The angiogram 1982 style

I had friend drive me to Leeds. On entry into Kilingbeck I realise what a treasure we have in our District Hospital. Killingbeck was grim! It was probably late Victorian, built a bit like I imagine a workhouse to be, and had portakabins all over the place. The weather didn't help it was a grey and dismal day. I can't remember what month it was, but it felt like the most dreary day of November.

I checked in and made my way to the ward. I can't remember ever missing my wife more than in that lonely walk. I was met again by the most incredibly caring young girls and men. Each one seemed to be intent on making it their business to make me feel more at ease and forget the awful surroundings of the place. I was given a bed and left to undress and so on.


The next day I went for the angiogram. It's a long time ago now, and my memory may be playing tricks, but I remember having to have a bath in this really horrible disinfectant before hand. It was a really violent orange and seemed to be fixed to my skin for days afterwards. No amount of scrubbing seemed to move it, and it was all over the lower part of my body. I tried to imagine what my wife would say when she saw it and couldn't. Then it was into th X-Ray room and on with the show!


Again the staff couldn't have been nicer. They tried to make me feel at ease but it's difficult when there are wires and ECGs and so on attached to your body and you feel completely out of your depth. I remember one of the doctors probing with a catheter that looked about the size of a small telegraph pole up my femoral artery, while I laid there feeling sick and terrified as he said that I could view the screen if I wished. I didn't, but it's a strange feeling knowing that someone has got a foreign object deep inside your body and is looking inside that most vital of organs, your heart

Eventually after what seemed like hours of pushing probing, pulling back and manoevering the dye was injected. I got an istant hot flush that rapidly spread through my body, right to the tip of my tongue and several X-Rays were taken. Then it was back to the ward and a nurse applied pressure to the small hole in my groin to stop the bleeding. It took a long time to do so as i was taking Warfarin at the time. I'd stopped as I'd been told to do 2 days before, but my blood still refused to clot, and every time she released the pressure even slightly blood spurted out like a small oil well gusher. Eventually, of course the bleeding was controlled and i was ordered not to get out of bed for any reson whatsoever until 24 hours had passed. Rarely have I been so glad for a day to pass.

My wife picked me up and we went home together. Home looked wonderful - it always does somehow after leaving hospital.