Well the time has come, it has been a long time coming and it is finally here. My Dad will be having open heart surgery on Monday! It is a very scary situation. This is something he has needed for over a year now (almost 2 years for the bypass part of it) It is very scary. He has a rare heart condition called Pericardial Calcification with constrictive pericarditis..... anyways basically what it means is that the pericardial sac that surrounds the heart and protects it... is becoming calcified (hardened) and so it is constricting the heart and decreasing it's ability to pump properly. Apparantly most cardiologists will only see this condition ina patient approximatelyy once every 5 years or so. Its not like cogestive heart failure (which my dad also has) or like when a patient has a blockage needing a stent or bypass. It's a lot more serious. If the calcification is not surgically removed eventually it will completely suffocate the heart and my dad will pass on. But at the same time because of the seriousness of the condition to remove it they have to put him on a heart and lung bypass machine for the operation and go in and chip away or remove the pericardial sac. It is kinda like peeling a hard boiled egg.... they have to remove the shell. Then while they already have him on the table they will take care of the bypass as well. So even the operation is life threatning! It doesn't help that he is overweight, and diabetic and has the CHF. They all increase the risks of any major operation.... so we don't even know any percentages of survival versus the alternative for this operation! We are hoping for survival with a full recovery! On the plus side today my Bishop and the missionaries came over to give him a Priesthood blessing. It was incredible!! Afterwards my Dad said that when they laid their hands on his head he felt a tingling sensation throughout his body! He felt the Holy Ghost! I had been praying that he would! That he would recognize the power of the Priesthood on the earth and he did!! It was amazing!! I just hope he remembers that and has more interest in church after the operation! ANyways its super late (almost 3 am) and we are doing a family breakfast around 8am before they leave to check into the hospital! So I should hit the hay! But I wanted to post a poem that I wrote last summer after we had first learned of his having this condition..... because we had just learned of it than and now its time for the surgery and so it applies:
It’s Hard
It’s hard
The pains we have to bear
It’s hard
With so much tribulation everywhere
It hurts
To overcome the pain
It hurts
Time and time again
It hungers
My soul to find peace
It hungers
To feel some relief
It helps
When we have a friend
It helps
To find a blessing in the end
It’s hard
To get on our knees and pray
It’s hard
When there’s never the words to say
It hurts
When you have to say goodbye
It hurts
To not understand the reason why
It hungers
To find answers day by day
It hungers
To trust God’s will everyday
It helps
To put my faith in God
It helps
Having my feet planted in Gospel sod
Renee L Conaway 7-17-2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hey, I am sorry that everything is not going as well as it could be. I wish that I could be there with you. But I am letting you know that I am there in spirit.
ReplyDeleteI wish you the best of luck with everything is going. I hope that you know that I love you, thanks for being such an awesome friend and for being such a wonderful example to me.
Remember to rely on the Lord for everything. I know that it is easy to forget that He is there with us, but He is, and He loves you and your family. Have a nice day! Don't forget to pray! Because there are others thinking of you and your family and that are praying for you guys!!
Love ya lots!