Day 204: My Mam had a heart attack yesterday. She was out for lunch with my Dad (his birthday and their wedding anniversary) and she started feeling unwell in the pub. The ambulance was going to take at least an hour (the reality of our emergency services in 2021) so a member of staff drove her to the nearest hospital which was thankfully only about 3 miles away. They quickly established the severity of her condition so she was sent via ambulance to a specialist heart hospital about 30 miles away. She was whisked straight into emergency surgery where two blockages in her heart were found and removed. Stents were put in. Thankfully she woke up from surgery and as of this morning she is in a settled state. We aren’t allowed to visit because there are tight Covid restrictions at that hospital but I’ll be heading down today (takes about 45mins in the car) to drop her off some essentials.
It was a stressful evening from getting a call off my Dad (it’s rare that he calls me as he’s not one for technology) to dropping everything and driving to the hospital not knowing what condition she was in. My Dad was upset on the phone and didn’t really know much himself. It’s so heartbreaking to hear your Dad so vulnerable considering he has never really shown raw emotion in my lifetime, and certainly not tears. His wife and love for 30+ years was in a bad place and he wasn’t allowed to be with her. I get it.
So anyways, it’s events like this which make you initially go into autopilot and do what needs to be done. Now she is out of surgery and stable I can reflect on how lucky she has been. How lucky we all are that this wasn’t her time. I know she isn’t out of the woods yet but hopefully we will see improvements in the coming days. She is only 55 years old. Despite her health problems I didn’t expect a heart attack. Just goes to show it can strike any of us.
I’m tired, I’m feeling a bit low and I’ve got a stomach upset (all signs of my mental health dipping) but this isn’t about me. I’ll do what I need to do for my parents in the coming days and then refocus on my own well-being. In the meantime I’ll do the basics. Stay hydrated, keep my mind distracted and EAT! Eating is always the first thing I ditch when I feel like this. So I’m off for breakfast whether I like it or not!
Happy Daddy 