We all remember how the Tin Man in the Wizard of OZ desperately wanted a heart. Who could really blame him! The heart is an extraordinary organ. Your heart is one giant pump! Listen to this fun fact! Every minute, your heart pumps about five quarts of blood through a system of blood vessels that's over 60,000 miles long! That equals about 2,000 gallons every day! We do countless things with our heart, if you think about it. When our feet hit the floor in the morning, we list everything we are grateful for. If you're like me, not only are you grateful for another day of life, but you can't WAIT to take the first sip of your morning coffee!! You may have a heart to heart with those you love dearly. Your heart has the ability to show love and compassion to someone who needs it. Joy and laughter come from your heart. Determination and passion spring from it. Our heart is our number one side kick, as it were, wouldn't you say? Without it, life couldn't carry on! To show our gratitude, we need to do our best to take care of it, before there's a problem..right? That's what my mom and I did not too long ago! We showed some #HEARTLOVE to our giant pump! So, we went to the hospital in Lafayette to get a heart scan as a preventative measure. We checked in and went to the room where the heart scan machine is, which looks like an MRI, but is open on both ends and even has cool air flowing through it! Mom went first, which allowed me to observe before having my own scan done. They ask you to relax so that the machine can take the best pictures to check for plaque, clogged arteries and so forth. My mom relaxed so much that it looked like she was on a European vacation! When the technician hooked her up to the heart monitor, she very sweetly said: "Now Gayle, your heart rate is a little high, it's around 80 and we need it a little lower, so just relax and go to your happy place!" Mom had no problem finding her happy place and just like that her scan was done! Now, it was my turn. I got hooked up to the heart monitors and things are good, right? WRONG!! My body decides to have a MASSIVE panic attack! My heart rate went from 80 to 160 in seconds flat!! My panic was so high my body wouldn't stay still on the table!! I was so embarrassed that I almost burst into tears. The technicians were so sweet, though!! While going through this horrible attack, they were asking me what I usually do to calm my anxiety attacks at home. I couldn't even think, but thank goodness for my mom! She said: "She enjoys listening to music!" I said I loved *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys. The next thing I knew, I heard Justin Timberlake's voice singing "God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You." One of my favorite songs!! The technician had pulled it up on her phone for me! I kid you not, my heart rate went down to 80! The moral of the story is this: Show some #HEARTLOVE to your giant pump...Oh, and a little *NSYNC thrown in never hurts either!!
Michelle Fischer is host of A View from My Window, a podcast produced by The Arc of Indiana
