Hubby had heart attack.......not sure of what to do about cruise....

[mjvans]

My husband suffered a mild heart attack last Saturday while working as a firefighter in house fire. Actually, he never knew he was having one, but he could not breathe and he felt faint. At the scene, he was told he was dehydrated and needed to go to the ER to replenish fluids. After much testing that day and throughout the week, it was determined he had 4 blockages. He had quad bypass last Wednesday and is doing great. At first, I thought this cruise would be something to shoot for, and that his recovery would be helped by making this a future goal. We are scheduled to cruise on the 4 day wonder on august 29th. I know the cruise itself will not be the problem, it is actually the stress of getting there........we fly out of Seattle which is at least 6 hour flight and then deal with luggage, rental cars, etc, etc, etc........just can't predict if he will be physcially be able to do this......thankfully, I have until June to really decide, but if anyone can share their thoughts, advice or has gone throgh this , please respond!! My husband is just 50 and he is really doing wonderful, but I just feel the need to simplify everything if it becomes too much!
Michelle

 

[wltdsnyfan]

My parayers go out to you and your husband. Things will work out. I would see what the doctor has to say in a couple of weeks. You never know.

 

[callahanjulie10]

We will keep your DH in our prayers. Thank goodness that he was in an environment where it was caught before it was worst. I am sure that he will recoop just fine and the cruise will be a wonderful relaxing trip for you both.
I would change my flight ressies and go a day or two in advance so that there isn't as much stress to make flights, luggage. Set up your rental and it is about an hour drive to Cape Canaveral from Orlando. Stay at the Ron Jon resort where it is relaxing for everyone- then get up on Saturday and head over to the port! Good luck and enjoy!

 

[CheapMom]

I am sorry to hear of your trouble but glad things are going well. Since you have a good amount of time I would call and talk to DCL or my travel agent immediatey and find out all of the info regarding cancelation or postponement and of course get the doctor's opinion. He may be feeling back to normal sooner than you think. My mom suffered a mild heart attack 3 weeks before my wedding. By the time my wedding rolled around she was better than ever. (She had to modify her diet and said that yes- she actually felt better than before because of her lifestyle changes.
Although travel details can be stressful- the cruise would be so relaxing for him.
(Hire a limo or towncar service or use DCL transfers instead of rental cars. Let others handle as many of the small details as you can.)

 

[DMS_cruisers04]

So sorry to hear Michelle. Glad that he's doing well now.
See how he's feeling and what the doctor says. And yeah, if you do decide to go, go with something other than a rental. It will definitely take the stress off.

 

[crisi]

Sorry to hear about your hubby.

There are a lot of ways to travel to make things less stressful. Arriving a day early - even two, leaving the day after you get off the ship....making ample use of porters, towncars and taxis so luggage and driving don't add to the stress. Get to the airport in plenty of time and rent (or buy) a portable DVD player or books on CD - if you lose yourself in a movie, you can sit next to someone for six hours in those tight plane seats without losing it. Don't stress yourself or him worrying about "perfect" spa or Palo ressies. Once we started traveling with children, we've looked for ways to reduce the amount of bother we have with the rest of the vacation. Wait and see how he is doing, but in the meantime, look for advice on making this as stress free as possible.

 

[Tandyc]

Michelle-

Hey we are in Wenatchee also! I pray your husband will be feeling wonderful right away.

Here are a couple suggestions. Try to get a flight to Seattle from Pangborn. This way you don't have to drive to Seattle and you can check your luggage from Wenatchee all they way through to MCO. At MCO how about staying in the airport hotel Hyatt. This would be a nice time to get right to bed and sleep in the next day.

A towncar to the port in the am would take care of getting the luggage in and out and checked at the port. This way your really don't have to deal with moving your luggage with out help. Much less stress on both of you.

Hope this helps and you both have a wonderful trip.


Tandyc

 

[tkd lisa]

On our first cruise, there was a family who the father had a heart attack about 30 days before the cruise. They consulted with the doctor, and ended up deciding to cruise. They all (mother, father, grown daughter w/ her husband) had a great time. They took things slow, and skipped some things they had originally planned, but they said they were glad they came. I personally saw them enjoying themselves several times over the week.

Good luck, and I've said a prayer for you as well.

 

[CGC33A]

He's a young man with an active lifestyle, he should spring back pretty quickly. I ditto the above suggestions of giving yourselves extra time to get over jet lag etc. ( a good idea for anyone), but don't forget about trip insurance. Could put your mind at ease for several aspects of the trip, not just the medical.

 

[izzinmac]

I had bypass surgery (quintuple) a few years ago, and once I got through the initial recovery, I never felt better. Right now he is probably still weak from a lung capacity perspective. Plus he needs to protect the incision area to let his chestbone heal. Once I got past that and continued to exercise, recovery was great. He should have no problem with a trip 6 months from now. And now that he knows he has a problem, monitoring it and adjusting lifestyle will keep him on top of it.

I actually consider myself lucky that I found out my problem without a catastrophic event, and consider my bypass a blessing! Keeping a positive attitude is the key!

 

[howardk613]

Michelle,
I recently passed 1 year since my heart bypass operation (quad).
My operation was on thursday and I was home on monday and back to work in 3 weeks. A bypass today is almost routine and the recovery is speedy and the results are generally terrific. I hope that your DH's recovery will be fast and easy. Exercise (under your doctors supervision) will really help. As for the cruise, I am sure that he will be in great shape for your trip and it will definately help in his recovery. I was in WDW with my grandchildren 4 months after my bypass and planning the trip and thinking about being in WDW with my family was the best medicine that I could have had.

 

[dharma517]

I think 6 mths is plenty of time to recup. Plus...the last thing your husband will want to be is sedentary. It will be good exercise. Just make sure he is not too bad about what he eats on board. Try some of the lighter options. Prayers and positive thoughts to you.
Jenn

 

[shmoogrrrl]

I don't really have any advice, but I hope that he gets better soon!

 

[goofyforus]

Hi Michelle. We live in the Kent area near Seattle and are going on the Disney Magic in June with my twin teenagers. My husband is 63 and does a bit of exersize each day. Nothing aerobic, but just walking. After having a few of his younger friends suffer heart attacks, he knows to keep himself moving.

You and your husband have quite a few months to change his regime. Check with the doc first for exercize suggestions. You are so lucky that this did not happen on the way to the cruise or on it. So there is plenty of time for both of you to get in shape.

I myself have started walking just so I can adjust to the time change. I am a bit overweight and am building up my endurance.
My girlfriend's family just returned from the Magic and that was the most complaint. 4 to 5 hours difference will tire you out.
Get some exercize to be in better shape.
Change your time when you get there and stick to it.
You'll have a great time!

 

[WDWLVR]

Michelle - sorry to hear this. I agree with the others that 6 months is plenty of recovery time. i would try and schedule things so that you have time to breath. Come in a day or two early. The other nice thing is that a 4 day has a day at sea. Those are my favorite days as they are quite restful.

I hope and your DH decide you can cruise and if you do that you have a wonderful time.

 

[goofyguy1958]

Hello Michelle, Glad to hear that DH did well with the CABGX4 (bypass surgery). You should absolutely go on the cruise, maybe add an extra day before to reduce the stress of travel. A little background for you. I have years of experience in cardiac care nursing (I am an RN who worked in a large Philadelphia hospital in a post op cardiac surgery unit) and I found that the patients who had goals to shoot for always recovered quicker and more completely. The cruise is a great goal. The most important thing now is to get his strength back, complete the cardiac rehab and keep a positive attitude. Also, do not forget to take care of the caregiver – that being you – you have a mutual goal, and an extremely positive on at that, to take both of you through this bump in the road. Good luck and keep thinking of sunshine and always remember that a marathon can only be completed by taking one step at a time.

 

[makaylee]

I am very happy to hear your husband is doing well. I would ask the doctor what he thinks and if he says okay I would do the trip and make it as easy as possible. Fly in the day before, hire a limo to pick you and your luggage up at your home, stay at the Hyatt where they get your luggage on the ship for you. Use DCL transfers and they will pick you up right there in the lobby There shouldnt be much stress at all if you do this, except for the $$.

 

[BMURPHY02]

iam a career emt in nj you need to find out how much damage to the heart muscle. if it minor or none then check with the cardiologist and his surgon since he isnt going till aug he has a good amount of recovery time. you should be fine just try to releave as much stress as possable take advantage of the transportation in orlando, go down the day befor so he can get a stay at a hotel close to the port get a good nights rest. if he is a career firefighter i bet he is in good physical condition and the cruise is proably excellent for him and how do you have stress on the disney ships it might be what the dr orders god bless and you are in our prayers
bob murphy emt-d

 

[Regina]

First, add me to those sending good thoughts and prayers your way.

Right now you're dealing with the shock of it all. I'm sure that the cruise will end up being "just what the Doctor ordered."

Good luck, and keep us posted as to his progress.

 

[mjvans]

It is good to have friends here!! This has just been such a traumatic week for me! I realized in just one moment how fragile life is and how much we take each day for granted. Having been jolted with reality, I'm just afraid to look beyond the day. The future is bright, but it is still very scary!! I have never been more fearful in my entire life!! The thought of losing my husband before, during and after surgery terrified me to the core. I have always dreaded "the call" from the dept, and I have always thought it could happen but truly never thought it would. When it did, my world as I knew it came crashing down. Thankfully, there was just very minimal damage to the heart, and his enzymes levels barely rose........all a great sign. He is in wonderful shape, and added plus, and I expect him to make a marvelous recovery. This whole episode was a tremedous wake-up call for us. And although we have always relished our lives together, this really all brought it back full circle!! Thanks again for everything!! I'm sure now we will be crusing!! The doctor told us after surgery not to change our plans, but I just wasn't sure until reading all your posts!! Your input really made the difference!
Thanks so much!
Fondly,
Michelle