I’m riding down Interstate 35 through Waco, Texas,
as I write this. My friend and collaborator, Dr. Rick
Wren, is driving me to the World Wellness Conference
in Austin. I’m connected via a Cingular GSM internet
connection.
This morning, I was laying on an operating room table
in my hometown in Sherman, Texas. Two days ago, I
awoke at 3 a.m. with severe chest pains. Thought it
might be acid reflux. However, after taking familiar
remedies which I know work for me, the pain in my
chest never stopped.
I had some nitro-glycerin tablets but was reluctant
to take them. I guess secretly I was afraid that they
may work and relieve my pain. I was interested in
stopping the pain but was hoping that it wasn’t my
heart that was the root of it.
My family has a history of heart disease. Most of my
immediate family takes some form of cholestrol
reducing drug. Yes, I take one too.
Last night I find myself laying in a hospital bed
talking with a cardio expert. He laid the law down
to me. He told me that things didn’t look so good.
He insisted that I get a heart cath done ASAP.
I listened to his advice and this morning, they
took me in.
I’d heard about these procedures before. I’ve
heard a few horror stories of things that could
and have happened.
The fear of it all was way overtold to me. It
really wasn’t bad at all. The worst part was
I was laying naked on the operating room
table, 10-12 people walking around me
doing their job and it was no more than
55 degrees in there.
They pretty much got me high enough that
I didn’t care what they did to me.
I was in there for one hour.
As soon as they woke me back up, the
doctor said that every artery near my
heart was totally clear with the exception
of one. It was 20% blocked. He said,
“MIchael, you’re 49 years old. Just keep
doing what you’ve been doing these past
almost 50 years and you should live to
be about 150. You can imagine my
surprise and relief.
So what did I learn from this?
One thing I learned is, you can believe
something negative about yourself for
a lot of year and BE DEAD WRONG.
I was. So was the expert.
Second, life is precious. Even when
things turn out the way you would
dream, our lives are still quite
delicate.
Third, your most daunting hour can
quickly turn into your biggest dream.
I’ll share more later.
In the meantime, choose to believe
the best about yourself, your life and
your health. Also, choose to let those
whom you love, know it.
I love you!
Michael
