Face Plant

August 3, 2020, started off as a great day. I went for a 3-mile run, enjoyed my morning coffee, took a shower, and even cleaned the shower afterward. But then... I woke up lying on the tile floor in a puddle of blood. I remember getting up, wrapping myself in a towel, and calling for my husband, who was working from home, COVID-style, on the same floor. I don’t remember getting dressed, but I do remember walking to the car to head to the hospital. We wanted to leave the house before the kids saw me—I looked like I had been hit by a “Mack” truck.

When we arrived at the hospital, I went into the Urgent Care entrance to check in, and they responded immediately. I had a concussion, so my memory was patchy, but they were able to read my ICD (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator) report. The report showed that everything was fine during my run, but about an hour and a half later, while I was showering, my heart rate spiked to 300 bpm, causing me to pass out and hit a few things on my way to the ground. The doctor stitched me up, and I was moved to a hospital room. Despite looking scary, I felt fine—just like I had before the incident.

We had a family trip planned to Hilton Head, scheduled to leave on Sunday. However, a hurricane was likely to hit Hilton Head around the same time we were supposed to arrive, so we rebooked our trip for Wednesday. I was relieved to be in the hospital near my heart doctors rather than across the country. We asked the doctor if I could still go on vacation on Wednesday, but the answer was no. I convinced my husband to take the kids without me—I didn’t want them missing out on their vacation or seeing me in my current state. I thought a week of rest and healing would be good for me.

So there I was on Wednesday, still in the hospital, undergoing every test imaginable. They gave me a drug called Amiodarone (an antiarrhythmic medication) to help keep my erratic heart under control.

My sister drove me home from the hospital since the family had left early in the morning. We had a great time hanging out and binge-watching TV. My 86-year-old neighbor also stayed with me. She mentioned she hadn’t had a sleepover since she was a kid, with her friend Ruthie! I’m so lucky to have such a wonderful neighbor. While I was sad to miss the vacation with my family, I was grateful for the quality time with Molly and Marla. We quickly made the best of the situation!