It’s the morning of surgery, and our scene opens early in room 619 of the Tudor Arms Hotel. Our protagonist watches as the numbers on the digital alarm clock take their time to slowly change, making 10 a.m. seem unattainable… NOT! Stripped of all my narcissistic dignity, (no makeup, no nails, no toe nail polish, not even a stud of jewelry!) I decided to put what little effort I was allowed into, my hair. Curling it and throwing it up…
I made it through Open Heart Surgery!!! Thank- You- Jesus!!!!! I couldn’t be more grateful for the fact that the very skilled hands of an amazing surgeon who has mended the hearts of celebrity actors, professional athletes, and dignitary lawyers, (malpractice ones, at that) would also use those very same hands to mend the, Not-so-notable heart of, Me, Valerie Archual. This was, undoubtably, a “God-thing” that this man, of mitral valve expertise, would cross my broken heart path! I…
“The waiting is the hardest part Every day you see one more card You take it on faith, you take it to the heart The waiting is the hardest part…” ~Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers From the album, Hard Promises 1981 Let’s hope it’s the hardest part! So far, it has been the most grueling! The waiting will kill ya, won’t it? It can drive you in-T-total-sane! I attempted to take on this whole heart surgery thing as if…
The time for excuses was over. I had exceeded every last reasoning I could possibly think of to delay the fact that this surgery had to happen. My husband constantly began reminding me of this. It was time to make the call. After a few idiotic temper tantrums, I came to realize that I needed to pick up the phone and schedule the surgery. I had it all planned out: Late March, early April. Even though there was…
Have you ever had that morning where the alarm clock rang, you woke up and before your feet hit the floor you knew exactly what the day had in-store? You knew because, after all, you had planned it out-mentally- right down to the hour of the setting sun. And then, when that day was over, and the sun finally did set, that twenty-four-hour period that you so meticulously planned out, took somewhat of a detour… That’s what happened on Friday,…
Meeting The Doctors So I’m thinking if I ever decide to make this story into a rock opera, it would have to include the 1990’s Extreme hit, “Hole Hearted.” And there ya go. For those of you who don’t know me personally, (or my husband) yes, I was part of the hairband movement of the ‘80’s. Back at a time where your boyfriend’s hair was most likely longer than your own. (For those of you who are…
“When we last left our story, our protagonist had just made a fool of herself in the cath lab…” There was some conflicting information regarding the catheterization results. Being an optimistic person, I took this as a good thing! One cardiologist thought that the mitral valve was still the most important issue and needed attention. Another cardiologist thought the mitral valve fell second to the new problem at hand, which was the ASD that actually needed the prompt…
“Ladies and Gentlemen, the story you are about to hear is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.” “It was mid-September, somewhere in the city of Cyberspace. I found myself in the midst of a sizable amount of information. Evidence was appearing from all corners, but it was clear where my attention was being drawn to. I had begun to feel as if I were the best detective this side of Los Angeles… or rather, this side…
Rod Serling couldn’t have said it better himself. “Who knew that answering one phone call could open up a whole new dimension? Valerie Archual knew, and that’s when she entered… The Twilight Zone.” The call was another cardiologist’s office scheduling what was called a “TEE” or transesophageal echocardiogram. Like the regular echocardiogram, it’s still an ultrasound, only they stick this long tube that contains the ultrasound wand down your throat and into your esophagus to get a closer…
The summer of 2016. It was here. It would mark the last summer before my ‘baby’ would leave for college. I wanted it to be memorable. The entire senior year was filled with bittersweet tears. If you are a mom and have traveled this road, you know exactly what I’m talking about. I planned different things, we did different things, but I wanted to make this summer count! Our church had been organizing a summer mission’s trip to New Zealand….