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Guard Your Heart
Part 5 of a memoir of heart failure, open-heart surgery and complications One does not come so close to death as I did without learning many lessons along the way. As I continue to recover from heart failure, open heart surgery and its myriad complications,…
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My times, His hands
Part 4 of a memoir of heart failure, open-heart surgery and complications One of the things that sustains me during my weeks of hospitalization and recovery from open heart surgery is the hope of seeing and cuddling with my mixed-breed dog, Edison. We adopted him…
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Waiting for the big muscle to heal
Part 3 of a memoir of heart failure, open-heart surgery and complications At some point in my recovery at the acute-care facility, a cardiologist tells me that the muscles in my body will not recover any faster than the big muscle, my heart, recovers.I do…
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The sawblade embedded in my neck
Part 2 of a memoir of heart failure, open-heart surgery and complications The journey home is one of 10,000 steps, and the first one is always the most difficult. On March 23, 2021, I am released from Allegheny’s heart failure unit to an acuity unit…
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Are you ready to die, Carl Feather?
A memoir of heart failure, open-heart surgery and complications I have chased sunsets most of my life, although of late I’ve not had no passion for such pursuits. Nevertheless, on that evening in February 2021 was before me the most stunning example of a fading…