NARRATIVES
TALK TO A
ADVICE
Established April 15, 1995
University of West Georgia Disclaimer
1 April 2007
On March 2, 2006, at age 57, I had finished taking a shower to get ready for work and reached for a towel. I felt and heard an 'unzipping' go all the way down my back in the left central area (I had no idea at the time that is where the aorta resides). I thought that I should feel some pain if it had been a muscle tear, but then realized it had occurred 'deep' inside me. I had never felt anything like that before, but I continued on with the morning routine and started to brush my teeth. I immediately felt very short of breath, something I had never experienced before either, so I went to the phone and called 911 and told the operator that something 'very wrong' was happening to me and it might be a heart attack, so please send an ambulance.
The EMTs came and put me in the ambulance and immediately started asking me what level of pain I had - I said 'it's not pain - it's discomfort', and they took me to the nearest hospital. Four hours and many tests later, they called a cardiologist to the ER who was able to diagnose an aortic dissection. They told me they had to transport me to the other hospital in my city and they had called the surgeon who would be ready for me. That surgeon saved my life that day.
The hospital notes called it an 'enormous aneursym' that resulted in an aortic dissection and an aortic valve replacement. They said my aorta was the consistency of wet tissue paper when they opened me up. It had to have a 'gore-tex sleeve' put around it, and part of it had to be glued back together. I woke up two days later surprised that I was still on earth - I thought I would wake up in heaven! I left the hospital after 11 days. Many nurses, etc. came to my room to meet the person who lived through what John Ritter and many others had died of.
Recovery was slow and difficult. I started cardiac rehab at the four month mark and missed almost five months of work. I found out at the six month mark that the dissection extends all the way from the right carotid artery down through my heart and into the abdomen. So I have three areas of concern that need monitoring - carotid, heart, and abdomen.
It involves many wonderful doctors and surgeons who keep encouraging me - they say they have followed other people through the years who have had similar things, but I have met only one other lady through the Coumadin Clinic who has survived it. That is, until I found this wonderful website and have read with wonder and amazement the beautiful narratives of how we have been given a second chance to experience life. Thank you and God Bless You all in your journeys.
Discussion, comments, or questions: Linda Fairbank
© Copyright 2006 Linda
Fairbank
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