Hi Folks,
This is for those curious about how I arrived at the point of needing open heart surgery, at 50 darn-it!
Two weeks ago today I felt fine attending a national conference named the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) with my colleague Phil Johnston. The NACD is an association of mostly forward thinking corporate directors interested in best practices in corporate governance. It's three days of lectures and interactive discussions from 6am through 9pm. I felt fine. Returning home Tuesday, Anne and I enjoyed a pleasant ride through Charlottesville and the rolling Virginia Countryside bursting with autumn color.
The next two days were filled with follow up work from the conference, plus new business and ongoing development of V2 of our website. Feeling fine.
Thursday (9 days ago), I went in for a scheduled physical with Dr. Bruce Swords. We've know each other for years so the conversation is quickly and easily to the point. I mentioned to Bruce that I should probably get some further testing as I've felt a strange feeling while exercising; part of the feeling was a very slight burning like sensation in my chest but it felt more like my esophagus, so we thought it might be an upper GI issue. The other feeling was a very strange, very slight nerve pain or even numbness feeling in my right thumb. Usually these sensations occurred with my heart rate above 150, considered a fairly high rate for a 50 year old. Anne and I attend a "spin" class one to three times a week. Beyond spin, I try to get to the gym, plus I walk, some weeks, considerably. Beyond scheduled exercise, I also play golf three to five times a month, often walking. In winter, I ski race on the local ski team. You get the picture, I'm not sedentary and I can maintain a high heart rate. Bruce scheduled a stress test for the following Tuesday.
Friday, was a normal somewhat long work day. That evening I had the nice surprise of an old friend Carey Redd in town on business but with a free evening so he and I dined at the Proximity Hotel's Print Works Bistro. Aside, Proximity is the world's first LEED Platinum hotel, a big deal in the sustainability business world, and Dennis Quaintance, an outstanding local business leader, proclaims that the benefits are economic, not merely environmental.
Last Saturday, spin class in the morning, then work around the yard. While working in the yard, I noticed Ed and Lori practicing dance steps in their back yard, for their wedding reception that evening. Ed's my heart surgeon neighbor.
That evening, we put on our evening dress and went to dance the night away with Ed and Lori, Barrett and Kristin and others on the rooftop terrace of the art deco Kress building . It was one of those dreamy, beautiful cool autumn evenings when the atmospheric conditions cause the distant lights to sparkle like signals from afar. The city was buzzing with activity and nightlife. While dancing I felt just the faintest tingle in my right thumb again, but the beauty of my lovely wife dispelled any concern.
Sunday was routine, enjoying the morning with Anne and friends at an inner city church that rocks with great music from my friend Steve Lynam, who I knew long before moving to Greensboro. What a voice. Then Bill Goans delivered a message about grace over sin. Bill is another faithful friend, dear man, loving husband, paragon of a community leadership and pastor. Bill is also a heart patient.
Monday was a heavy work day from early then ending with a very interesting Harvard Club of RTP panel discussion with: John Replogle (CEO Burt's Bees), Michael Jacobs (Professor of Corporate Governance at UNC, Kenen Flagler), Tony Frazier (VP Cisco), and Jim Whitehurst (CEO Red Hat). The big takeaways were; "My purpose in life is to help others live better lives" - John Replogle; then overwhelmingly, these four aren't in "it" for the money. Sure, they want to pay their bills. But, Whitehurst proclaimed CEOs make too much money; they represent a growing ethos where the players are pursuant of a business model that first improves the world, does no harm, performs profitably, the triple bottom line.
Tuesday - D day. No food, no coffee before the stress test. This is the real stress test with lots of wires, sticky tabs all over the chest, nuclear dye squirted up through IVs. Its a three hour adventure, really culminating in an inclined run on a treadmill; this is the "stress" part. My blood pressure started with a typical 115/68 and rest heart rate of 56-60bpm. Then, we started the test. The kind technician (whose room is clearly "owned by her" posted with supportive prayer verses on the walls) took me up to a heart rate of 150bpm over the next twenty minutes. Spin class is 45-50 minutes at 140-160 so this was easy. When she said told me I could stop, I thought I passed with flying colors. No, heart pain. I felt good. I felt I could have gone at least another 50 minutes to hour without trouble. My blood pressure was ranging up to 130/80, still in the excellent range.
During a nuclear stress test, you lie under a radiological device twice, before and after the stress portion. In total, the devices take hundreds of pictures of our heart and arteries. I returned to the waiting area with my iPad working away, even lost in the pressing matters of that afternoon. At one point, a technician walked out and a told a similar, but older patient that he could leave. I began to think this "funny feeling" was probably only indigestion. I have always had a sensitive stomach.
Mr. Loflin, "I want you to walk with me this way to see the doctor". That wasn't what they told the other guy. I immediately thought something was up. "Something showed up on your pictures after the stress test that the doctor needs to review with you". I was ushered into a private waiting room where the door was cracked open. Its while sitting there, I overheard: "We'd like to schedule the Cath lab for 9:30am tomorrow morning"... "Yes, the patient's name is Loflin, Byron Loflin". Next the doctor entered. "Hi my name is Dr. Nishan, tell me why you are here today". I told him my little story. "Where are you from?" he asked. I told him this part of the story. Then, he said, "I grew up outside of Boston, and was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to Harvard Medical and then did my residency at Mayo". Somehow, he seemed to know that I would understand the meanings of all this. We talked about having Harvard in common. I was at HBS in July studying "Making Corporate Boards Better". Then he turned more serious, "Well, Mr. Loflin, your stress test revealed significant blockage in a main artery. The fact that your in good shape, no apparent heart damage, your prognosis is very good. We've scheduled you for a catheterization process tomorrow morning." He explained many of the details, including, "there's a likelihood you will require bypass surgery". At that moment, I went into a minor state of shock. This is the moment where the pictures of life raced like a movie theatre screen within my mind. I could understand most of what Dr. Nishan said, but, over the next few minutes I saw hundreds of people and places important to me: my family, friends, acquaintances...from Greensboro to Australia, London to Dehli to Cape Town, it was a amazing collage of people, places and things that matter, friend's their homes, their friends that I hope to yet visit and their culture yet to engage. Was it over?
The next morning, the catheterization procedure was foreign, so I engaged with a bit of trepidation, but since it was performed though my wrist, it felt like a donating blood. Its during this procedure, as mentioned in my "Doctors" blog, Doctor Cooper concluded that bypass surgery offers the "best long term prognosis." I envisioned pain.
