I got to see my heart work!



The heart (not mine) in an echocardiogram.

 Yesterday I had an echocardiogram. It was an interesting experience -- I was positioned so I could see the screen. At one point, both sides of my heart could be seen at once and I could clearly see one side, and then the other contract. The test can also allow the sounds of the blood flowing through the heart and the vessels to be heard. Sometimes it was surprisingly gurgle-y! 

I was also able to ask questions, though I asked many fewer than I could have! I was pleased when I was able to recognize some of the views. All those years teaching the anatomy of the heart to Haitian 9th graders was not in vain! I was wishing I could have had the students there to see the screen with me! I guess you can take the girl out of the classroom, but not the classroom out of the girl.

When the technician opened the first image, she said, "Oh, yes. I see your arrhythmia!" Then she showed me on the little green line at the bottom what my premature ventricular contraction (PVC)looked like. Imagine, in the little green peaks at the bottom of the image above, another lower plateau and that was my PVC.

The test yesterday was to diagnose the heart murmur I have known about for many years -- is it a leaky valve or a hole? Tuesday I will see the cardiologist to find out the results.

In the mean time, I did get the results of the blood test. My magnesium and iron levels are fine. My cholesterol is a bit high. I don't need medication, just to watch my carb intake and increase my excercise. So now, I have to figure out how to watch both carbs and fat -- it seems that food which is low in carbs is high in fat and vise verse! And I am looking into either swimming at Penn State or joining Curves for Women. I will keep you posted, and in the mean time, thank you, everyone, for your prayers.