The Test

In my last post, I told you about my ER visit and overnight stay at the hospital. I also mentioned the nuclear stress test called a Cardiolite test that I had a week ago.

When I went for the test, I wasn't really sure what to expect. I arrived at the Cardiovascular Center at North Memorial Medical Center at 7:15 a.m. and left a little over three hours later. The techs who administered the test were wonderful and explained everything that would happen, and they explained it again as I went through each part of the test.

First an IV line was inserted and radioactive dye was injected. I was then instructed to wait for an hour and drink at least two glasses of water. Following that, I laid on a table with my arms above my head while a large camera rotated slowly from the right side of my body, across my chest, and to the left side. It took about 15 minutes.

For the next part of the test, I thought I would be on the treadmill. However, because of the left bundle branch block in my heart, they used a chemical that was injected through the IV. As I understand it, the chemicals enable them to see my heart and blood vessels and determine if there are any abnormalities.

One tech injected the chemical while a second tech monitored me. It took only four minutes, four long minutes which made me wish I could have gotten on the treadmill.

During the time the chemicals are injected, there are side effects that may include dizziness, lightheadedness, or chest pain to name the few I can remember. My side effects were chest pain and a metallic taste in my mouth. At about the half way point ~ two minutes ~ I said something like, "OK, there are lots of people praying for me. I'm in God's hands, that's the best place to be." Oh, how thankful I am that God knows me and holds me in His hands!

The interesting thing is that when tech stops injecting the chemical, the side effects disappear immediately. And it's normal to have side effects. If you don't, they know you've had caffeine, which they tell you to absolutely not have before the test. That includes chocolate and even decaffeinated beverages. The caffeine counteracts the chemical and makes the test invalid.

This part of the test was the worst part for me because it was frightening to have the chest pain, even though I was told it was normal, and it did not mean I had heart disease. In fact, the techs stressed that point several times.

Next I had a half-hour break. The techs told me I could go have something to eat, and I could have a cup of coffee. Hooray!

After my break, I laid on the table with the rotating camera for another set of pictures. Then I laid on my stomach while yet more pictures were taken. After the tech checked to be sure the pictures were OK, the IV line was removed, and I went home.

As I said in my last post, the test showed no abnormalities, and I have no restrictions on activity. In fact I was told to keep exercising and working on weight loss. And believe me, I am. This experience has been a wake-up call for me, and I'm so thankful that no serious problems were found.

Thanks to each of you who have prayed for me. It truly is a blessing to know you pray, even though we know each other only through our blogs. Being part of the Body of Christ is more wonderful than words can express!

May your day be blessed,

Wanita