Abandoned ...

... in an old wood, looked a bit sad and forgotten.

Well finally we now know why mum went into cardiac arrest when she went to have her Op ... she has been diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, a heart condition that has no obvious symptoms or cause but is deadly in certain conditions (such as having an operation) This is a silent killer of young athletes, who although appear fit and healthy, collapse and die of cardiac arrest and is only usually diagnosed AFTER death. It is a thickening of the heart muscle that affects the electrical fluctuations and cause the heart to go into sudden and often fatal arrest.

Consultant said that mum has probably had it for 15-20 years which is kind of scary and the bad news is that it is caused by a faulty gene that is passed down through the family ... so now I have to go and have a full heart check up to see whether or not it has been passed to me ... oh the joy of yet more tests and having to tell my brother and sister that they also have to be tested for it. My sister is due to have an operation next week, but now has to have this test first as the consequences for her, if she has this condition could be fatal? Jeez what a bundle of joy I felt delivering that news to them.

Next step for mum is more tests and 24 hr heart monitor to decide if a pace maker is needed. There is no cure but now they are aware of this, they can factor it in to any further treatment.

On the upside (always try and find one) we all live to fight another day and it's a good excuse to do some retail therapy, not that I need an excuse for that. At the end of the day, you only get one kick at life, so why waste it worrying about what could happen. Life's too short. Live the dream ;-) xx