Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Bout of Books 12: Wrap-Up Post (+ another personal update)

Note: Most of this update is pregnancy-related, so if that's not your thing, you've been warned!

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Well, last week definitely did not turn out as expected! I was looking forward to Bout of Books as a bit of a distraction and a fun thing to do at home when I wasn't working since I couldn't fly down to Florida for my friend's wedding, but the read-a-thon quickly got put on the back burner when I went for my pre-natal appointment on Tuesday. I had been feeling worse day by day and was still waiting for my cardiologist appointment to get fully evaluated for my symptoms, but as soon as my OB saw me struggling to walk back to the exam room, it was decided this couldn't wait any longer (thank goodness!). So I was sent next door to get the full work up in the ER instead and I ended up getting admitted overnight. Honestly, I was relieved to go to the hospital. I was frustrated that I couldn't see the cardiologist sooner to begin with and for anyone who's never had a rapid heart rate, it is downright scary especially when you don't know what's causing it. I had been told previously it wasn't urgent and it was fine to wait, but it was still nerve-wracking, especially while pregnant.

Anyway, the sort-of short version is that there is nothing wrong with my heart (yay!) despite having symptoms of tachycardia (rapid heart rate.) Resting, taking it easy, and not exercising (which I was told to do and which makes sense before you know for sure what the problem is) while waiting to be evaluated was actually the worst possible thing for me. Turns out that starting with a cold I got after Thanksgiving when I took a week and a half off my regular exercise routine started the process of deconditioning my body and then as I started feeling lightheaded and the beginnings of the fast heart rate, I started limiting all my activity which made me weaker and weaker the less I did. So basically I got out of shape, only it happened really fast and much worse because of all the extra blood supply my body is pumping for the baby. So after just a few weeks, my body thought a stroll down the hall was major exercise and my heart pumped accordingly, at an alarmingly fast rate.

So after tons of tests to confirm that my heart is indeed healthy, the prescription is actually to exercise, believe it or not. To start, that just means walking and doing things around the house which has felt like a ridiculous amount of effort, but I'm happy to say that it does seem to be helping already. My mom came to stay with me a few days so I wouldn't be home alone while my husband was working as I started this process. The Dr. said I'm going to feel really crummy and I'm going to feel the tachycardia kick in, but to know my heart is healthy and can handle it and that making it work is the only way to get stronger and reduce the symptoms. Just going on an errand is a form of "therapy" right now, though I am still not driving -- I can push myself, but I see no need to graduate to operating heavy machinery quite yet! I'll work on going for longer walks first and I dream of the day I can get back to swimming laps, but I'm afraid that's still a ways off.

And I should also note that through all of this the baby has been perfectly fine and kicking up a storm. His (yes, it's a boy! I don't think I officially announced that here yet) heart rate has been perfectly normal. His crazy mother's heart rate has been faster than his at times, but that is a problem with me, not him. For anyone who's had a baby and knows how fast their hearts go, you can guess just how fast I've been thumping!

So, basically what I'm trying to say is that I didn't read a whole lot this week. Duh. Though actually, I did reach my Bout of Books goals. I finished my audiobook and my book club book. I didn't think I was going to make it to the meeting, but since my prescription was to do more, I did go. I was exhausted when I got home, but it went really well and I was very happy to be out of the house. You'd think I could read a lot waiting around in the ER and being in the hospital overnight (especially since I had two books in my purse), but I just didn't have the concentration for more than a few pages here and there. After I got home, I did read two short books from our Harry Potter Page to Screen set (which were mostly photos, to be honest, but really fascinating) and a bit of my Voyager re-read, so I did read a little bit every day. I had fun with my reading as much as could be expected this week and I didn't put any pressure on myself because I had much more important things to worry about, obviously!

Books finished: 4 + started a 5th
Pages read: 445
Time listened to audiobook: 1 hour
Total time read: No idea!
Challenges completed: 1

I did do the Scavenger Hunt challenge (pre-hospital):


How was your week? Hopefully less eventful than mine!

18 comments:

  1. Oh, my! I'm really impressed you met your Bout of Books goals considering everything else you had going on!

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    1. Thanks! Though I do think it helps that my goals were rather minimal, lol

      I have my eye on the January 24th National Readathon Day I've been hearing about as maybe a chance to participate in another event a bit more fully -- though since I'm supposed to keep moving, maybe I'll make it an audiobook read-a-thon.

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  2. Wow, it sounds like it's been quite the week for you - I'm surprised any reading was done!

    It's great that this has been sorted out though, I imagine it's a great relief for you! I hope the rest of your pregnancy runs a little smoother. And congrats on a boy!
    :-)

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    1. Thanks Jade! I'm hoping the rest will be smoother as well -- I still have a lot of work to do, but it is a relief knowing I am still essentially healthy and this is more a bump in the road than some major underlying issue that is just presenting itself now. It's hard work growing a baby, isn't it? lol

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  3. I am so happy that you and the baby are okay! I don't know that I would have felt like reading with all that going on. Good for you for meeting your goal anyway. :)

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    1. Thanks Cynthia! The majority was definitely done before the hospital. And while that page count looks pretty high, you should see the Harry Potter books I read! I'm not one to ever say any kind of book doesn't "count" but these were definitely nice quick, picture-heavy comfort reads, which was about as much as I could handle when I got back home. My mom on the other hand got hooked on a Dan Brown book she borrowed and read more this week than she normally would -- a bit of an unofficial read-a-thon for her too I guess!

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  4. Oh wow, I'm glad everything is fine - that must have been scary. Personally I cannot focus on books at all when I have some other things going on, so I never can read in the doctor's waiting room or some such.

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    1. Thanks Riv -- it was quite scary, but I'm much less nervous now that I have some answers. I always try to read in waiting rooms, but it doesn't usually work unless the wait is horribly long which hasn't been the case since I moved and switched to all new offices. I definitely had to choose my books carefully once I got home -- short, easy, & picture-heavy seemed the perfect choice as a bit of distraction that didn't require too much concentration!

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  5. That sounds beyond nerve wrecking! I'm so glad your heart is okay.

    It's a boy! So exciting! Glad to hear he handled the whole situation so well. :D

    I think you read a great amount considering everything.

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    1. Thanks Kay! It was a very nerve-wracking few weeks, but things are thankfully improving. Slowly, but I'll take that over getting worse :)

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  6. First of all, yay for a baby boy! It's funny as all the book bloggers I know who have had babies recently (me included) have had boys. They are delightful though :)

    It must have been horrible to be so worried about your heart, and I'm glad that everything was OK. I had a rapid heart rate towards the end of my pregnancy, but nothing as bad as yours and that was scary enough. Take care of yourself xx

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    1. Thanks Sam! There do seem to be a lot of baby boys among the book blogging community lately :)

      You really don't realize how much you don't even pay attention to your heart beat until all of a sudden you can feel it doing something wacky. You're the first person I've heard of to have something similar and I'm glad everything got resolved for you in the end.

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  7. Wow you got a lot of reading done for all the pregnancy related stuff you had going on. I still need to get my bout of books wrap up written.

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    1. Thanks Rachael -- I think it *looks* like a lot more than it really was, but I'm OK with that :) Hope you had a good read-a-thon!

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  8. OMG! So glad your are ok and that everything is going ok! Wheew. What a scare? I would have been stressed out too. I think doctors should ask mom-to-be's "what are you worried about?" Then address it 100% so you can have a peace of mind. That is the most important thing while you are prego. Get some rest mama!! :)

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    1. Thank you Alysia :) It was very stressful, but I'm very glad things are looking up -- everything you might stress about is definitely multiplied when pregnant, as much as I try to stay calm, it's not always easy!

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