Well, the day finally arrived when I discovered that I was not invincible. Traveling back from a wedding in Oklahoma City, I developed a severe issue with breathing. Combined that with all my recent air travels, blood clots was a major concerm.
Long story short, I checked myself into the ER on Monday Sept 12th, was admitted tot he hospital that afternoon, and remained there for the next nine long days! I had a pleural effusion (fluid build up between the lungs and chest cavity) caused by a weakened heart that could not pump blood at an appropriate level. The good news is that I am back home with the expectations of resuming my work and life, with restrictions and changes. I have a laundry list of medications that I will probably be taking for the rest of my life.
Please do not ignore the signs your body gives you. In my case, I started having issues with sleeping at night weeks before and had also noticed an unusual jump in my weight. I don’t wish 9 days in the hospital on anyone. Do yourself a favor and schedule yourself for an annual physical with your doctor!