#fontan

The GoFundMe page for the Fontan Blood Pump is finally up and running again after several months of paused donations (due to technical difficulties brought on by updates to the GoFundMe site) If you or someone you know wishes to donate, here's the link.

Tour de France, 1930, Victor Fontan carries his damaged bike during stage 6, from Les Sable d'Olonne to Bordeaux.

I had to go in for routine surgery and I was a little nervous because this was the first time I was going to be awake for it. I went in for a heart cath (Google it I don’t want to explain) and I woke up around I wanna say 6:30 am to get to the hospital by 7:45 for an 8 am sign in. No food, no pills no nothing. Hungry af. I kept telling my mom I wanted either chipotle or chicken nuggets when this was over. So, 9 am. I’m all signed in got my bracelets on, my IV in, my gown on. All comfy watching 2007 hairspray with my dad (Who had never seen it.) Nurses, anesthesiologists, my cardiologist, everyone comes to see me and some sign me up for special tests for my tricuspid atresia and fontan (again, Google will be your friend). Before showing up to the hospital I remember asking my mom if I would be able to listen to music in the operating room. She asked and they said yes. Noon rolls around and I’m on my way to the operating room. I start talking with the staff in my surgery and we get on the topic of musicals, more specifically Hamilton. Nobody in that room had heard it. I said, “I would like to listen to Hamilton plz.” and so they played it. The music made my anxiety subside and my mind to focus on the monitors that were so cool, I saw all of the insides of my chest. I fell in and out of sleep between the blood pressure cuff inflating and deflating. I remember at one point I was half asleep and still belting out “NO ONE ELSE WAS IN THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS, THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS, THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS”. I gave zero shits that day. I also remember the entirety of the soundtrack ended as soon as the surgery was over. 2 hrs and 22 minutes of hazy singing and watching monitors. One of the coolest experiences of my life