It’s been another relatively quiet week except for Wednesday.
 
Ann took me to the hospital, arriving about 0745, I went in and made my way to the Intervention Unit in the Radiology Department and once there I realized that this was where I was taken to have the Pacemaker fitted.
 
I was led to a bedspace to gown-up, then waited, got prepped (usual blood pressure and line put in my arm), then briefed on the procedure, then waited for my turn as by the time I was ready, they took the first one of five of us in for the same procedure and I was to be number two.
 
It’s supposedly a 30-40 minute process and I was taken in at about 0910. They sprayed some local anesthetic in my throat to ease any discomfort, then gave me a 2nd dose and asked me to gargle it a little to get it further back in my throat. I then had to lie on my left side and an oversized mouth-guard that had a big circular disc with a hole in the centre was put in my mouth. There were multiple screens behind me, I had to lean my head forward, then was told to stop trying to swallow because that system was no longer functioning properly …..and that’s all I have to say about that!
 
It’s not that I don’t want to tell how I gagged and spluttered, nearly threw up and how awful it was to have a shifty-scope rammed down my throat ….or how they just slipped it in with no hassle or drama and it all went amazingly well and I was such a hero ….but truth is I don’t remember a thing!!! Just being wheeled back out to my cubicle.
 
In the briefing, my registered nurse, Alistair, advised how the local anesthetic they use has this affect, but I didn’t think much of it until I was telling Ann about what happened, then realized I didn’t know.
 
So all I recall was being rolled back to the cubicle, waiting for half an hour to an hour for the numbness to ease, then being given a sip of water to test my swallowing reflex and that nothing was going to the lungs, then shortly after I was brought a jug of water and another half hour of so after that, I was brought a sandwich, crackers and an apple, which was welcome as I wasn’t allowed to eat or drink after midnight. Then after waiting some more, getting changed and waiting some more, I was finally released and got back to the car about 1245.
 
Oh yes! My doctor, Sasse but they called her Vin (???) did tell me that the hole was relevant and they would get me back in about a month to seal it up …at least I think that’s what she said ….or implied ….or whatever.
 
Anyways, I get back to the car, we chat about it for a bit, then decide to head to a café ….and the car wouldn’t start!! I did a couple of quick checks then asked Ann to call AA, the man turned up within 15mins, confirmed the battery was knackered, I asked where the best place to go would be and he advised he had batteries in his van, turned out he had one that was the same, he replaced it, we paid him and we were good to go. Bloody marvelous service! Turned out the battery was 9 yrs old (in a 2011 car) so had done alright.
 
We went for our coffee, then made our way back to the hospital just before 1500 for my next 1530 appointment in the cardio clinic to check the pacemaker.
 
That was over within 30 mins, I asked about exercise and weights, was advised I needed to take it easy for another two weeks, then we were away and pulling into the traffic for the crawl home ….and that was that!

After all the turmoil of a few weeks ago, things have been quite sedate since.
 
Weight-wise, I came out of hospital at 87Kg, dipped to 86.8Kg, but have muddled about in the 87’s since. A couple of reasons for the lack of progress there being…

• Taking Care

As I may have mentioned, I am still waiting to feel sick! However, after this procedure I have had to allow time for the wires to knit into the heart tissue, so restrictions are: don’t carry anything heavier than a jug of water; don’t raise your left arm above your head; and take care! At first I couldn’t even lie on my left side so Ann and I had to swap sides on the bed to keep my left arm and chest on the outside and out of the way. It ain’t much fun just sleeping on ones back or right side, but after week one we changed back (because it just didn’t feel right) and after week two I was able to ease back on to my left side. Now I’m good as gold but the ‘take care’ thing is for 4-6 weeks, so that’s quite restrictive.

• Target Weight

My original target weight was 85Kg (before the cardio Dr suggested that 81Kg would be in the centre of the good range for my BMI ….yes well …I figure that at 87 I’m OK to ease up a little and have the odd treat!! However, I have had some meals that included pasta and whatever, which has lifted the weight without me even getting the treats. That’s been a bother but my attitude is that “I’m in the ballpark so we’ll keep working on it.”

• Exercise

Only two gym visits in that time and they have been very sedate affairs, sitting upright on the exercycle or just walking on a treadmill. I was able to get the heartrate up to 115 doing this, but with no driving for Johnnie and Ann now taking the train to work, I can’t get there.
I have managed to hop on the Spin Bike at home for 30 minutes each day, but because it’s not quite ergonomically right for my height and one can’t adjust the tension on that thing, 30 minutes is about all I can handle …the upside is that the conditioning in the legs has definitely improved.
 
The first week I spent at home on sick leave (and that was more about the ‘Take Care’ thing and I was able to do a little work, then week two I worked full time, but still from home, then after the two weeks I felt I had made enough progress to get back on the pushbike and on the Saturday, I
managed to ride into the salon in town, then home via Karori. I then rode to and from work on Monday and Tuesday, but it was wet so I worked from home on Wednesday & Thursday and rode again on Friday.
 
The ‘muscle memory’ etc has done well and I’m now feeling pretty comfortable on the bike, so today I gave the Spin Bike the flick and went for a ride. It was almost sedate as I made my way from home to town, around the bays to Evans Bay, then out through Shelly Bay and around the Peninsular. I started out with a jersey and my summer-weight motorbike gloves on and by the time I got to Seatoun, I was feeling a little uncomfortable in the nether regions, so as I crested the wee hill between Seatoun and Breaker Bay, between the temperature and the discomfort, I stopped to take the gloves and jersey off. That took a few minutes and I felt much better when I got back on the bike to continue around past Moa Point and along Llyal Bay to Onepu Rd, at which time I figured I should take that to go through Kilbirnie and over to Newtown so I could visit the boys at Boyles on Adelaide Rd for another break. 20 minutes spent chewing the fat there was good, then I made my way over to Aro Rd and over to Karori to see Ken (but the bastard wasn’t home again) so I got back on the bike, headed for home via Wilton, pausing to buy some fruit at the Crofton Supermarket and got home in just over 3hrs. 49km done with about 45-50 minutes of stops.
 
I don’t feel any skinnier but!!
 
Next week is a big week for me as originally I was booked to have the Pacemaker checked on Wednesday, then the TOE tests done the following Wednesday (2nd Sept), however both tests are now on Wednesday, so I’m wrapped, because the TOE tests weren’t supposed to happen for about three months. This test is where they shove an ultrasound device down my throat to get a close and unimpeded view of my ticker to establish if the hole in it is the likely cause of the strokes and if it needs to be sealed up.
 
Here’s hoping that this is a fix and Long John Silver can get back on his bike as at this stage, I have had to withdraw from the 2020 Nth Island 1600 in October and don’t know if the TT2000 in February will even be on the cards? In the meantime, I shall continue to ride up a storm on the pushbike!