How the Heart Works

Mom and I both feel better today knowing when surgery will be: March 12th. The procedure will take between 4-6 hours...which I think is pretty good. I mean the doctors should have a good snack first and they won't need to have somebody run out to MacDonald's to get Big Macs until after she's stitched up.

Anne is just seriously deciding if she wants to have her valve replaced with a plastic one or a pig valve. There are pluses to both choices. The plastic valve comes with a service warranty for up to 30 years which would put her into old-age so she wouldn't need to have this type of procedure again...but she'd have to be on pharmaceutical drugs for the lifetime that she has the plastic valve.

The pig valve, while being delicious, has its benefits too...no drugs. But the lifespan isn't as long... 5-10 years, but the science of how to fix this problem of hers is accelerating so the reality is that it is very possible that there will be a new procedure and solution for her condition within the next 5-10 years.

Here's how the the heart works:

The blood that is oxygen rich and flowing through our bloodstream giving us energy and life is constantly being recycled.

The right and left sides of the heart have separate functions. The right side of the heart collects oxygen-poor blood from the body and pumps it to the lungs where it picks up oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. The left side of the heart then collects oxygen-rich blood from the lungs and pumps it to the body so that the cells throughout your body have the oxygen they need to function properly.

This is done in 4 chambers of the heart and within each chamber there is a little holding zone and the valves prevent the blood from flooding back from whence it came.

The names of these valves are:

The tricuspid valve is at the exit of the right atrium
The pulmonary valve is at the exit of the right ventricle.
The mitral valve is at the exit of the left atrium.
The aortic valve is at the exit of the left ventricle.

Anne's valve is the aortic. This valve is the most hidden valve and while there are improvements in the procedure for valve replacement, the aortic valve is very far inside the heart so it must be extracted and sliced open for the valve to be replaced. Not only is it the most hidden but it holds the most oxygen rich blood so this lifeforce never fully makes it into her bloodstream. Right now her valve is working at 7% which is at critical level, so she must continue to rest and not overdo it.

Anyone who has pulled a muscle knows how painful that is...now imagine it is your heart. I know how my heart feels when I believe it is broken...Anne's really is.

But she is stronger now and mentally preparing for this life-giving procedure. I slept through the whole night. A first in a long time.

I'll be in Miami with Dr. Paul during Anne's surgery. I will have the medical support I need and I'll be able to do my best prayer in that environment. He's got this water-filled massage table that is the most incredible thing...and I can meditate, do yoga, have my treatments or whatever. Plus there's a Starbucks close by so I'll be able to be with Lisa in the Swedish Hospital Waiting Area (which is also a Starbucks.)

As far as paying for the surgery and all of that...since Anne has no health insurance, Swedish Hospital has a large endowments for people like her and she's doing the paperwork now. She's also applied for food stamps and any other assistance available to her in this situation.

I'll be there just after Easter (unless if Lisa requests otherwise)...I don't think we'll be together to watch our favorite Easter movie together: "The Ninth Gate" staring Johnny Depp and Frank Langella. It's a great movie about how the 9 gates of hell are opened and the Devil is unleashed. We like to watch it on Easter to balance out the mythology of the resurrection of Christ. I am sure it offends the Christians, but they have done so much damage over the last 2000 years, I don't think another liberal Hollywood movie is going to hurt them, do you?

I know that sounds a little judgmental but the Christians have done a number on my family. All the white people filled with violence who have violated my people have all been Christians. It doesn't mean that I don't believe that Jesus Christ existed but I do recall that we are all made in God's image...not just the Christians. So my god looks like me and that means that my methods of prayer and such are equal to the prayers of others.

If I've offended you...deal with it.

I can't tell you how much offense I have felt and survived.

So we are resting easier now...thank you for your prayers. They have worked.

So much love,
All the way from down here...
Linda