When His Heart Rate Dropped Mine Stopped

My heart stopped. We were talking to each other one minute, and the next, he got very pale and said he felt like he was going to be sick. I went to find a nurse to help me.  Then I heard an alarm going off and looked over and saw his heart rate drop down to 40, and he was slumped over on the bed.

I yelled for the nurses to help me he was passing out. It felt like I was in slow motion looking over at the group of nurses talking to each other.  No one seemed to notice that his heart rate dropped and alarms were going off.

What Happened When His Heart Rate Dropped?

At that moment a million things went through my head… was he dying?!  Did he pass a clot when they put the catheter and stent into his heart?  Was he having a stroke?  Did he have a stroke?  Holy shit! What the fuck is happening????? This is all happening to the love of my life, my husband, my best friend, and my baby daddy.

Our big strong dad who pushes through so much to have a normal day with us was all of a sudden lifeless. I never want to see that again! I still have the image in my head often.  I thought he was having a seizure. He was gasping or moaning. It almost sounded like he was choking when I was behind him as we tried to get him on his back again.

When we pulled him upright and laid him back in the bed he couldn’t open his eyes. They tried to open them and wake him up. He was really weak. He could barely speak. Then they started to make him respond to things like squeezing each hand, moving each foot, lifting each leg, and smile. They were checking for a stroke. I thought I was losing him. I began to shake and moved out of the way of the nurses while they did his vitals and asked me questions.  I think they also injected his IV with a syringe of something, but I am not sure what it was,

His vitals came back great, they checked his sugar, and they did an EKG and it was fine. Thank God. He didn’t appear to have had a heart attack. They kept saying a word that sounded like bagel. That’s all I could remember at the time. A bagel with a vagina because it was vagal bagel or something like that… it’s how I was going to remember it to ask about it later.

Thank God he didn’t get up out of the bed and stood up like he was about to. Thank God we were in the hospital and this didn’t happen at home. Thank God they were able to do an ultrasound of the heart right there with an iPad! I saw his heart myself. It was beautiful.

At this point, Kevin was shivering.  He couldn’t stop shaking so we loaded him up with several blankets.  But he wasn’t able to stop shivering.  It was out of his control.  We don’t know what caused it, but it eventually subsided.

What Caused Him To Pass Out

It didn’t appear to be an issue with this heart or the stent. I felt a lot of relief that it wasn’t his heart. And they didn’t seem to mention anything about a clot so I assumed it was probably medication or anesthesia-related or possibly dehydration.  Kevin still couldn’t open his eyes and whenever he moved his head he said the room would spin.

I was so scared when nurses would walk away. I didn’t want them to not hear the alarms if they went off. Kevin wanted a nitro because the chest pain was a 7 out of 10. I thought the procedure was supposed to relieve the chest pain immediately? Why is it getting worse?  His doctor also informed him that he was going to have to spend the night because he passed out, and they needed to watch him closely.  I know that’s not what he wanted originally; but at that moment, he didn’t care.

After several more doses of anti-nausea medicine and some Tylenol, he went for an echocardiogram to double-check and get a good look at his heart.  Then he could be moved into a regular room for the night.

The common term that the nurses said he had was vasovagal syncope.  They don’t know the exact reason for what triggered it because he was fine one minute and then passing out the next.  Some reasons why it happens is emotional or physical stressors or nausea. I suspect these are the cause for his episode.

The Long Long Night

After being wheeled around in the bed down the halls with the bright lights and a splitting headache, we got upstairs to a room.  I was immediately told that I would have to leave very shortly after he is placed into bed. I knew he heard that and his heart dropped.

The nurses had to move him from the stretcher to the bed with a board. They kept rocking him back and forth I thought he was going to projectile vomit. He seemed so uncomfortable. I just wanted him to get comfortable. I saw his roommate telling the nurses to leave him alone and let him rest.  So they closed the curtain on him.

Once he was in the bed he was given another dose of anti-nausea medication. Along with more IV fluid. I leaned into him. Forehead to forehead. I knew he wasn’t doing well with the news that I had to leave. He was scared. I couldn’t even really comfort him by telling him I was going to take care of the kids and the house and chicken and dogs. He knew they would have been in good hands. I did, too.

I wanted to be with him. I didn’t want to leave his side to use the bathroom all day. I had to help get him settled in and calm his nerves. I set up his phone and headphones and begged the nurse for 10 more minutes. Kevin was anxious about me walking to the parking garage. So we assured him someone would walk with me and I could walk to the east wing to get to it.

He slept for about 40 minutes after I left.  I needed to stop by target for my coffee creamer. When I arrived at Target I realized that I needed a minute. I was texting with my girlfriends and it hit me.  That holy shit, what just happened today feeling.  He’s only 53 years old!

I picked up the kids from my parents’ house, ate a little something for dinner, and brought the kids home.  I hadn’t told them he passed out.  We just told the kids that he was dizzy and queasy and needed to stay the night.  I didn’t want them to worry.

When we got home, it didn’t feel right.  His stuff was next to his bed as if he was going to put them on when he got home and sit on our warm bed with his pillows. His tools are out like he’s going to pull them off the chargers and continue to build the shelves that he and Kevin started in the garage on Sunday night.

It’s not a nice feeling finding everything about him all around us but he isn’t here with us. He’s always here.  I’m the one the kids are used to not having at home. But Kevin’s always there holding down the fort for me. I couldn’t wait to have him back home.

Why It’s Important To Have Your Heart Checked

Heart disease is a silent killer.  Especially in women.  If something doesn’t feel right, contact your doctor. Don’t wait. I should listen to my own advice.  You can be as strong as an ox, or be fit and lean but have clogged arteries if it’s in your family history.  So be sure to check your family history and be proactive about your heart health.

Since this is new to us; we will be learning as we go and I’ll be sure to educate you along our journey.  I’m going to share more on how you can maintain good heart health with fitness and good nutrition.  I’ll also share some of the signs to look out for, and explain why Kevin needed a procedure done in the first place.  I’ll also share the recovery process and how he’s been feeling.

Have you had to have an angiogram?  How was your experience?  I’d love to know more about your post-procedure experience especially.