Another d**n test!

Had my Physical and History appoointment with my PCP and she wants me to have a cardiac stress test added to the already overwhelming amount of pre-op testing. Mostly I am having a hard time coming up with any more sick or vacation time to squeeze this in, so I am working every evening until my office's closing time. Just wanted to whine! 20 days left!

Soon all those tests will be done and will fade away as one little dot of time in your life. I had to take my surgical leave unpaid but it was my choice since I was unwilling to wait another month when it would have been paid. Somehow a person finds a way to manage. For me it has all be worth it and I hope it is the same for you!

Susan, I had to have a stress ECHO done. Hopefully you are able to walk in the treadmill for this test. I cannot due to a bad knee that makes my steps very uneven and I would fall on my face on a treadmill. The "chemical" or Dobutamine stress option is NOT fun. You get an IV and they put Dobutamine in to get your heart rate up to a certain level. (158 bpm for me) If that drug doesn't get it high enough, they use atropine. Anyway, then once it is up there, they do the ultrasound and bruise the heck out of your left boob since they have to seee your heart (I really do have one!! I saw it! LOL) and push sooooo hard to get thru all the tissue. In the mean time, your head is pounding and your heart is racing and in my case, the atropine made me very nausiated. Then they stop putting in the meds and let your heart return to normal rate. Oh, and they check your blood pressure every 1-2 minutes all the way through. You kinda feel like you have just been running for your life except you are not sweating. I felt weird for a few days after too. I don't mean to scare you, but I wish I had known what to expect when I went in. best wishes, Elizabeth (PS tell Sue hi and that I will be back in to see her and the others as soon as they will let me post-op!)

Hi Susan, I know it gets very discouraging when they tell you they need yet another test. They do have their reasons. In my case I thought I was finally home free. Just one tiny ultrasound left & I knew my gallbladder & liver were just fine. However, she found a large tumor in my abdomen. This meant my surgery had to be postponed for a few months & a hysterectomy was performed last week. The tumor was benign, thankfully & I will eventually have my WLS. I was very upset that it had to be put off but now realize that one last test found something that would have affected my recovery considerably. And I got a bonus! A bladder problem that I had atributed to my weight turned out to be cause by the tumor. no more bladder problem! Hang in there. That 20 days will go so fast. Dixie