my darling dad is being put on warfarin :-(

[NappiesNoMore]

my wonderful gorgeous lovely dad is 57. he went into homerton hospital for a pretty routine op - keyhole surgery to fix a hiatus (sp?) hernia, and while under the aneasthetic, he had a tachiocardic episode, which they then kept him in for a few days to asses and investigate. i left him this afternoon, waiting to have an echocardiogram and be told whether hed be on aspirin and verapmil(?) etc, but was all looking fairly hopeful re normality returing etc... and when i got hom there was a call to say the echo was bad, his heartbeat is really irregular and they are putting him on warfarin as of now.
there is absolutely never allowed to be anything wrong with my dad ever DONT THEY KNOW THIS?? [scared as shit, i simply cannot lose my dad anytime soon, i couldnt take it]

warfain will thin theblood, which reduces the risks of blood clots.because his heartbeat is irregular this will keep the blood moving nicely through the heart and reducing the risks of further problems.

he will have to be careful about drinking cranberry juice as this can interfere with warfarin, and will have to make sure he tells gp whenever he needs medication as well, as pretty much anything can affect the results.

the hospital will monitor his blood thickness regularly from now on, just a simple blood test, every week/fortnight/month/alternate month depending on how 'regular' his blood thickness remains. and wil ladjust his warfarin dose accordingly.

And, also, i have a big spotty hanky here somewhere which you can blow your nose on and have a sniffle into.

am sure your dad will be fine

do u want a cuppa as well?

Oh sweetheart

I have no advice, but all the love in the world.

You still going for the weekend?

My dad was perfectly fine until one day (when he was 59) he just collapsed, went in an ambulance and had an emergency operation. He was put on warfarin after the operation to prevent more blood clots. I am telling you because this was 2 years ago and he is perfectly fine - he just takes his warfarin every day at 6pm and other than that, he is absolutely fine and he is suffering no ill effects from it.

My dad started taking warfarin about 6 months ago after a few 'funny turns' showed that he had an enlarged heart. He is 76 though so a bit older. He has had to moderate his activities but only a very little. And other than that he's fine.

As a plus he has started to grow fuzzy hair on his bald patch again!

BTW I feel the same about my dad as you do. He simply can't be ill! But he's hanging on just fine.

don't fret, being on warfarin is not much different to being on aspirin - except a little stronger, and needs more monitoring. No-one bats an eyelid at being on aspirin daily.

Oh and just so you know, although I have only met him once, I would never want anything to happen to him either he's lovely.

peter was on warfarin for over 5years which is why i know about it.

My mother na dI think my father both take warfarin, try not to panic about it which is easier said then done.

My mum has benn on wafarin since about 1979/1980 and if anything it has prolonged her life.
The wafarin will help your dad and you should have many,many more years to show him you love him and to enjoy his company.

Being put on medication is not always a sign of bad things happening so try to relax.

my dad and mil both take warfarin - both are in good health and - touch wood - will be around for ages yet

oh misdee yes, ill take the hankie and the cuppa and a probably sob all over them, ta.
the doc was explaining the warfarin and why he needed it while i was there. apparently there is a stasis bit in his heart, the way his irregularity is, and that could form a clot, which in turn could cause a stroke. thats why he needs to thin the blood, to prevent it clotting in his heart. i have a heart murmer too, but mines no problem apparently, i guess theres no points of backup or whatever in mine.

cheers flame
yeah, im still going. hes being all 'oh im fine sweetie' but kind of amusing too, and making jokes and stuff, taking the piss out of the docs etc. and also talking about living wills and dying wills and stuff. sad]

oh crokky, that must have been horrible. thank you for sharing, that is good news to hear.

oh more good stories! thank you so much!

my dad has been on thsi for 9 years. he is fine (well he's an old annoying git but nothing to do with the drugs). he has his blood checked regularly and he is fine.

thanks guys
just had my first cry.
think its the relief of hearing that this isnt scarily life changing stuff. i thought he might have to retire pronto and stuff but i dont think hes able to yet... he will have to slow down tho. he currently ends up working mostly every w/end. he is a builder too, so its physical work.

oh you poor thing- don't worry! some encouraging replies here.

i was on warfarin (at 20) for a couple of years and it's no big deal, just a pita monitoring it- blood tests, keeping an eye on what you eat or drink etc. they can keep an eye on everything now which is a good thing.

I send you all the best and implore all of you with dad's to let them know what they mean to you. My dad doesn't want to know me and it is hard to read about others having such lovely dads but also very heart lifting.

Much love and best wishes to you all.

thanks

and yes, i really do appreciate my dad and will make more of a point of spending time with him from now on too.
he also has this thing called CREST syndrome, which was in his notes but he didnt know about it?!
anyway, im kind of afraid to google it... but drumming up courage

ok have googled crest.
dont think it looks too sinister.
hes known about the raynauds and calcification things for years, and always had indigestion and stuff. it might explain why hes had a gammy elbow since he was 19yo though, which no-ones ever been able to explain (it is septic and pus-y and gross and always has been, never heals)

Please try not to worry about the warfarin, and step away from Google! My dh has been on warfarin since having heart surgery (aortic root and valve replacement) 5 years ago.

As others have said, it's more of a pain at first because they need to have quite regular blood tests to make sure that the warfarin dose is right. When everything has settled down, your Dad won't need such regular tests. Day to day, dh takes his pills and it has no effect on his life really. He doesn't drink anyway, and eats regular meals. The medics had more trouble getting his INR right to begin with because dh is also epileptic, and the meds for that interferes with warfarin.

The anticoagulation nurses are always available to help if you or your Dad have any worries (and they have rung up to check/nag if my dh has forgotten to have a blood test too!)

My dad (58) also takes warfarin (after suffering a massive heart attack at 42 and numerous serious episodes of ill health since, how he is still alive is a sheer miracle) it is the blood tests checking the dose which are the pain, dad goes to the Warfarin Clinic, so it just shows you how many people take this as they have a Clinic dedicated to it.

Your dad will be fine, I know how you feel, your lovely strong father should always be here to protect you in life, when things look a bit iffy, it panics us.

Thinking of you.

thanks for kind words, it really is comforting