I was just starting to successfully deal with my fear when my body gave way. I got the flu. It was a Friday. Between 4 and 5 PM I went for a nice walk around the neighborhood with my girlfriend. By 7 PM I was in bed with the chills. My temperature was average, but I think the thermometer may have been broken. I put as many blankets on me as I could and jacked up the thermostat to 26 C.
The next day was spent in bed. I must admit this sure took my mind off my heart. I felt as if I had been physically assaulted. And you want to know the crazy thing about this? I had the flu shot. My girlfriend figures I got it while in the hospital two nights before as there was an old woman who was very sick.
The Sunday I got up, but I had diarrehea and probably became dehydrated. I learned the hard way what that can do to your heart and to your peace of mind. My pulse dropped off the scale. I figure it was somewhere between 32 and 37 beats per minute. My normal resting pulse is about 46-48. I managed to correct this by rehydrating myself with lots of fluids, like water and fruit juice. I also drank a bottle of Gatorade to restore my electrolytes.
And one more thing, my blood pressure dropped at one point to 86/52. My resulting blood pressure usually gets no lower than 96/57. Believe me this does not do anything to help one to relax.
It took me several weeks before I could relax again before going to bed.
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