I woke up pretty nervous. A lot was on the line today and I wasn't feeling great. I wasn't sure what kind of an impact that would have on the procedures they had scheduled for me. I was also excited about Dad meeting everyone at National Jewish. He would finally see how wonderful this place is in person.
Upon arrival, instead of starting with my appointment with Dr. Olson which was on the schedule, they sent me straight to the MIDC (which is their version of ICU) to prep me for the aspirin desensitization. They said all the doctors on my schedule would come to meet with me there instead. I started with a spirometry which showed my lung function was below 40%. Not the lowest I've ever been, but not high enough for Dr. Katial to be comfortable to go forward with desensitization. Dr. Olson came over and they both examined me and ordered a chest x-ray & immediate meds/breathing treatments to improve my lung function. The x-ray showed pneumonia. I heard the two doctors discussing my treatment outside my room. Dr. Olson convinced Dr. Katial to go forward with the procedure. She was sure that I was strong enough to handle it even with the compromised lung function. We just couldn't postpone the heart cath again and she knew the desensitization would take the full two days.
Dr. Katial came in to talk with me and complete the consent form. He told me how uncomfortable he was about moving forward with the procedure and asked me not to sign the consent. I understood what was on the line in every way. I completely trusted that the procedure was meant to happen and that any complications could be handled by Dr. Katial and his team at National Jewish.
They did move forward with the procedure. The first day was pretty rocky. I never had to be intubated, but I did react to the increased doses of aspirin. Dr. Katial was like a nervous new parent. He was in and out of the MIDC checking on me and his team constantly. Dr. Olson also stopped in a few times. She started me on strong antibiotics for the pneumonia and assured us that she would get me well enough for the heart docs to move forward with everything on Thursday.
Needless to say, even though I was in one room all day, I was completely exhausted by the end of it. We left around four o'clock that afternoon with orders to return at eight the next morning to finish the procedure.
