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Jana Byers JByers4u@aol.com married to Rick age 35 5 children, ages 6-19 |
When I first read the bios here, I thought to myself, "How in the world do these CHF people have enough energy to write such good bios?!" Well, mine isn't going to be nearly as good, so I will just call mine an introduction.
I was misdiagnosed for 4 years with anxiety attacks, given Zanax and Prozac, and sent on my way to a shrink. I took myself off the meds after 2 years and decided that I'd gained a lot of weight, so I went to the doc to see if I could get diet pills. While there, they discovered what every other doctor I'd seen knew but told me was not a problem; I had tachycardia and high blood pressure. They ran more tests and finally referred me to a cardiologist. I have an HMO.
I was diagnosed with CHF, cardiomyopathy, global hypokenesis and mitral valve regurgitation, all from undetermined causes. My EF is currently 21%. I am on Coreg, Lasix, K-dur, Lanoxin and Zestril. They tried me on atenolol but I couldn't breathe so I was switched to Verapamil, which I was also taken off. I now have an appointment with the transplant team at UCLA. I was very upset that these doctors misdiagnosed me for so long, especially after the cardiologist told me I could have been maintained on meds if they had caught it sooner and I wouldn't be meeting with the doctors at UCLA.
Next week is National Organ Donor Awareness week. I have been asked to come and speak to some of the medical professionals at local hospitals, so they can see a living person waiting for a heart, I guess! <lol> I have good and bad days, more good than bad. I hope next week I will be able to go public and make people aware of organ donations, especially in the minority communities, since there is such a lack of donors in them.
My family thinks the doctors are nuts and don't believe I can be this sick, even though my mom had CHF and died suddenly 2 years ago at age 59 with cardiomyopathy. My husband was unsupportive at first, asking me to run errands for his mom and do extra stuff around the house on my bad days - and I would do it! Finally, as I was sitting in the van waiting for his mom to get her hair done and had to puff to breathe, I decided no more! When I am sick, I will refuse to do anything for anyone, so I do.
I feel a lot better since being on Coreg but the doctors still won't allow me to exercise, which is driving me nuts. They also won't let me go to the dentist unless it is an emergency, even with antibiotics first. So I have some mountains to climb still but I am going to take them up with the doctors at UCLA. God has given me so many confirmations on healings and what He will have me do afterward that I believe I will be healed. I think my body is just now catching up to what God has planned for me. You will all be in my prayers, know that.
Jana -- April 14, 1999
All information on this site is opinion only. All concepts, explanations, trials, and studies have been re-written in plain English and may contain errors. No one here is a doctor. No information on this page should be used by any person to affect their medical, legal, educational, social, or psychological treatment in any way. This web site and all its pages copyright © 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 Jon C.