Wednesday, 17 January 2018
Advanced RV Resort — Pearland/Houston, Texas
Temps: Hi 37F (3C) / Lo 20F (-6 C)
Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul,
and sings the tune without the words, and never stops at all.
~ Emily Dickinson ~
Some of you are already aware that our immediate travel plans to visit Africa and Asia have been disrupted by health concerns. For others, the news will come as a surprise. I debated posting about this on the blog, but this is part of our full timing life, so I decided a quickie blurb was appropriate.
Keeping the story short, around the middle of this past December Mui was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse — specifically, mitral valve regurgitation. Following a cardiac MRI and a surgical consult, it was determined that Mui would have the surgery to repair his valve now rather than put it off until April when we expected to complete our trip and return to the US.
One of the eminent cardiac surgeons based here in Houston repaired the valve on January 10. Mui’s overall good health — strong heart … no arterial blockages — and young age contributed to the success of the surgery and his discharge from the hospital just five days later … on his birthday no less. Full recuperation will take a couple of months, but Mui is well on the way to recovery. He can’t drive or lift more than 20 pounds for the next few weeks … that’s the extent of the restrictions placed on him by his cardiologist.
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Left: Post-op Day 2 … Mui feels good enough to take a selfie.
Center: Post-Op Day 5 … Discharged and at home … the best birthday gift for Mui.
Right: Post-op Day 7 … Houston’s in a deep freeze … too cold to walk outdoors …
best to use a treadmill for Mui’s prescribed daily walks.
So, we have jiggled our plans and will be in Houston for a couple of months. After that … well, we are discussing possibilities to put a plan into place once the doctors clear us for travel.
© 2004-2018 Two to Travel's Phaeton Journeys. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED by ERIN ERKUN.
Glad all went well and he is on the road of recovery...
ReplyDeleteGlad to see Mui smiling and on the road to recovery!
ReplyDeletePaul and I are so happy that Mui is doing so well. He looks great. Keep up the good work dear friend. Prayers for continued healing.
ReplyDeleteYes, Mui looks great and you're in a great place for healthcare. You forgot to say how YOU are! People forget sometimes about "those who watch and wait"! Since you started your RTW this lurker has been checking in -- especially lately to see how things were in Houston. I'd worried about what happened to the Phaeton during the hurricane. Didn't realize I should have been worried about Mui! ;-)
ReplyDeleteJust goes to show you can't keep a good Mui down! :c)
ReplyDeleteWe know all too well about unexpected medical problems out of the blue. So glad to hear yours is only temporary Mui and you are doing so well. Thanks so much for letting us know Erin. Wishing you a fast full recovery Mui. Hope you can reschedule Africa and Asia. Sounds wonderful.
ReplyDeleteGeosez ... I am doing well. I stayed at a hotel adjacent to the hospital while Mui was in the hospital to make sure I was resting while there were others to take care of him at night. Things have been easier than we anticipated since we came home. Mui requires very little help from me and except for the few restrictions placed on him is pretty much back to his routine ... cooking, shopping, and all that.
ReplyDeleteWe were in the middle of the North Atlantic, heading to Norway, when Harvey caused all the problems in Houston. We were concerned about our motor home being stored here. We managed to get in touch with the storage owner and she set our minds at ease. People who were storing their rigs at the storage facility had actually left their flooded homes to stay in their rigs at the facility and that everything was dry. That was a relief.
At the time, and even after our physicals in early December, we had no worries about Mui. Our plan to travel was still on the front burner ... until we got the results of the cardiac MRI at the end of December and then consulted with the surgeon. Sometimes life throws you a curveball ... you just have to catch it and pitch it back.
All that sounds good. Looking forward to your getting back on the road - or plane or ship or whatever. I’ve taken some some great trips thanks to you without ever having to pack!
ReplyDeleteSo glad that he is doing well after the surgery. We will be keeping both of you in our thoughts and prayers. He looks great but if he is like me, he will be using that weight limit to avoid unwanted chores:))
ReplyDeleteThankfully, we live in a time and in a place where good health care is available. So happy for Mui's good result.
ReplyDeleteSo happy things are looking up. Stay warm and take good care of each other. Looking forward to hearing about your future plans.
ReplyDeleteI lost contact with your blog when it went on hiatus, but saw a mention of it on the "Where's Weaver" blog, and jumped to it. Glad to hear the the surgery went well, and recovery is progressing. Will begin to keep up with you again! You can re-plan the trip, but you still have Mui in good health.
ReplyDeleteRegards