Sadly, our thunderstorm did not happen last night. It is cold this morning, but interestingly, all the snow has been removed from the forecast for the week ahead. That makes me cheerful.
Last night, Tim and I decided to hit the hay early. He really hasn't been sleeping well at night, which leads to sleeping in later in the morning, something that he hates. As unhappy as he is about that, afternoon naps make him even more out of sorts, not to mention even less sleepy when it is time for bed.
So, come 9:00, we were cozied up in our bed. Tim said, "Come on over here," and I turned to him and...that stupid alarm went off on his heart monitor. After working without a glitch for 48 hours, the monitor was indicating that the sensor was not doing its thing.
We sat up in bed, but the monitor was giving us directions that did not apply to the apparatus we had, and the beeping went on long enough that I got my cell phone and called the customer service number. A polite unflappable woman answered the phone
The nice customer service person said, "Is your husband in the room with you?"
I said, "He's right in bed with me."
'Well, good then, he'll be handy." She indicated that we should ignore the commands the monitor was giving us, that they didn't apply to us. I put her on speaker phone as she tried to help us through a trouble shooting process. The alarm beeped on. There's no way to shut it off. In the end, she sighed and said, "I'm sorry, but you'll have to remove the patch."
And so I got the warm water and the soap, and scrubbed the patch off. And of course, every time that I tried to peel it back, Tim was reflexively grabbing at my hand to push it away.
"Quit grabbing at me!" I said, peevishly.
"I can't help it," Tim growled, in a husky voice.
And the nice customer service lady said, "Why don't you just put the sensor on the charger over night, and I'll have someone call you tomorrow morning."
Just like that the phone call was over.
Lord knows what she thought.
We looked at each other, turned off the light and laid back down on our respective sides of our bed. Somewhere along the line, we had lost that loving feeling.
This is scary and funny at the same time, Debby!
ReplyDeleteIt helps to have a sense of humor when you are dealing with all of these worries! :)
Oh dear, you really don't want the helpful lady misinterpreting THAT! Here, I have to say, I only see myself as a carer now.
ReplyDeleteWhen I had to wear holters, they told me to take the patch off in the shower, by working hair conditioner under the edges and pulling gently, and using a lot of conditioner. I lost much less skin that way. Of course, this is not applicable at 2 am.
ReplyDeleteOoh boy. Damn monitor. Messing with your love!
ReplyDeleteI do hope you have support yourself, someone to talk with, etc. It's not easy and it sounds like you could need it.
ReplyDeleteBummer. Timing is everything!
ReplyDeleteThnks for the laugh at the end. Well played.
ReplyDeleteI had to read this a couple times over to get everything--why am I feeling so frustrated...
ReplyDeletePassion killers come in many shapes and guises.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to read her record of the call!
ReplyDeleteCool ending! You kept us waiting right to the end.
ReplyDeleteWell DRATS! Good attempt at solving the problem; could be an interesting call later. Cardiac nurses in hospitals have to carry pagers. The monitor tech is watching all of the patient monitors for that section or floor. If a heart rhythm misbehaves, we get an instant page to go to the appropriate room immediately. Some folks are just resting in bed, calm. We ask if they feel ok or felt anything. Some folks are holding a hand-held electronic game on their chest and interfering with the monitoring. Some moved to the bathroom or got up and walked. And yep, some are resuming their love life and REALLY tripping their heart rate. Yep, IN the hospital. Haven't had any of those get worse from testing the monitor, so we just document. Just mark it in the diary for the doc so they won't think he ran around the house and barn too fast. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteGreat story!
ReplyDeleteOh no... You got that spam guy above too.
ReplyDeleteOuch with that monitor! I have to say we did not get any loving feeling with that monitor on. I know how you feel.
Ha Ha, Debbie! It doesn't take much to lose "that loving feeling," but in this case you two had more than enough to do it! -Kate
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