My Heart Cath Experience

I had my heart catheterization done back in April, and I wanted to share the experience with y’all. My hope is that by sharing some of my experiences, it will help someone who is going through it or is caring for someone who is. I will admit that I was very nervous about this whole experience, even though I had been with my uncle for all of his. He has had nine of them done so far. It is still scary when it’s you going through it. 

I arrived at the heart clinic early that morning and waited to be taken back. My mom and uncle were given a card with my patient number on it at the clinic I go to (which is inside the hospital). That way, they could watch the television screen in the waiting room that tells where I am in my procedure. It helps those waiting to know what is going on and not have to ask all the time. It usually has an in-facility (meaning I checked in), a prep (which means I am in the room being prepped for my procedure), a procedure, and then stage 1 and stage 2. Both of those are recovery points. Stage one means I have just come out of my procedure and am just waking up or whatever. Stage two means that I am getting ready to be released.

I got into the back and put on a hospital gown. They told me to not tie it or allow it to be under the bottom of my body when I lay on the bed. This is in case it has to be removed. Plus it gives them better access. Then I got an iv started. They attempted to draw blood but after five tries my doctor told them to wait. He would get the blood when he opened my artery up. Sounds like fun right? After that I had to get shaved. You read that correctly. Not to mention my prep nurse was a guy. He shaved my arm but had to shave my groin area as well so they had a second site ready if needed.

Hours later, like six, I was finally back in the operating room and ready to go. they take your clothes, put a blanket on you, and proceed to scare you to death. Okay maybe not to death but there were a few moments. The scariest was when they placed the defibrillator pads on me. They have to do that in case your heart stops. After all you can die from this procedure. The most embarrassing is when they folded a towel (like a tea towel) and placed it over my personal area to give me some modesty. It was warm too. The doctor came in and then next I know he is leaning over me telling me we are done and everything looks good.

They don’t put you to sleep but they do give you something to make you comfortable and they deadened the area. I didn’t feel a thing. Once I came out of surgery I had this arm brace thing on. Also that clear band you see around my wrist. That actually has a balloon that they every so often let air out of until it was completely deflated. The purpose behind that was to apply pressure on the artery where they closed it. All that orange is where they cleaned the site prior to surgery. I had it all down my leg and groin area too.

Since I hadn’t eaten all day they gave me a sandwich, chips, fruit cup, and drink. I will say that fruit cup was the best thing I have ever eaten. It tasted so good. That’s Ma in the background there being more nervous than me. She was freaking out. Mostly because my father passed away in April from heart failure. He was just a couple of years older than me. This whole experience has been so much harder on her than me.

I got to go home the same day. I had to wear this arm brace for two days. I couldn’t use my hand for those two days either. I am right handed and having my mother have to wipe me when I went to the bathroom was an experience and a half. I also couldn’t shower until the brace came off. I then had two weeks of not lifting anything heavy than a milk jug. That is so the plug they put in to close up your artery could do its job and you not bleed to death.

That one little cut is the only incision the doctor made. That cut near my fingers is actually from the tape from the bandage. So is that on the left side of my wrist as well. It was bruised up for about a week and a half. This was taken two days after when I was able to take off the brace and the bandages. Now, you have to look for the incision mark to even see it. What the doctor did was slip a thin tube with a camera in that incision and look at everything. I had no blockages so I didn’t need any stents.

the only other marks I had was this bruising on my one shoulder/chest area. It was simply one of the locations where the camera was passing through and it bruised me. While I was nervous the team that I had were wonderful. Even my doctor came in when he got there that morning and told me not to be nervous. They answered all of my questions. Laughed when the pain medication they gave me made me say things that were embarrassing. All in all if I have to go through this again (and I will) this is the team I want to do it every single time.