Brian's Recovery

One week ago today I woke up at 6:00am with pain in my chest and left arm. I tried to go back to sleep, assuming it was nothing serious, but the pain only intensified as I lay there in bed. When it came time for me to get ready for work I realized something was not right. I quickly hopped in my car and drove myself to the nearest urgent care. Within minutes of my arrival an EKG test showed signs I was having a heart attack. I was rushed to Munson Medical Center by ambulance and underwent a heart catheter operation in the ER, which showed my arteries were in great shape, no blockage anywhere. At that point I was admitted to the hospital without knowing what was going on, or what had happened to my heart. Doctors couldn't rule out a blood-clot, or chronic heart condition. As anyone could imagine I was terrified. After 3 overnights and a bunch of testing (heart imaging, MRI, CT scan, blood work) It was determined I have Myopericarditis. This is a fairly rare condition in which a viral infection reaches the heart and causes significant inflammation of the heart and the sack which surrounds and protects it. In my case it was severe enough to cause multiple indicators of an actual heart attack. There was also some damage to my left ventricle from the cardiac event.

The good news is it's not considered a chronic condition at this point, and the treatment is fairly straightforward. Rest and medications. The doctors are confident I should have a full recovery, and recovery times average 3-6 months. I am certainly hoping it won't take that long. I cannot return to work until July 8th *IF its deemed appropriate. I have a number of follow up appointments and additional heart imaging procedures scheduled throughout the next couple weeks to monitor the recovery process.

I am very fortunate to have health insurance but being my plan is a high deductible plan its very likely my out of pocket costs for care will reach $5500. This doesn't include my loss of wages from being off work which is the most immediate reason for my asking for help. Like all my facebook friends and family I have regular bills to pay. I have student loans to pay that will accrue additional interest and charges if I delay making payments. Everyday living expenses like food and utilities, car insurance and the like which I know everyone else has to pay too. I've been reluctant to ask for help but in the last week more than a few people have offered help including financial support. Any money I receive will be used to pay regular living expenses and medical bills. If I end up paying $5500 dollars out of pocket (looking very likely at this point) any additional medical bills are 100% covered by my insurance. I don't expect to raise $5000, but being I will have to be responsible for that amount plus lost wages I made that the goal so anyone interested in helping me financially KNOWS that is where the money will go.

Any help is greatly appreciated, I've received many kind messages and phone calls in the last week. For that I'm very grateful, but for those who are able to give a financial contribution; that right now is my most immediate need. It's been terribly stressful trying to navigate insurance and the hospital and upcoming appointments when I'm constantly worrying about how I will pay my normal bills, let alone the extensive medical bills. Once again, any financial help is greatly appreciated and of course any well wishes or kind words of encouragement are welcome as I will need emotional support as well in the coming days and weeks (hopefully not months). Thank you.