@amynewheart Wow, Amy, that is amazing! I do not want to wonder what might have happened if that had been a busy night.
You said that you were working on the cardio floor, so I am guessing that you are somehow medically trained or a medical background to some degree. Do you feel that your medical background had any effect on your transplant journey? I ask because, I was completely ignorant of anything medical or hospital or even transplant. I have always wondered what it might be like for someone who was more familiar with the situation.
Rosemary

@amynewheart - Thanks for sharing Amy. I find that personally reassuring that you had no idea that you had heart issues and it sounds like it was a "fluke" that you got a signal that something was not right. I don't spend time thinking about it now but when my daughter passed away from congestive heart failure (they found dilated cardiomyopathy after she died) I had this nagging feeling that I should have known, had a sign, questioned. Logic tells me otherwise but there was always a nagging feeling of "if only". Thank you for sharing and once again reminding me that there was very little chance of me, or the doctors, figuring things out until it was too late. I really appreciate you sharing because my query had a selfish intent.

@rosemarya yes i believe it definitely helped. There are many times because of my knowledge I was able to question or suggest things that I believe absolutely made a difference in my treatment. My dad also had dilated cardiomyopathy and died at age 52 from it so I already knew a lot from that also. Lol although sometimes I think it would have been better had I not had a background. I can remember laying in the bed post transplant and watching my heart monitor!

@lcamino Ultimately we have to remember we can not question Gods plan. I definitely understand though I did the same thing after my dads death , he had alot of arrhythmia issues and he refused to get a defibrillator, I blamed myself at first for not pushing the issue with him. But my father went the way he wanted he laid down for a nap and never woke up. he lived life to the fullest that he could until the day he died and that makes me Happy!

@amynewheart, Thank you. I have always wondered about how having prior medical experience would affect someone going thru transplant. I am sure it is quite different for each person, though.
When I first learned that I would need a transplant, I think that I was too frightened and overwhelmed to even know what to ask. I have a vey dear friend who is a nurse, and she along with the health ministry group at my church kept a close eye on me. She told me that when I was ready, she would go over my liver transplant book with me and answer m questions. That was wonderful because she had worked on a transplant floor for a while and was so helpful and she calmed a lot of my fears. And she provided me with some practical advice. Later, I needed to be transferred away from home transplant facility to Mayo, and there the team was very thorough in taking the time to answer any concerns that I had.
Hugs,
Rosemary

@amynewheart - The longer myself and my children are patients the more I believe that we have to advocate for ourselves, even with good doctors. Your knowledge can cause more stress but also better care so that is a lot of pressure on you but it is also the best for you. You must have had good doctors if they paid attention to your comments.

@amynewheart - I totally agree although it is not always easy to accept God's plans when they don't jive with our own. I'm dealing with this as I wait to see who is going to donate me kidney (hopefully from a living donor).

@lcamino - I received my strength by reciting Psalm 23 everyday during the months leading to my transplant. Rosemary