The Game Changer- Our Warfarin Diet

The Symptoms

My husband had been getting short of breath for the couple of months, something we attributed to the strange, dry summer and allergens.  Add age and weight to that too.

He had some pains in his legs, again attributed to his periodic sciatic nerve problems.

Never did we think about blood clots.

Last Monday he was in terrible pain, the worst ever. 

It was centered on his side and radiating towards his back.

Not in the heart area, more the side and lower ribs. 

It hurts to breath, like when he broke his ribs.

I was worried. He never shows signs of being in pain, even when he is.

This was serious, but keep in mind- He's A Guy.

"Oh, it will pass"

"It's just allergies"

"I pulled my back today, it's my ribs"

"No, don't call an ambulance, I'm fine"

All along, sounds of desperate pain.

It seemed to get better so we waited until morning.

"Should I take you to the hospital?  No?"

I went on to work- I will NEVER let him do this again.

We were lucky.

He called me just after I arrived at work- Come Home.

I get home and convince him we're going to the hospital and he agrees.

He can't get down the steps, not enough breath.

So I call for an ambulance which is only about 3 miles from my house.

"No siren!" he requested.

OK, 911 said no sirens.

In the distance I hear "Weee- oh, Weee-oh"

There are sirens.  But they turned them off when they got to our street.

An army arrived and multiple vehicles.

They checked his heart- OK.

They checked his lungs for congestion- OK.

No need to transport, they help him down and into my car.

We head to the ER, the hospital midway between my office and home.

It's new and various family members have been there.

(In fact, we out to be getting a family discount,
or at least a wing named after us!)

It's small and has easy access.

It's on my insurance plan.

The Exam

It is an emergency room so we know there will be a wait.

There's quite a few people but they get his vitals and we get a room.

It's a nice hospital, even the emergency room is family friendly.

We are there for hours, he has CAT scans, MRI's and whatever else they test.

They almost let us leave, they can't find anything so it's probably rib inflammation.

He's getting dressed and the doctor comes running up the hall-
  STOP!

The Diagnosis

The radiologist found blood clots in his lungs.

He's has  pulmonary embolisms. (PE)

Clots are also in his legs.

He's admitted immediately and started on a Heparin drip.

We almost lost him,
we should have gone to the ER the night before.
They said most patients that die from PE
do so within the first 6 hours.
These clots traveled up his leg and through his heart
then into his lung.

The Treatment

He was in the hospital since last Tuesday morning,
discharged on Monday - Labor Day.

He had at least 4 IVs in him.  It's not just the clots. 

Heparin for clots until they can start the Coumadin (warfarin).

They think his sugar is high, pre-diabetic (thoughts on that later)

He has some cholesterol issues.

The most dangerous, clots aside, is his debilitating migraines.

He has been on very high doses of aspirin-
 the combination that is in Excedrine Migraine.

He cannot continue with the blood thinners he is receiving,
they need to find an alternative.

He can bleed to death if he takes them since they too thin the blood.

He had a head injury when he was 14 or 15- something stupid that a kid would do. 

He's had headaches ever since. These are bad.

They give him tunnel vision, he "sees" things, he has to sit in the dark.
He can't work if they are not controlled.

We've seen the regular attending doctor for the clots.

Our doctor was on vacation (holiday weekend),
then the covering doctor went on vacation
and we had a third covering doctor.
  

We met many, many people during this week.

A dietitian for guidance on how to eat when on warfarin, for pre-diabetes, cholesterol.

Neurologist for the headache problems, wean him off the aspirin,
try to break them and find an alternative.

Physical Therapist- to see if there is something wrong
with his neck/head/shoulders that triggers the migraines.

Diabetes doctor for, diabetes advice.

And the best nurses and support staff ever.

The Facility

St Clare Hospital in Fenton, MO
A brand new center, smaller, easier access.
The nursing staff is very attentive, at least in our case.
Food- well, it is a hospital after all.
Patient food is different than cafeteria food.

Medical Center Link here.

Follow Up
After a week long stay he was sent  home.
On a Holiday.
Tuesday- back to the coumadin center for counseling and blood testing.
They will come up with a test dosage which will be tweaked with follow ups every couple of days.
Tutoring on what to eat - vitamin K intake must be consistent.
Same portion every day or none at all, no ups and downs.
It interferes with the clotting.

Guess what- This was my Spring plantings:
Spinach, Kale, Greens, all green leafy vegetables (including lamb's quarter).
The things you can survive on, the early crops.
Broccoli.
All High Vitamin K.
I need a new game plan.

In addition, we have to follow the heart and diabetes diets too.
I don't believe he is diabetic.  They did the A1C levels and said it was high.
This is your blood for the three months prior to the day it was drawn.
Imagine it as an M&M, how thick is the sugary candy coating.
His was thick.
At the same time they told us sugars increase
just before you realize you are getting sick.
He's felt bad for a few months- did his sugar spike and make the coating?
All his tests for the week were in the normal range.
We'll test but I think they may find that he has, if anything, low sugar.
Sometimes he gets shaky and needs to eat.

The Future
This one is difficult.
The headaches rage.
He isn't able to think straight due to the pain.
He sits in the dark holding his head.
I have to be quiet.
He can't take the narcotic/seizure concoction
and still drive to draw blood.
I have to work and I have to be there
to hold my job.
If I lost my job there is no insurance.
Family leave is unpaid.

No job- he can't work construction even if he wanted due to the bleeding risk.
No unemployment because right now he can't work.
We don't have many bills, I can almost cover them,
but not quite.
No satellite-internet, no Direct TV, no car payments.
Our internet is through an antenna and not very expensive.
I use it for work as well as normal bill paying, etc.
I'll be able to work one day per week at home starting in the Fall.
Being an hour away from town, that's a good savings in gas and car maintenance.
We have cell phones but it's cheaper than
our normal line with the extended calling range into town.
Our cells are as close to rotary dial as you can get.
Cheap.
Plain Jane.


However,
The house payment is large and is covered in ex-business debt.

We cannot sell the house, the market is bad way out here,
it needs some work and we couldn't sell it for enough to cover the loan.
This was supposed to be the up and coming growth area, until the economy changed.
We were staying until the kids were out and we were close to retirement.
We'd sell it and buy something smaller with land for cash, something
sort of Morton Building-ish.
Their houses are really very nice
and the inside can be made any way you want.
I don't think this is going to happen now.

We'll figure out something.
The key will be getting the headaches under control so he can function.
Once he can function, he can get a job.
I wish there were a job he could do from home,
internet related, even if it doesn't pay much.

We need to change our diet.
We need to exercise.
We've been discussing this.
We've prepped for so much, except our health.

I am not complaining.
No sympathy needed- it is what it is.
This is a warning.

Start now, take care of your health.
They told us that 30 minutes of walking--
AFTER dinner-- is the best exercise.
They don't know why after dinner, but it is.

Maybe say a prayer for him-
for recovery
to get the headaches under control.

Thank you.

Warfarin Image Credit