Christmas Party

Went to my monthly support group meeting on Tuesday, where we had a potluck dinner and white elephant gift exchange. It was a fun game and I ended up stealing a vase shaped like a boot as my gift.

An Interesting Coincidence

So I got an email the other day from a lady who randomly came across my blog. After reading one of my posts about my transplant she thought it was quite interesting that I was scheduled for surgery in the operating room at 11pm on March 20, 2009. Apparently the first official day of spring occurs on the vernal equinox. And in 2009 the first day was March 20 at approximately 11:47 pm, when the sun was above the equator and crossed into the northern hemisphere. Since in many cultures and religious, spring is thematically linked with rebirth and renewal, as the melting of the snow and the blooming of flowers are symbolic figures of this transformation, she thought it was fitting that I had begun my transplant just as winter was giving way for spring and linking my transplant with the rebirth theme. Given that many of us in the transplant community often refer to our transplant dates as our "other birthdays", I think it is an interesting coincidence. And even though my official transplant date is March 21, its still nice to think about my connection to nature and the world.

The Primavera by Botticelli

Carlsbad Half Marathon

Its official, I got a bib to run in the Carlsbad Half Marathon in January. I will be running for the Lifesharing/ Donate Life San Diego charity, a group that holds a special place in my heart. (bad pun intended). Check out this link if you would like to help me reach my goal and support a worthy cause with a tax deductible donation.

http://www.active.com/donate/donatelifecb2010/justinferia

...if I only had a heart

Dressed up as the Tin Man this year for Halloween.

The San Diego Asian Film Festival

The last couple of nights I've been in Mission Valley at the San Diego Asian Film Festival, watching some pretty interesting films. I'm not really into watching Asian movies but Rogene and Delilah invited me to come with them, otherwise I most likely wouldn't have taken the time to go see these movies. I'm glad I did because they were pretty good in comparison to the lack of quality blockbuster movies I've been watching lately.

The movie I saw on Sunday was an Asian American movie called 'The People I Slept With" about a pregnant woman trying to figure out which one of her lovers was the father. It was a romantic comedy but not necessarily the typical plot for a rom-com as it had some crude humor and was from the viewpoint of a woman.

The movie I watched tonight was a Korean movie called "Scandal Makers". I was kinda bummed when the movie first started and everything was in subtitles but I got over that as the movie was quick and humorous. I'm not gonna give any plot outlines, as I recommend seeing it the way I did by just going into the theater and watching it, you'll be pleasantly surprised. If you wanna see a movie at the festival, there is still time as it runs till Thursday night.

New Phone

After weeks of my cell phone battery dying after a five minute call, it finally gave out and actually exploded. Unfortunately, I had to go a weekend without the use of a cellular phone, which in this day and age of technology, is quite the accomplishment. However, I finally got my new phone delivered and activated today, Yipie!

HTC Touch Pro 2

It took weeks of haggling and negotiating with the Sprints account services departments, but I was able to score a pretty sweet deal. The MSRP for this phone is $599 but if you sign a new two year contract with Sprint they'll give you a $150 instant discount and a $100 mail in rebate, a sizable discount but nevertheless still expensive for a phone. That means you still gotta drop $450 plus tax and wait six weeks for that extra hundred.

So instead of doing this I searched the internet and found a forum on Slickdeals that gave out tips on how to get a better deal. I followed some of their suggestions and ended up buying the phone online for $199 without paying any tax (used Oregon zip code), and got $242 worth of sprint credit added to my cell phone account plus the $100 mail in rebate on top of that. When you add all that up, it amounts to $142 Sprint paid me to get a new smart phone. Which means I wont have to pay a cell phone bill for the next seven months.














...just to add a little more jealousy to all of you iPhone suckers spending an arm and a leg for their data plan, my SERO account (Sprint Employee Referral Offer) includes free unlimited data with my wireless plan, all for a measly $30 a month.

Dr. Adamson

Went to my monthly support group meeting tonight and was treated to a wonderful presentation on heart transplants by Dr. Robert Adamson. He was the lead surgeon who performed my transplant. It was cool getting a chance to hear him speak as there is usually not a lot of interaction between us and him, as it turns out he's got a great sense of humor.

B-Day Brunch

Had a nice get together today with the family for my 27th Birthday

New Format for the Blog

Well as you can see, I havn't been posting any new updates to the blog. This is because I was being considered by the marketing department at Sharp Memorial Hospital to write a blog for their website on my experiences after my heart transplant, however those plans have been put on hold while they revamp their website. So since they are no longer monitoring my blog, I will be updating more often and about all aspects of my life, not just medical wise. That means random pictures from daily events, articles I find interesting, or any ideas that pop into my head.

2009 Heart Walk

Today I participated in my first Heart Walk as a member of Sharp Memorial Hospital Heart Transplant team. Its was a really fun experience that I am sure to do again next year. I was joined by my cousin Rachel Quinto and two of her friends who walked with their companies group. The atmosphere was lively and the walk was for a good cause, as our group alone ended up raising more that $8,000 towards heart and stroke research. After the walk our group had a catered breakfast in the park and took a few group shots. Hopefully next year you can walk with me.

Sharp Memorial Hospital Patients on "The Doctors"

Two Sharp Memorial Hospital heart patients will be featured on the nationally syndicated program “The Doctors” tomorrow, Sept. 9. The show airs locally on KUSI at 5 p.m. At the time of the filming, both patients were experiencing heart failure and on the transplant list. The San Diego Union-Tribune included a preview about Sharp Memorial’s inclusion in the program in its “Short Takes” column yesterday.

Since the original filming, one of our featured patients, Lori Zenz, received the good news that she was a match for a healthy heart. Over the weekend, Lori underwent transplant surgery and is now recovering with family. A film crew from “The Doctors” was on hand to document the event and they plan to run a follow up story about Lori later this television season.

WEDNESDAY
September 9 – Show #2010
“Waiting on a Heart: How to Save a Life”

THE DOCTORS teach you how you can save a life through organ donation. And, get an inside look at an actual heart transplant procedure. Plus, learn about the latest technology to help people live longer while on standby for a transplant. And, watch as one woman meets the man who received her husband’s heart to stay alive.

Heart Walk 2009

The 2009 San Diego Heart Walk is coming up in September. If you would like to help a good cause and want to join me in walking this year send me a message at justinferia@hotmail.com.

Travel

My transplant experience has given me a new found appreciation for life and for enjoying the things God has given to me. Part of enjoying life is the opportunity to travel and see new things. Last week I took a trip up to the Pacific Northwest to visit some family and explore new cities. Here are a few pictures from my trip.

Took the train up from Portland

At the "Bite of Seattle" Festival

Huge brick of curly fries

Best view of Seattle Skyline

Where they throw the fish

The first Starbucks

Pikes Place

Mt. Rainier

Karlys house

Park across the street

Had clams for dinner courtesy of Karlys roommates

The troll under the bridge

Kyle and Karly

Kyle and Jourieh

Helping out at Kyles work

Kyle works at a church built mostly by members who work at Microsoft, so he has a lot of cool equipment at his disposal due to their donations... Such a cool job.

Went to a comedy show in Bellevue and had a few drinks. FUN NIGHT!!!

Just the beginning

I've defiantly been hit by the travel bug.

Four Months Today

Today marks four months of life since my heart transplant on March 21, 2009. Its been a roller coaster of a ride dealing with the highs and lows that come along with my medicine and post op routine but I am grateful for every moment of life that God has given me. I have to thank everyone who has helped me along the way, from visiting me in the hospital, sending me a text or saying a prayer, I truly appreciate your love and kindness.

Many people have been asking about my scars and for the most part I am happy to show them in person, but I've been kinda of hesitant to post any pictures of my scars online. I figured I'd have to do it sooner or later so here is a picture of my scars at four months. The two inch scar on my left shoulder is from the AICD/pace maker and the two small circle are from the drip tubes during the heart transplant.

Grand Canyon

As a way to celebrate the three months since my transplant, I went to the Grand Canyon this weekend on a spur of the moment trip. I had never been to the Grand Canyon and it was a way of keeping a promise I made to myself when I was sick. Last winter when I was limited to the confines of my house, I told myself that once I was able to, I would do and see as many new things as possible. The Grand Canyon with all its natural beauty was high on that list.

I took a bus tour from Las Vegas (sorry I didnt call anyone who lives in Vegas) and spent four hours hiking around the West Rim of the canyon on the Hualapai Indian Reservation. I took a lot of great pictures and spent a lot of time in awe of just how spectacular this place was.

The ride home unfortunately was another story and defiantly an adventure. Five minutes after we left the reservation the bus began stalling and the engine would cut out. For the next fifty miles we had to pull over every five minutes and restart the bus. Finally we made it to some dinky little town called Dolan Springs where we had to wait two hours for a replacement bus to pick us up. However the bus that they sent didn't have the air conditioning working and the rest of the ride home was very uncomfortable, almost ninety degrees inside the bus. All that aside, its was a fun trip and I'm glad I was able to do it.

We stopped at the Hover Dam on the way to the canyon.

This little gas station probably made a months worth of revenue with all of the stuff our bus bought from them.

It took us a total of seven and a half hours to get back to Vegas.

Great News

Going back to late fall of 2008 just after I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and the possibility of a heart transplant was still very unclear, I happened to come across a video infomercial on the TV about the Sharp Experience. The video was of a lady named Debbie, who after years of dealing with heart problems was being filmed by the Sharp Hospital crew, showing how she was living with a relatively new mechanical device called a 'LVAD' that was sustaining her life until she could become a candidate for a heart transplant. Debbie's spirit truly inspired me, as I was watching her go through the countless hurdles and bumps in the road, just to even be considered to be a candidate. Watching her take painful medicines, having to be tethered to an electrical outlet and dealing with weekly nursing visits was eye opening for me. But she perserved and dealt with it like a warrior. It made me stop and realize just how lucky I was and gave me that extra little push to fight through all of the pain and throwing up and other BS while I was sick. Shortly after I was transplanted I had a chance to meet in person with Debbie and told her just how much she meant to me while I was waiting for my transplant. She is an energetic person with tons of personality and I am glad to announce that she cleared all of her hurdles, was listed on the national heart transplant waiting list and on of May 17, 2009 she became the newest recipient of a heart at Sharp Memorial Hospital. She is currently doing well in recovery and the Sharp camera crew was once again their to record her journey through surgery, (the new video should be out by the fall). If you want to see the old video, I have attached a copy below, many of my nurses, cardiologist and doctors are featured through out the video.

In case your wondering what an LVAD is, its a mechanical pump that helps a weakened heart pump blood throughout the body. It is used as a "bridge-to-transplant" for those whose medical therapy has failed and are hospitalized with end-stage systolic heart failure, but can also be an alternative to a heart transplant or "destination therapy." In January of 2009, I was almost implanted with one of these, but the doctors determined that my heart was stable enough not to need one and instead put in an ICD Pacemaker.

Below is a diagram of an LVAD

Biopsy

Just had my 8th heart biopsy and once again its was all positive results with no signs of rejection. Unfortunately for me this time around they were unable to go through my neck and had to get to my heart through my groin, a much more painful and uncomfortable procedure. Just in case your wondering what a biopsy is and why I need them, they are routine doctors visits that all transplant patients go through. During the procedure they take four samples of my heart by inserting a small drill like bit through a catheter inserted in one of my veins. They then examine those samples to see if there is any signs of rejection and can adjust my prescriptions based on those results.

Diagram of a Biopsy

Cath Lab
Where the biopsy procedure is done

The Unofficial Start of Summer

Memorial Day weekend is always a good time of the year, to me its the unofficial start of the summer and that means being out in the sunshine, blockbuster movies and bbq's. This weekend I 'witnessed' one of the best endings to a playoff game, saw Angles and Demons (book was better), ate some delicious bbq at my cousins house and went to Disneyland for the first time in about nine years. It was a good weekend and a great way to kick off the summer. Also congratulations to all the recent USD graduates, who officially walked on Saturday.

Mike and Jennilee's BBQ on Sunday

Disneyland with Kristine, Jocelle and Jeremy

The lines were ridiculously long.

Fortunately, we were able to bypass all of the lines with this Guest Assistance Card. The longest wait time we had was 20 minutes.

We made Kristine sit in the front seat on Splash Mountain and she got soaked. As you can see from her demeanor in the picture, she was thrilled about it. Thanks for taking one for the team.


I actually pulled out the sword, your looking at the new King. ha ha ha ha

Two Months Since Surgery

Its been two months since my heart transplant and I am feeling stronger and healthier as every day passes. There have been no real complications with my new heart, just small adjustment to the medications I take. Getting used to post transplant life hasn't always been the easiest road but I'm taking it day by day. The side effects of the meds I take have made my face puffier, my hands and feet sore, at times make my mind race, keeping me awake all night. But its all part of being a transplant recipient and I know as time passes and my prescriptions are slowly reduced that those side effects will also pass. As for my dailey routine, I am still exercising and going to cardiac rehab three times a week. Its amazing how much strenght I lost while I was sick, as doing five pound dumbell workouts are quite the challenge for me right now. I know I'm young and that I will be able to gain it back but it is frustrating not being able to do more. I guess I just have to be paitent and know my limitations as of right now. Its important that I don't over do it by pushing myself too far and end up doing something to set my recovery back. Other than that I am getting back to normal social activities. I've seen a few movies, went to a few parties and try to keep up with as many of my friendships as possible. Its the time of the year when the weather is gorgous and its so enjoyable just to be outside. Summer is right around the corner, so hopefully I will continue recovering and have a fun and healthy season.

Donating Organs

I obviously have a place in my heart for this organization. If you have ever thought about being an organ donor, visit this website.

http://www.donatelife.net/

Its been a while

Its been a while since I last posted on this blog, but not much news since then. For the most part I have been resting and recovering at home. Getting lots of walking and reading done. I officially started cardiac rehab on Monday and go to sessions every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for an hour and a half. I got cleared to drive today, so going out and getting around won't be a problem for me anymore. No more bumming rides or taking the bus. Yeah:)

One Month Since Surgery

Its been exactly a month since my heart transplant surgery and I am feeling better everyday. Since I've been home, I've gotten plenty of exercise, usually walking about 2 miles a day. I also went to the Padres Baseball game at Petco park with the Life Sharing, Donate Life and Heart Transplant Center organizations. It was a fun night but there ended up being a two hour rain delay and we just left when that happened. This week, I also met a young man in the hospital who is going through what I just went through. He is fifteen years old and his heart condition was severe enough to the point that he was not released home. Yesterday afternoon, I received the good news that they have accepted a heart for him and if all things work out well, he should be heading into the Operating Room around 1:00pm on Tuesday April 21, 2009. (If you can, say a little prayer for the doctors.) And Finally, the weekend wrapped up with my party on Sunday. My cousin threw me a nice swaray at her house, and about 65 people attended in all. There was plenty of food and dessert that I really enjoyed, especially given the strict diet I had been on while I was sick. However the best part of the party was seeing all of the faces and people who supported me throughout my illness. Thanks to everyone who was able to make it, I really appreciate you being there. Also, I created a slide show for the party and have posted a copy here. FYI, If you can figure out the song then congrats, otherwise, its just a beautiful piece of music. ha ha ha.

Meet The Crew

The San Diego Cardiac Center and the Heart Transport Center are the main reasons why my story is possible. Dating back to October of 2008 after my first stay in the Hospital, I started attending the Cardiac Center. While there I was under the care of Dr. John Gordon, a cardiologist with a slew of credentials throughout the nation, and medically trained at the University of North Carolina. He has a very personable personality with his patients and was excellent in handling the medical prescription therapy portion of my care at the center.

Dr. John Gordon

During my second stay at the hospital in January 2009, Dr. Charles Athill was another reason for me still being around. Dr. Athill is an Electrophysiology cardiologist who performed the implantation of my AICD Pacemaker. He is highly trained at performing that procedure, receiving his undergraduate degree at Princeton and his medical doctorate at Harvard.

Dr. Charles Athill

However, after two months of being taken care of at the Cardiac Center, my health took a turn for the worse and in January while I was in the hospital, Dr. Gordon passed the baton over to Dr. Peter Hoagland of the Heart Transplant Center. Dr. Hoagland is another highly trained doctor at the Center. He received his bachelors’ degree at Harvard, his medical doctorate at Columbia and has been Chief of Medicine at Sharp's Memorial and Cabrillo Hospitals.

Dr. Peter Hoagland

Dr. Hoagland is the key to my whole story and I have a great deal of respect for the man not just because of his extensive medical expertise but because of the extremely human act of kindness he showed in helping me get the proper insurance for my care. During this stay in the hospital, my care was in jeopardy due to an impending lapse of insurance. At the time, I only had a short term insurance policy that I had to pick up while waiting for my employee health insurance to kick in. However due to my first stay in the hospital, I could not renew my policy for the long term, nor would another insurance company pick me up based on my previous health conditions. This left me in a very awkward situation, as I had to face the possibility that because of my health condition, I would have to declare bankruptcy at such a young age and pretty much ruin any chance of a financial future for years.

However, Dr. Hoagland was extremely proactive in writing, calling and contacting the right people who make the decisions of medical insurance and was persuasive enough to be able to get me the proper insurance needed for a heart transplant candidate. It is because of this man that I am not only still alive but am being taken care of by the best staff around.

Kathy Koerner

Kathy Koerner is a valued member of the transplant clinic and was also helpful in getting me the proper insurance. She made phone calls, and helped Dr. Hoagland contact the right decision makers involved in the insurance process.

Vicky McCalmont, NP

And rounding out the crew are two highly motivated and very impressive women, they are the Heart Transplant Coordinators. Both Vicky McClarmont and Kristi Ortiz are extremely knowledgeable Nurse Practitioners who have personally helped me along my journey. Everything from answering all my little questions about the transplant process to calling me on the day I got my heart. They have been there for me and my family as a great link between the doctors and a valuable source of knowledge.

Vicky has been with Sharp for 24 years and received both her undergraduate and Nurse Practitioners training at San Diego State University. After years of working with seniors, she became a Nurse Practitioner at the Heart Transplant center and because of that experience has a wealth of knowledge on all types of aliments. She has been a very valuable source of knowledge since the transplant, guiding me throughout the process of medications, meeting with me for my weekly biopsy check ups and was even nice enough to get me a ticket to the Donate Life Padres game at Petco Park on Friday night.

Kristi Ortiz, NP

Kristi has been with the Heart Transplant Center since 2005 and got her practitioner license at San Diego State University while receiving her undergraduate degree from Point Loma Nazarene University. She was also very instrumental in helping Dr. Hoagland, by scripting out what exactly to say to the insurance decision makers. She is one of the sweetest persons I have ever come across and was even nice enough to look out after me this weekend at the Padres game. By the way, if you have ever seen the New Sharp memorial commercials on TV, Kristi is the first person in that commercial.

Ha ha ha, I just had to add the link to the commercial, sorry.

The New Sharp Memorial Hospital Commercial

I am extremely grateful to all of these people for what they have done for me and the best possible way for me to show that gratitude is to live a full life and show them all of their hard work was not wasted. Thanks again for making my story possible.

How I Got The Call and Future Plans

Picture of me when I received the confirmation call

I received the call from the Heart Transplant Center at 3:30pm on Friday March 20, 2009 while I was at the library printing out my March Madness Bracket. After receiving the follow up call at 4pm, I headed down to the hospital and checked into my room for preparation for surgery. I had family in the room and only had time to send out a quick mass text to everyone in my phone book. I was scheduled to enter the operating room at 11pm and by 10:45 I was already being wheeled down to the OR.

My family and I in my preparation room before surgery

After conversing with my surgeon and some of the staff for about 30 minutes in the OR, the final call from the donating hospital was made to Sharp Memorial Hospital informing them that the heart was optimal for harvesting and that I should be placed under general anesthesia. The last thing I remember was an OR staff member saying, “ OK, Justin its time to put you under…” and by the time he finished saying it, I was out.

The surgery started at approximately 1:30am on Saturday March 21, 2009 and lasted until 7:30am. The actual placing of my heart into my body and sewing it in only lasted about an hour, the rest of the time was spent refilling and refining the heart. The lead surgeon was Dr. Robert Adamson and he was assisted by a team of doctors and nurses. I didn’t wake up until Sunday mourning around 8am. I was quite droggy when I woke up and only remember bits and pieces during that time frame. I spent the next couple of days recovering in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit –SICU, and moved up to the transplant wing of the hospital on the 5WEST floor of the New Sharp Memorial after only four nights. While on the floor, my body recovered quicker than most cases and by Tuesday March 31st I was able enough to be discharged.

Dr. Robert Adamson

My plans now are to rehab at the Cardiac Rehabilitation Center, in which I am enrolling in a 36-week program and try to get back to working within the next six to eight months. I am currently looking into either going back to school to get a masters degree while I have the available open time or volunteering at some type of organization. Hopefully life will be back to normal in no time and I will be able to do all the things I was able to do in the past.

It's Good To Be Home

I've been out of the hospital for a week now and it really feels good to be home. Everyday I walk about a half mile with the dogs to the park and up to the mall. On Sunday I went to my friends weekly BBQ in RB, where I mostly watched them play a little lawn bowling while enjoying how beautiful of a day it was and some good convo. For the most part my body has been recovering well from surgery with the exception of some back pain, but that's to be expected. But one of the best parts of being out of the hospital is getting to eat food that has flavor in it. Check out the lunch I made for myself on Monday, spiced salmon sandwich with tortilla chips and guacamole.

How I Got Sick

Many people have asked me the question, “What happened that caused you to get sick?” and in the simplest way I usually tell them that it was a combination of a strong family history of heart problems, along with a virus attacking my body that set off the congenital genes in my heart to stop working. The official term for what I have was called idiopathic cardiomyopathy heart failure, but in other words, heart failure that they don’t know what exactly caused the problem but have a good idea about how it happened.

What actually did happen was that over the summer in late July, after returning from a trip to New York, I was feeling weak and had been short of breath. At the time I didn’t know much about my health and just decided to go to the student clinic on the USD campus. While there they diagnosed me with bronchitis and gave me a “Z pack” of anti-bionics. It seemed to work well, as for the next month and a half I was back to normal and was able to work as a valet at the Hyatt La Jolla. However, starting in early October, I began getting short of breath again and running around at work became so tiresome. It got so bad in late October that I had to leave work in the middle of my shifts, one week and spent the next several nights in agonizing stomach pain at home.

At that point I couldn’t wait for my employee health benefits to start effect in three weeks, so I bought a two-month short-term health care policy and went to the Urgent Care Room. On Monday October 27th I went to the Urgent Care in Rancho Bernardo and they still seemed to think my symptoms were bronchial related, so they sent me home with some high strength couch syrup and an inhaler. Unfortunately for me the pain in my stomach continued to grow and by Wednesday October 29th, the pain was so bad I couldn’t sleep lying down and spent the entire night throwing up. The next day I drove to the Urgent Care in Miramar and was in pain so badly and short of breath that I barely made it up to the counter. The staff wheeled me into the back and after three hours of monitoring me, they realized that the problem was larger than they could handle and sent me to the Emergency Room at Sharp Memorial Hospital in Kearny Mesa. While being transported to the ER, I still was unaware of what the actual problem was and had thought that it might be my gull bladder. At the ER, they ran a slew of different test on me to determine my diagnosis. By midnight the doctor came in and dropped the news. He braced me for the bad news and told me that I might need surgery the next mourning to get a valve replaced but didn’t know for sure if they would do it right away.

That night I was admitted upstairs in what is now the Old Sharp Memorial hospital and called my family to tell them of the bad news. The next day consisted of another slew of test and waiting for answer on surgery from a cardiologist. By late afternoon I was introduced to Dr. John Gordon of the San Diego Cardiac Center and he informed me that my heart valves were working correctly but my heart wasn’t. He determined that surgery was unnecessary at the time and that medical prescription therapy was the path we should follow for the next few months. I was relived to hear this decision and was discharged a few days later after being monitored by the hospital staff. While at home the plan I had set up with Dr. Gordon worked for the short term but returning to everyday activities were still to hard to do. Walking up the three flights of stairs to my room was so tiresome that I rarely left the house.

I continued with my check-ups at the center until early January 2009 when my health took a turn for the worse. Just before Christmas, I started throwing up again and the pain in my stomach returned, I was extremely weak, slept 18-20 hours a day and could not generate enough heat to keep my body warm. However do to my ego and lack of income, I put going into the ER off as I was scheduled for another check up at the Center on January 8 and just figured I could wait it out until then. At that appointment, I told Dr. Gordon about my condition over the last few weeks and he decided to admit me to the hospital. I spent several hours in the ER and was put on an emergency dose of Lasik, (a diuretic that drained my body of fluids) and put on a Dobutamine IV infusion.

During my hospital stay, my condition stabilized but it was apparent that medical prescription therapy would no longer be the proper solution. I then had to undergo evaluation for a heart transplant and spent the next two weeks at the hospital getting every test imaginable and then done again. Towards the end of my stay it was determined that along with a home I.V. infusion of Dobutamine and the surgical addition of an AICD (pacemaker), that I would be a suitable candidate for transplantation and be well enough to go home. When I was discharged from the Hospital they officially listed me on the heart transplant waiting list in the United States. I felt good knowing there was a strong chance of me getting a new heart, as I was number one on the list in San Diego. It was mostly because of my popular blood type (AB+), age, physical condition and no other cardiovascular vein problems.

For the next two months I patiently waited at home and tried to keep my mind off of thinking about getting a new heart. I did my best to distract myself but sometimes I went a little stir-crazy at home. Since I had to stay within a two-hour radius of the hospital, getting out of town was out of the question. However, everything worked out well and on Friday March 20, 2009, while at the Northern University Community Library, I received the telephone call.

By Far The Coolest Pictures, I'll Ever Take

On Tuesday just before I left the hospital I got to go down to the Laboratory to see my old heart. How amazing is that. It was quite an experience being able to hold your own heart in the palms of your hands and I'll bet you won't see that on another blog, ha ha ha.

My heart was a pinkish gray color because of all the chemicals they ran through it and it didn't seem that heavy. A normal sized heart is suppose to be the size of a normal persons balled up fist. But as you can see from my pictures it is well above the size of my hand. The other parts of the heart were in working condition, such as the valve (tiny looking tube) and it was cut up into pieces in order for them to dissect the heart.

I asked them what they were going to do with it now and they said run some more test for about eight weeks and by that time it will have been put through the gamete so much, that they would have to incinerate it. No worries though, I'm sure they'll get great research out of what they can.

Yumm!

Came home with a bunch of medicines that I'll been on for the near future. Hopefully within a years time, I'll only be at 7 or so but until then its 21 different meds four times a day. Yumm!

Going Home Tuesday

Despite all of the excellent treatment these beautiful nurses gave me, I'm ready to bust out and go home. 4 nights in the ICU and 11 nights overall.












Monica













Jocelyn

Danielle

Kendra

Pailai












Yoshii













Crista

Teri

Michelle

Jamie

Christina

Crystal

Victoria

Sharon


The rest of the 5WEST staff at Sharp Memorial Hospital

My blog

Many of my family and friends have asked me what my everyday experiences have been while I have been dealing with my recent Heart Transplant. This blog is just a little glimmer into my everyday routine and to what I have and will go through as I progress with my life after surgery.I don't know how often, how long or if anyone is really gonna read this but I wanna put the info out there and let who sees it enjoy it for what its worth.

-Justin Feria