One Year Post-Op, So Was It All Worth It?

I know I'm actually 13 months post-op at this point, so I apologize for not posting this sooner, however, I have a good reason. Thursday, April 14th I had my one year follow-up with my Cardiologist, and let's just say things didn't exactly go as I anticipated at my appointment. I was actually waiting to post this until I had heard from my Cardiologist (I'll get into that later), which I finally did, last Tuesday.

So let's rewind back to March, about three weeks before Easter. I was at my Grandparents for the weekend with my family, and it seemed like all of a sudden, out of nowhere I was going in Bigeminy.  Bigeminy is when you have one normal heart beat and then an abnormal heart beat and the cycle repeats itself until it breaks, or you're able to break it with various maneuvers.

The runs of Bigeminy were consistent throughout the weekend. Though manageable, they didn't make me light headed or dizzy, so I wasn't overly concerned. The cycles of bigeminy eased up a bit, but my Cardiologist still wanted me to have an Event monitor. It's a long (irritating) story that I don't need to get into, but I was not able to get my Event monitor. Thankfully (or not, depending on how you look at it), my coworker had palpitations at one point during her pregnancy, and one of the Cardiologists we work with had bought her a Kardia (by Alive Cor) handheld EKG monitor.

(Alive Cor monitor and Kardia App)

The pocket EKG (as we'll call it), allows you to attach the finger plates to the back of your smartphone (I didn't since it's my friends). Once you download the free Kardia app onto your smartphone, you're able to record 30 second rhythm strips, and save them to your phone within the app. My coworker asked me if I'd like to borrow it, and I jumped on the opportunity. Since my runs of bigeminy had eased up, I really didn't have anything to record, but I set it up anyhow.

Let's just say, boy, was I thankful that I did! About a week before I was set to see my Cardiologist (Saturday, April 9th to be exact), the runs of Bigeminy came back with vengeance! That day I had given a lecture of interesting Echo cases at a sonographer symposium, and everything was fine. That evening I was relaxing with my friends at one of my favorite restaurants in State College when they started back up again. The runs would come and go throughout our entire dinner. I didn't eat much, and I just kept taking deep breaths to try and break myself from them. I  was tired, and wondered if that could be the cause. I also didn't have the Alive Cor with me, so I couldn't record any of the tracings. 

The next day after I returned home, I threw myself on my couch to try and relax, but the runs of bigeminy kept coming, so I grabbed the pocket EKG, and decided to give it a try. It worked! That evening/night and into the next day I recorded 33 rhythm strips to show my Cardiologist. Unfortunately, due to the arrhythmia, I didn't get much sleep (which was extremely frustrating considering how tired I was).

(Sample of my Bigeminy from the app)

Thursday rolled around and I headed to my doctors appointment. I had been looking forward to this appointment because my doctor anticipated that I would "graduate" to one year follow-ups after this visit. Once my cardiologist came in, he asked me how things were going, and we discussed my palpitations. I showed him the rhythm strips on my phone. As he scrolled through them, he commented that as a group, the physicians had discussed buying the Alive Cor monitors for the department. He was impressed with the quality of the rhythm strips on my phone and seeing how it worked. We discussed the possibility of putting me on a Beta Blocker to try and get me some relief from the palpitations, but first he wanted me to get an echo to see how things were going since I was there in October.

If you remember correctly, before I went to my 6 month follow-up, I found out my valve was already leaking. During the echo, Cathy and I chatted, and I watched as she did my study. The regurgitation didn't appear to be any worse, so that was reassuring. She finished my study, and then went to make sure she had all the images she needed. She came back in and took few extra pictures, but I didn't think anything of it. 

After the echo, we met my Cardiologist back in an office visit room to discuss the results of the echo. My Cardiologist asked me what I thought of my echo, and I mentioned I didn't think the regurgitation was any worse than it was in October. What he said next, I was not expecting. He said the valve leaflets were already thickened and narrowing which was something he didn't anticipate as the valve was, at this point, just under a year old. He also said the gradients across the valve had increased since the last echo (makes sense since it was narrowed). He said he wanted to take my echo to one of the surgical conferences just to discuss the case and see if any of the other physicians had seen this before.

That being said, we also discussed options should the valve continue to progress in this direction. At the time of my appointment he didn't feel it was necessary to act on anything just yet, and he said once he spoke to the other physicians and surgeons that he would call me to discuss further. Then we revisited the bigeminy that I was having. I told him I felt comfortable trying out a low dose Beta Blocker to see if it gave me relief of the symptoms. He agreed, and told me to start off with one pill a day, and if I didn't feel any relief of my symptoms within a few weeks, to increase my dose to two a day. Easy enough. Then he told me he wanted to see me back in 3 months, since the valve was progressing in the manner that it is, he wants to keep a close watch on it. So much for thinking I was going to "graduate" to one year follow-ups. I left my appointment feeling discouraged, but there was nothing I could do about it.

A few weeks went by and my Cardiologist called me to tell me he hadn't had the opportunity to present my echo yet, due to the high volume of cases that needed to be reviewed. He reassured me he hadn't forgotten and that he would call me as soon as he had the opportunity to discuss the case. He asked me how my runs of Bigeminy were going, and I told him they had improved, but not resolved entirely, and that I was considering upping the dosage to two a day. He agreed and thought that would take care of the few I was still having. He also told me that the Beta-Blocker and dosage he prescribed was so small and specific that it should not give me any adverse side effects.

Finally last Tuesday, my Cardiologist called me to discuss everything. He told me the other cardiologists and surgeons agreed that the valve was progressing at a faster rate than expected. He said a few others had seen this, however, it was rare. At this point he does not want to be aggressive, and he doesn't believe we need to be. He said that, if down the road, we need to take action, he said many people do well with an Angioplasty type procedure in the Cath lab, where a balloon pops open the leaflets and allows them more mobility without increasing the degree of regurgitation. At this point he still wants to follow me closely, just to see if things stay the same or continue to progress. With that said, he did want to get a closer look at things, so he said he was going to set me up for a Cardiac MRI, and told me his secretary would call within the next few days to set it up. He said I could do it at anytime, but wanted it before my appointment in July.

(Example Cardiac MRI)

He then asked me how my Bigeminy was, and I told him that increasing the dosage had improved them, and that I only feel them on a rare occasion, and he was happy to hear that. He asked me if I was having any other symptoms other than the bigeminy, and I said no, not that I had been aware of at least.

The next day the Children's Heart Center called me to set up my Cardiac MRI. The woman I spoke to then told me that she was looking at September. A little stunned, I told her my Cardiologist wanted it before my appointment in July. She then said, "well he told me to get you scheduled for our first available." She then explained to me that the MRIs are done by someone who comes from Syracuse, and he only comes to town one Thursday a month. So, I'll just have to wait and have him give me those results over the phone when the time comes. I've never had a Cardiac MRI before (that I'm aware of), so this should be interesting.

Overall, I'm feeling slightly discouraged, but in the end, I would have needed a valve eventually. My Cardiologist reassured me that I'm still doing well. He didn't place me on any restrictions, as long as I'm not having any symptoms, in which case, he'd want to see me back in his office sooner than July. We'll just have to wait and see if there are any changes on my echo then, as I patiently await my Cardiac MRI. On a more positive note: Someone is always having a worse day than me, and I'm reminded of that daily at work. At least I'm still on this side of the dirt. ; )

I'M ONE YEAR POST-OP!! {Wegmans Family 5K Race Recap}

They say it takes an entire year to recover from any major surgery, and believe it or not, I made it! I can barely believe it myself, but I am in fact 1 year post-op from my open heart surgery! In some ways it seems like it was just yesterday, and in others it seems like it's been longer than a year. I also had my 1 year follow-up with my cardiologist, but that is another post for another day. So how exactly did I celebrate this milestone? With a 5K and brunch with friends!

This past Sunday (April 24th), I ran the Wegmans Family 5K, which is one of 4 events offered during the Flower City Challenge weekend. April 24th was actually the exact date of my 1 year "post-op-iversary," so it was important to me that I do something to commemorate the milestone. I'll be honest, I'd been planning on this 5K for the entire year. I knew that the race would fall on this weekend, and particular day. Luckily, I didn't have to do it alone either. A few of my friends from my previous job also joined me in celebrating.

Sunday morning I woke up (earlier than I normally do even for work), and got ready to meet my friends at Blue Cross. The race was set to start at 7:45 AM (with a half marathon set to start at 7:30 AM). I got down there and parked around 7:00 AM, and I went inside to use the restroom and see if I could find any of my friends. As I made my way around the arena, I heard a "Stacey?" I turned to see one of my Instagram friends, Cheryl! We had just been chatting the night before that we would finally be at the same race (after about 2 years of following each other), though she was running the half. We gave each other a big hug, and chatted for a few moments before wishing each other good luck.

I then heard from my friend Natalie that they were inside getting our friend Linda's bib, so I went down to packet pickup to meet them. I made it down there, and I noticed that both Natalie and Linda were wearing their #TeamStacey shirts that work had made for everyone for the Heart Walk the previous year (due to the walk being the same weekend as my surgery). As soon as I saw them, I broke down into tears. Happy tears, however, I was overwhelmed with everything that had transpired over the past year. It is easily described as peaks and valleys, again though, everything happens for a reason.

I pulled myself together, and we went outside to wait for the race to start. We had missed the half marathon start due to being inside at registration. They wanted to make sure the half marathoners had their bibs first since the half started 15 minutes before the 5K.

(Pre race selfie)

(Natalie, me and Linda)

We walked back towards where everyone was congregating in the race corral, and it wasn't long before the 5K race started. I didn't have a set goal in mind for the race, and I had mentioned that to Linda and Natalie. I just wanted to come out, celebrate and have fun with my friends. Natalie's only goal was the beat our time from the previous week.

(Course Map: Source)

This is the second time I've run this race (since last year my plans were derailed by surgery), and I LOVE the course. It's pretty flat, and it goes by some great landmarks in the city including the Susan B. Anthony House and Frontier Field.

Natalie, Linda and I chatted the entire race, and took frequent walk breaks. I mentioned to Natalie that I wish I had my timer because I honestly think we'd be able to run faster if we had scheduled walk breaks, but my timer is broken. While we were running along, the Rochester Police Academy and Rochester Fire Academy ran by us with their current recruits running in sync. Before I knew it, we were past Frontier Field and coming up on the 2 mile sign. I checked our time and saw that we were in good shape to beat our time from the previous week! The last mile flew by, and we even came across some cameras!

(Of course, some of them I did't even see)

(Two thumbs up!)

Before I knew it we were rounding the corner by Dinosaur BBQ, and I decided to kick it in and finish strong. We all finished within a minute of each other. As soon as I crossed the finish line, I started to tear up. Sounds silly, but I was overcome with emotion knowing how different my life was just one year ago. Linda gave me a high five and a huge hug, which probably made me cry harder, but it was all good. I waited for Natalie to cross the finish line, and gave her a high five. She had achieved her goal of beating her time from the weekend before! I also mentioned to her that we had even stopped for a few pictures along the course, so if it weren't for that, our time would have been a few minutes faster!

We walked down to the end of the finish chute for a cup of water and decided to head inside for a small bite to eat to hold us over before our brunch. While we were inside, there was a fleet feet backdrop that we decided to snap a picture in front of.

(All smiles after a fun 5K!)

After we grabbed some fruit and water, we decided to venture back outside to watch some of the half marathoners coming back in from the race. Our friend Courtney was running the half, so we definitely wanted to be out there to see her finish. It was fun watching all the half marathoners come in and finish their race. Courtney had told us that she'd probably finish in around 2:00:00, and she wasn't far off from her estimate. In the distance we saw her coming, so we all started cheering for her. Natalie snapped a cool "Happy Potter" picture (as I call them) on her iPhone.

(Court coming in strong - ignore my arm, gave her a high five)

Once Court finished, Natalie, Linda and I hung out in the sun a little bit before we headed to find Courtney to see what she wanted to do for food.

(Smiles in the sun)

We decided to head over to Village Bakery for brunch since the other place we were planning on going was actually closed. Courtney had run by it on her run and noticed it was no longer open. Oh well, I will never complain with Village Bakery. Their open face egg sandwiches are the best! We all enjoyed a delicious sandwich and (again) chatted for a while before we all went our separate ways.

(Linda, me, Natalie and Court at brunch)

In a silly way, this race will always hold a special place in my heart just due to the circumstances in which the race surrounds for me personally. Like I said, it's a pretty flat course, and in the years that I've actually been able to participate the weather has been fantastic. The cost of the race is reasonable too. It would have been even cheaper for me if I had registered when the race actually opened, but I still think I only paid something like $27.00. The only downfall to this race is the time. The half started at 7:30 AM with the 5K to follow at 7:45 AM. I know they started this race early due to the fact that there was also a half marathon being held during the same time, so that make sense. It's not a deal breaker since it didn't deter me from running the race.

QOTD: Are there any races that hold a special place in your heart?

Heart Run/Walk 5K Recap

Saturday, April 16th I ran the first annual Heart Run 5K here in Rochester. In years past they've always done the Heart Walk to benefit the American Heart Association, but this year they decided to add a 5K run. At first I wasn't going to do the run because the price was a little steep, however, my friend Natalie was running the 5K, so I decided to jump in and run/walk with her.

This year, only a few of us from the Cardiology department actually registered for the race/walk. Our team included myself, Natalie, our coworker Linda, and then one of our Attendings and his wife. The run/walk was also at a different location this year. This year it was at Frontier Field, where as in years past it has been at Blue Cross Arena. Or you could be like me last year, and be laying in a hospital bed 1 day S/P open heart surgery. But, I digress.

I woke up Saturday morning and got myself around to leave. It was a beautiful sunny day (surprising for April in Rochester), but it was still pretty chilly. I arrived at Frontier field around 8:30, and text my coworkers to see if any where there yet. The race was set to start at 9:00 AM with the walk to immediately follow. My coworkers and I set a meeting place and waited in the sun until it was time to walk over to the race start.

(Standing in the sun waiting for the race to stsrt)

We decided to wander over to where the race was going to start. On our way over, there was a big billboard for all the participants to sign. I thought that was cool, and Natalie told me they also had one last year for everyone to sign.

While we were stretching we noticed there were some characters/mascots (if you will), so of course we had to grab a quick picture before the race started.

Finally it was time for the race the start. For the inaugural race, there were about 400 registrants, which I thought was a decent number. We made our way to the starting line, and then they counted us down. Once they blew the horn for us to start, they released about 25 red balloons into the sky which I thought was a neat idea. Since there wasn't a huge crowd, I told my friend Natalie to let me know when we wanted to walk. I was game for whatever she wanted to do.

The course for the 5K (and the walk) was an out and back on the Inner Loop. It certainly wasn't flat, but the small hills provided a little challenge and made us work a little harder.

(Course map: Source)

Natalie, Linda and I made it to about the one mile marker, and we were all dying. We had definitely overdressed. My thermometer when I left my house said 38 degrees, but the sun was warm. Linda and I stripped our top layers and tied our shirts around our waists. Poor Natalie had worn a black Under Armour shirt under the black Heart Run shirts we were given at packet pickup. As we were making our way out to the turning point, we watched the other side as runners started to make their way back to the finish. Then we saw Ryan and Carrie! We all waved at each other and kept trudging along.

We had finally made it to the halfway point, and looped around and started back towards the finish. As we made our way back toward the finish, we were able to run past all the Heart Walk participants that were making their way to just about the 1 mile marker. It was great to see how many participants there were doing the walk. There were also little activities and snacks along the course for the walkers to partake in. The 3 of us chatted as we made our way back over the hills and turned the corner towards Frontier Field. The last 1/10 of a mile we kicked it in and finished strong. I finished in 41:40, not my fastest, but that's my fault for not running consistently this winter/spring. A huge shoutout to Natalie who ran her FIRST timed 5K, and she rocked it!

Once we finished we met up with Ryan and Carrie and chatted for a few minutes. Ryan had mentioned that Scott Hetsko had run the race, and just finished a few minutes before us. I went up to him to say hello, and introduce myself, and asked if I could get a picture with him.

(Chatting about our heart surgeries)

Scott was extremely nice. We chatted for a few minutes, and I told him that I had open heart surgery about a year ago too, and we compared scars. His looks awesome by the way, hardly noticeable. I commented on his Penn State shirt, and was excited to learn he is also a Penn State Alum!

After that we decided to check out the sponsor tents to see what goodies we could pick up. We stopped at the Kodak booth where they were taking pictures of participants, then printing them off so we could take them home. Not only that, they were offering a service where you could print pictures from your phone to take home with you, so we definitely took advantage of that.

We grabbed a small snack at the refreshment tent and decided that we would go for a bite to eat together when we left. We quickly walked around the tents and picked up some goodies and decided to head out. Linda, Natalie and I decided to head to Village Bakery for breakfast. It was such a beautiful day and we were lucky to snag a table outside in the sun. We ate our breakfast and stayed and chatted for quite a while, then we all headed out to enjoy the rest of our weekends.

(With Natalie and Linda at Village Bakery)

QOTD: Running is always more fun with friends. Do you have a BRF (best running friend?)

Time To Catch Up. What Are You Grateful For?

I realize it's been months since I've posted, so I figured it was time for an update. To say life has been busy is a bit of an understatement, but I can say that it's all been good.

First I'll start with this. It's been exactly 10 months since I was discharged from the hospital after my open heart surgery. I was discharged on April 28th, my parents wedding anniversary. Second, I wanted to just what to say how grateful I am that I was able to wake up this morning and enjoy a Yoga class, and that I was able to enjoy 2 runs outside this weekend.

(Saturdays morning run was a chilly 26 degrees)

(And then there was todays run, when it was 65 degrees)

We had a beautiful day here in Western New York today, and temperatures reached 65 degrees on my thermometer here at my house. I also went to a different yoga studio this morning just to check it out, but I'll post about that on a different post.

So, I started doing Crossfit at the end of last year. I'm still only going once a week, but it's something to get my body engaged a little more than yoga. I'm also still going to yoga (at least) once a week, and I do feel like I'm getting stronger. Not sure if I'm getting more flexible, but I know all these things take time.

Back to crossfit. Dan convinced me to sign up for my first Tough Mudder. It's also the day before my 30th birthday. I joked with him that he had better come visit me on my birthday when I'm in the hospital in a full body cast. I'm actually very nervous. I'm not a huge trail runner, and this is anywhere between 10-13 miles of trails with obstacles. This is where I need to start getting my butt in gear and get to crossfit more than once a week to build up some upper body strength if I'm going to be able to do some of the obstacles.

(Yeah, I'm probably going to die)

So, for now that's my big fitness goal for the year. I don't believe I'll be doing any half marathons. 5Ks and 10Ks are more my jam (at least for the time being), and I just can't see torturing myself if I'm not enjoying the distance. That's not to say I won't ever run a half marathon again, but for now, I'm good.

As for races this year, I have run one 5K, it was the Cupids Cup 5K, and that was the weekend before Valentine's day. I will also post a recap of that race here in the next few days. I'm currently registered for a Shamrock 5K in March, I will be doing the Heart 5K in April, the Color Run and April and the Stroll for Strong kids in June. So, slowly but surely I'm filling my race calendar.

Aside from all of that, things have been going well. I haven't had any issues from a cardiac standpoint. I go back to see my cardiologist in April for a one year follow-up, and after that I should be back to my regular annual follow-ups. So far the year is off to a positive start.

QOTD: Do you have any fitness goals for the year?

runDisney's Wine & Dine "Half of a Half" Marathon: Part 2

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. It's one of my favorite holidays. Food, family and football, what's not to love?!

I apologize for the delay in posting the second half of my race recap. Life has gotten away from me lately, but it's time to get back on track. Last I left off, Lily and I walked down to the bus stop on time and were feeling better about things after the fiasco of getting to dinner on time, etc. Once we were on the bus we could breathe a sigh of relief. However, it was not over. Like I said, Fate was trying to tell me something.

We made it to the ESPN sports complex in no time at all, and made our way through the security bag check. We made our way over to the gEAR check, and got rid of our bags, then found a place to sit and relax while we waited to head to the corrals.

(Wilderness Explorers are ready for a 13.1 mile adventure!)

After a while we decided to hop in line for the port-a-potties so we would be ready to go once we headed to the corrals. While we waited in line we commented on all the neat costumes we saw. We saw two people dressed as churros, they were super cute. We also saw some other Wilderness Explorers, some even had full on backpacks with pots hanging from the back. Now that's dedication! I have to say, that the churros may have been the best costume we saw. As we waited, out of nowhere the wind began to pick up. Although it felt nice because the humidity was so high, we knew it was not a good sign. It couldn't have been 10 minutes later, that the runDisney announcers told us that there was severe weather in the area, and that we needed to be evacuated to the ESPN stadiums until further notice. Of course there was a mad rush because people started to freak out.

Lily and I made our way to one of the stadiums, and decided to head to one of the bathrooms in there since we never made it up to the port-a-potties, then we made our way to the bleachers and had a seat. While we waited, the people around us were watching the weather Doppler on their phones. Of course there was this big orange spot over us.

Finally after about an hour, they let us go back outside, and it had never even rained. We made our way back to where we were originally waiting, and people started making their ways to the corrals. Lily and I jumped in line at the port-a-potties one last time. We were trying to rebuild the momentum that we had lost while sitting in the bleachers. While we waited, the couple behind us was checking facebook and told us that because of the weather delay, runDisney was shortening the course. They posted the new course, and we calculated it out to be about 6 miles of the race. They decided to cut out all of the Animal Kingdom. We were both disappointed, but there was nothing we could do at this point. At least they didn't cancel it all together.

We went to the bathroom, then made it to our corral, where we quickly made some new friend while we waited to start. So, let's fast forward a bit. Lily and I finally crossed the start mat at 11:23 pm, and we maybe made it about 3/4 of a mile and we were both DRENCHED in sweat. Since it hadn't rained, the humidity level was still at 85%. We trudged along, and unfortunately because of the shortened course, it was SO congested the entire time. Before we knew it we were heading into Hollywood Studios and right through the Osborne family spectacle of lights!

(Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights)

We snapped more photos, but this one is my favorite from Hollywood Studios. We waved through Hollywood Studios, and before we knew it we were running out the front and along the water towards Epcot. I think by this point, Lily and I were over this race, and just ready to finish. We ran along the boardwalk and finally into Epcot. We ran past spaceship earth and weaved our way back out of Epcot and towards the finish line. I gave Mickey a high five, and Lily and I crossed the finish line together. THANK GOD that was over! Our clothes were completely saturated. We separated to go through our respective gEar check lines to grab our dry clothes, and met back up after. Then we made our way through the drink line and finally out to where we could breathe.

(The smiles... I think we're just happy to be done.)

This next part is a little sad. We slowly made our way back toward the after party at Epcot and made it through the bag check line.Once we made it inside, I ran into Chris, so I said hi and chatted with him for a few minutes. We must have been right by each other in the bag line because I was walking in JUST behind him. Chris went on his way and Lily and I slowly made our way past Spaceship Earth and towards World Showcase. We made it to the Cranberry bog and we both literally had had enough. We were both so tired, still soaked, and just didn't know if we could honestly even make it around the World Showcase. So, yes, we turned around and left.

We slowly made our way back to the resort buses, and thankfully there was a bus there waiting. We climbed aboard and plopped into a seat. It felt so good to sit down. Once we finally made it back to our resort, I hopped in the shower first, and it was ridiculous trying to peel my clothes off. I threw them in a pile on the floor and decided I would deal with them in the morning. Once I got out of the shower, I crawled right into bed with the box of leftover pizza from dinner, then it was lights out. It must have been after 2 am.

Sunday morning we took our time getting up and getting around. We certainly were in no rush to get to Magic Kingdom because we also had tickets for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, so we were going to be at the park until around midnight. I threw my medal in my bag, but wasn't all that thrilled about wearing it since we didn't actually run the half marathon. I still had Lily snap a quick picture with me wearing it, then it went in my bag for the rest of the day.

So there you have it. The mess that was supposed to be my great half marathon comeback. All in all, Lily and I still had a good time even though the weekend didn't go as we planned.

QOTD: Have you ever had a race not go according to plan? Ever have a race completely cancelled on you?

Monster Scramble 10K and 6 Month Post-op Follow-up

MS Monster Scramble 10K:
Sunday, October 18th, my friend Lily came out to Rochester so we could run the MS Monster Scramble together at Mount Hope Cemetery. We had never run together and with our half marathon fast approaching, we desperately needed to get in a test run together. We also agreed that running more than a 5K was needed for both of us. I have not been training as rigorously as I should be considering all that's been going on lately. We also decided to test run part of our Wine and Dine half marathon costumes.

It was FREEZING that morning, and snowflakes were even floating in the air. Lily met me at my house that morning, and we drove up to the race together. The website had us park off site and we were shuttled to the start, which was hassle free. The event had packet pick-up at the start location, which is really one of my only beefs about this race. Pick-up lines were divided, the top half of the alphabet, and the bottom half. Once we got our packets, we pinned our bibs on and ditched our bags they gave us in a tree near the start. Then we found a sunny area to stand in while we waited for the race to start.

(Love a good candid... not)

The Monster Scramble offered a 5K option and a 10K option - which we ran the 10K. I have to admit, early that morning when I woke up, I was really regretting that decision because it was so cold, but ultimately, it ended up being perfect weather for running. The race started at 10 AM, and both the 5K and 10K runners started at the same time. The 10K route was 2 of the 5K loops. The good thing about that was that Lily and I knew what to expect the second time around.

Of course right at the start of the race was a HUGE hill, and I was definitely not looking forward to running that again. There were a few other hills throughout the remainder of the course, but nothing that we couldn't handle. There were also some areas of the course that had old cobblestone instead of pavement, so that was a little dicey. Overall it was a beautiful course, and I would definitely run it again.

(Certainly not the best shot, but whatever)

Overall, I feel Lily and I did well. We finished the 10K in just under 1:18:00 (because there was no timing mat at the start), and we averaged 12:37 min/miles.

(Course map and elevation details)

I really enjoyed this race, and like I said I would run it again. It was definitely something different for me as I have not run at Mt. Hope Cemetery before so it was different scenery, and it was perfect for a Halloween themed race. My only complaint about the race was the packet pick-up the morning of. I honestly didn't know that the race had pre-race packet pick up, and this is my fault as I had been so busy with other stuff the week leading up to the race to even check into it. I'm sure it was held at Fleet feet.

(Pre-race selfie in the sun)

Pros:
Price: It was cheap for a 10K. If I remember correctly, it was $25.00.
Water Stop: The race itself had one water stop (which since the 10K course looped twice it was 2), which I think was plenty for a 10K.
Volunteers: There was an adequate number of volunteers, and they even joined in on the fun and dressed in costumes.
Refreshments: Your typical spread, post race refreshments included fruit, bagels and water.
Shuttle: It was great that the race offered a shuttle from the parking area (it was necessary) The wait to catch the shuttle to and from where we parked was minimal.

Cons:
Race Day Packet Pick-up: I hated that this was held at Mt. Hope Cemetery so we were unable to ditch our bags in my car. I wish they had held it at the Al Sigl building where we parked. Again, my fault that I wasn't paying attention to pre-race packet pick-up.

6 Month Post-op Follow-up:
A few weeks ago I also had my 6 month post-op follow-up with my NEW Cardiologist. I found out who my new Cardiologist was going to be when I called to tell them I found out my new valve was leaking. So then I went right to the URMC website to look him up. I have to say, just reading about his training (residency and fellowships), I was quite impressed.

Once I met him and we started talking he mention that he had been going through my old Cardiologists notes to get to know his patients but he also wanted to hear from me about how I thought things were going, etc. So of course I went into the story about I had volunteered at RIT for the echo students so they could scan me as see some pathology, and that's when I found out it was leaking. I told him that the valve looked like it had more than a mild leak, but it wasn't quite moderate, etc. Then I mentioned that I was a sonographer, and that's how I knew. He mentioned he saw that on my patient information sheet, and we continued talking. He and a student that was shadowing him for the day listened to my heart and lungs, and then he said he wanted to get another echo just to compare it to the post surgery echo I had the day I was discharged from the hospital. He said even though I will have read the echo, we would reconvene after to discuss.

The lead sonographer came to get me from my exam room and she walked me to her echo room. I mentioned to her that my valve was leaking, and that I knew there wasn't any post surgery. While she did my echo we chatted, then after she walked me back into an exam room so my cardiologist could come talk to me once again. He agreed that the valve had a mild leak, but that it wasn't uncommon for all valves to leak, and most of them do directly out of surgery. He said my pulmonary pressures hadn't changed, and that he believed that this would be my "new normal." He said I have no physical restrictions, so I can still run, etc, and if I feel there are any changes I can call him. If not, he wants to see me back in 6 months so we can re-evaluate just to make sure that nothing changes. All of that sounded good to me. He doesn't feel comfortable setting me up for annual visits just yet, and that's fine. I'd rather he be thorough.

Aside from the Monster Scramble and my follow-up, I've been keeping busy. This past weekend I ran another Halloween themed 5K (which I'll be posting about in the near future), and I also had a Halloween party which was a lot of fun. Tomorrow morning my friend Lily and I finally leave for Disney for our half marathon!

QOTD: Did you run any fun Halloween themed races this year?

Cardiology is awesome, but I'm kind of selfish

As of last Friday, I am officially 5 months post-op! So what exactly has been going on since my last post? Well, for one thing, I turned 29. I enjoyed a fun birthday weekend with my friends and family.

I haven't been running as much as I should be, especially when I have a half marathon in 35ish days. I've been getting little runs in here and there, but honestly, it's been bad. Can I also say that I'm so excited that it's fall. I love summer, but fall brings football and tailgating. In September, I spent two weekends in State College with friends going to the Penn State football games. Of course, lucky me, it poured during both games. All that aside, I still had a blast, as always.

(Nita, Eric, Me and Matt before the rain set in for the day)

("Nails")

(Tailgating with my girls, Dani and Kristen)

(Home: 103,000+ Stripe-out under the lights in Happy Valley<3)

Okay, so that's been my last few weekends. Let's get on with my 5 month update. So like I said, Cardiology is awesome, but I'm a little selfish. As much as I LOVE Cardiology, I'd be lying if I said I didn't go into the field of Cards without my own interest in mind. Last week I was feeling a little short of breath and noticed my heart rate was hovering around 105 bpm at rest. I received my flu shot on Wednesday, so I thought maybe it was a side effect of the shot hitting me, or possibly I was trying to fight off a virus that was trying to set it. Nevertheless, I had my coworker do another echo on me to make sure that nothing was actually going on.

Here's what we found:

My new Pulmonic valve is in fact leaking, which annoys me. There's not much I can do about it though.

(Lovely Pulmonic insufficiency)

My pulmonary pressures are mildly elevated. However, if the RV is remodeling and function is improving, it is possible for my pulmonary pressures to be elevated due to the fact that the ventricle is able to produce a pressure. Makes sense, could also be explaining my shortness of breath.

The gradients through the conduit also seem elevated to me. To be honest, I'm not even sure what the mean and peak gradient for my RV-PA conduit should be for the size and type, and I've searched journal articles high and low for values, but come up empty handed. So that will be something I'll have to keep in mind when I go back in November. Hopefully someone will have an answer for me.

(Gradients through the conduit)

Either way, like I said, I'm supposed to have a follow-up with pediatric cardiology in November. I'll keep an eye on things, and if I continue to get worse, then I'll call them sooner.

Moving on. This past Tuesday, I went to RIT in the evening to help a friend out with a lecture he was giving on Pulmonic Stenosis with Intact Ventricular Septum pathology. Though my pathology is a little different, he asked me to stop by so the students could scan me. It was a lot of fun, and the lab at RIT is beautiful. The students took their turn scanning me which took about and hour. My friend asked them questions while they were scanning. "Why does that structure look like that." "What does this measurement tell us?" Etc... It was great to be able to help out and have the students see a little different pathology than I'm sure they're used to.

Any way, that's about all I have for now - nothing too exciting.

QOTD: What's do you like most about the fall?