If it’s Thursday, it must be time for … Education Monday.
But first, I’d like you to meet some of my cardiac rehab pals.
Most of the heart warriors in my 11 a.m. Monday-Wednesday-Friday group are north of age 70. I am, at 58, known as the “Kid.” Not complaining.
The cast of characters (and I mean that):
There’s my good buddy, Sir Charles, a soft-spoken retired GM welder who underwent a quadruple bypass earlier this year. At 81, he’s a devoted baseball fan who has aptly dubbed the Detroit Tigers 2018 team “those bums.”
There’s Hilarious Harvey, 73, a triple bypass and stroke patient who uses a foldable vinyl walker on wheels to get round. His beloved “bride” drives him and picks him up for every session. She never gets out of the car to help him stow the walker. Must be a reason. Tough love, perhaps? Harvey may be physically slow, but his mind is quick and a little bit dirty. “Golf is the most fun you can have with your clothes on,” Harvey has said on more than one occasion as we discussed the improbable comeback of Tiger Woods.
And there’s Talker Tom, 72, previously introduced, who may have met his verbal match with (Not) Silent Sandra, 73, a diabetic with a frozen shoulder, bad knee, weak heart and all-around allergy to exercise. She could talk the feathers off a chicken, as my friend Kelly says.
Then there’s Quiet Ted, nearing 80, who gives his younger compadres a run for their money. One day he heard Talker Tom boasting that a pacemaker makes his heart run 87 percent of the time. “What happens with the other 13 percent?” Quiet Ted deadpanned.
There’s a new member in our group, whom I just met this week. His name is Brian, and he’s 59. (Yea!)
Outwardly, he looks like the picture of health: tall, thin, barely any gray hair. The fact is, he’s a diabetic who had a heart attack in his 40s and has lost 50 pounds in the past year by giving up sugar, processed meats and dairy. (Not necessarily in that order.) Brian now has five (count ‘em, five!) stents in one previously very clogged left anterior descending artery, a.k.a., the “widow maker.” His wife and kids are grateful, and so is he.
Oddly enough, this week’s Education Monday was about stents, those tiny wire mesh tubes that prop open a clogged coronary artery and are left there permanently.
According to our handouts, coronary arteries feed the heart muscle. When a coronary artery is narrowed by a buildup of fatty deposits called plaque, it can reduce blood flow to the heart. Chest pain can result. If a clot forms and completely blocks blood flow to part of the heart muscle, a heart attack results.
What causes plaque to build up against the inner wall of the coronary arteries? High blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking are among the most common causes. Damage to that inner wall causes inflammation, which can block blood flow to the heart.
If you’re bored during recovery and want to watch something fascinating, go to YouTube and type in “angiogram.” This is a test where a contrast dye is injected into the coronary arteries to locate any blockages. You can see an X-ray map of the heart’s coronary arteries.
Until next time, I’m gonna grab some lunch. Hold the cheese-stuffed French toast and bacon …
(Copyright 2018)
