am going to look back and laugh about this and see how much I learned” but for now all you think is “f@ck you, heart surgery.”

Last night was the first post discharge health ‘hiccup’ we had. There was a flea-toenail-tip sized concern that my resting heart rate was a bit low for the first time since the surgery. Considering that it has danced around in the high 80’s or 100’s – there was some worry whether or not to give me the night-time dose of Metoprolol – a drug to lower the heat rate.

While a resting heart rate in the 50’s and low 60’s can actually be considered optimal in healthy athlete types, it raised some flags in my post op and medicated situation.

Mum diligently checked and charted my rate all night long just in case. (What a bloody champion!)

I diligently tried to sleep as best I could. ( I have a whole blog post about how I have been coping with the insomnia and disrupted sleep, but I am too tired to finish writing it. – see what I did there) But for the first night it was actually nice to try to sleep without the feeling of a lead hoofed oxen line-dancing in my chest and I can only hope the lower rate is a positive sign of healing to come.

We saw the doctor this afternoon – after the longest, snow storm plagued car ride ever, Peter you are an Acura driving Saint – and we have adjusted my meds to suit my hopefully new slow jams heart rate, overall he was very pleased with my progress. So I am one more day closer to feeling more like an epic-champion-ninja-goddess-butterfly-wrangler. (I am taking liberties with exactly how I expect to feel after because it gives me focus.)

In the meantime I am going to keep celebrating/recovering my new little valve buddy and stay focused on the fact that everything in life is transient and temporary. Both good and bad, so celebrate whichever state you are currently in: relish the good and humour the bad. This too shall pass.