Great to be alive!?

[Nightwing]

My dad had this happen and they found he was low in potassium. He never had rythem problems again after he started a potassium suppliment.

Good to here your up and running Chewie

[Chewbacca]

The cause is yet to be determined, although it could be genetic. My dad has a chronic version of this condition.

Potassium pills are one of my daily meds now.

Today has been so much fun. [img]tongue.gif[/img] They shaved half of my chest to do a 24 hour heart monitor, then I got one of the bills, which exceeds 10,000 dollars. They say I can settle for 4k, but gotta do that within 10 days. It can only get better, right? [img]smile.gif[/img]

[johnny]

I didn't even know you were going through all this, i hope everything turns out fine for you Chewie, and that includes the financial part. looks like you're in need of a winning lottery ticket eh ?

Btw...you must be a doctor's worst nightmare, having to shave the chest of a Wookie takes like forever.

[Bungleau]

LOL! Thanks for the chuckles, Johnny... now everyone else in the Atlanta airport is wondering why I suddenly burst into laughter. Security's probably on the way...

*continues on, picturing a half-shaved wookie...*

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

When you're tall like a wookie, you gotta be careful!
It a shame it took that to make you quit those things. I really hope it's an eye opener for those who are in the same boat.

[Felix The Assassin]

Glad to hear you are doing better!
Ironic how they attached the monitor prior to you receiving the bill?! [img]smile.gif[/img]

[DrowArchmage]

glad that your ok. Though i thought it was a question, its only good to be alive sometimes, other times you wish you were dead.

But mostly its good to be alive.

[Aragorn1]

Well, I don't know about the US, but I know in the UK reasonable expection has been recognised as some which can be protected under the law, not sure if it would be applicable in your case though. TBH I can't remember in relation to what it applies. May be worth looking into...

[ 08-14-2006, 07:24 PM: Message edited by: Aragorn1 ]

[SpiritWarrior]

Originally posted by Chewbacca: Last friday I went to the Emergency room. My heart felt like it was beating out of my chest, I was light-headed and having trouble breathing. My wife zipped me to the E.R. and we both laughed because just a few hours earlier my new Health Insurance cards had finally arrived. I have been uninsured for a few years now and it was a relief to finally be covered again. New insurance card in hand, we went into the hospital. It took all of five minutes for them to get an IV in my arm and my vitals on a monitor. My heart rate was jumping all the way up to near 170, and dropping to 115 and back up. Crazy!!!! I felt rather high, like I couldn't feel my body any more, when a doctor came around and informed us my condiion was called atrial fibrillation. My heart was out of rhythm and if medication didnt fix it, than a nice shock of elecricity would. Either way, I earned a stay in the ICU. I felt high from the oxygen streaming into my nose. Sunday they shocked my heart, with 1/200 odds of stroke. Success! Its back in Rhythm now. Also I've successfully ( so far) quit smoking cigs and caffeine. I got out on monday! It's great to be alive! Today they call and tell me my new insurance didn't actually begin until yesterday 08/08, although I received the cards on Friday 08/04. I now owe thousands & thousands of dollars for a 3 day hospital stay. Wow. I guess it's great to be alive and I wish I were dead at the same time.

Good to hear you're okay. They will let you do it in payments if you explain you're stuck atm and they will set up a plan, no problem. They have to treat you either ways. Medical expenses are insane. I went to the ER one time and it cost me about 1k all in all when the bills came in, I paid it little by little as I was struggling at the time and eventually it got done. Pay like $50-$100 a month and write it off as another bill for awhile *shrug*. The cigs and caffeine habits will save you that amount monthly anyways.

[Attalus]

Originally posted by Hivetyrant: Glad to heaar you are ok! Artrial Fibrillation is a serious condition! (what can happen to people who are electrocuted) and i'm sure its better tat you are alive and faced with a bill, than to die and have your family faced with both a hospital bill and a funeral bill

Actually, I have patients that have had it for years. There are two potentially fatal complications, though, and Chewie had one: what we call Paroxysmal Atrial Tachcardia, where the speed mechanism of the ventricle (the part of the haeart that does most of the pumping) goes haywire and speeds up too fast. The other is development of a blood clot in the ineffective atrium that can move to toher parts of the body, cutting off blood flow. Glad they converted you to sinus rhythm, Chewie. Giving up cigarettes would be a real step forward to making sure you don't get it, again. [img]smile.gif[/img]

BTW, HT, ventricular fibrillation is what akes place when people get electrocuted, and it is much, much more serious.