Well, 45 days out from our plans to head back to Hawaii, and we’ve encountered a speed bump.
First- the backstory; almost 15 years ago I was diagnosed with Atrial Fibrilation. A-fib (as it is affectionately known) is best described as an irregular heartbeat, often found in endurance athletes. It is often correctable by undertaking a procedure called an ablation. I had two ablations in 2009. The second was successful…up until three weeks ago.
The situation real time; After a weekend back in A-fib, we were straight into the cardiology centre this morning. Bloods, ECGs and consultations later, we agreed we need to redo the ablation. There is the option of medication, but this comes at the expense of needing to be on beta blockers and blood thinners indefinitely. Medication also means your heart is ‘governed’ and athletic performance is reduced in order to keep it in sinus( normal) rythm. Fuck that idea!
You’ve gotta say, I’ve got my money’s worth out of the first ablation! 15 years, 16 Ironmans, 5 channel swims, and a fair bit in between!
I really do need to write that book! 😂😳
Fortunately, as we well know, we are surrounded by some of the world’s best physicians here in Singapore.
So, on Tuesday September 24 Dr Lim will work his magic!
I’m terms of recovery, I will rest for one month after the procedure. The objective obviously being to allow the heart to repair, but also ensuring the ablation ‘takes’.
What does this all mean for swimming? I expect to be out of the water until the last week of October. We’ll look to 2025 to visit my old friend the Ka’iwi Channel in Hawaii.
In the meantime, we’ll focus on the next 30 days and make sure I recover fully.
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