Endocarditis – My Journey
Julie Day
Genre
Biography/Autobiography
Publication Date
06/08/2022
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About the Book
Want to learn how to cope with a serious illness? Especially one to do with the heart? Then this book is for you.
From 2020 to 2021 Julie Day had an unknown serious illness involving weight loss, muscle pain, and tiredness. Despite various tests and scans, no one seemed to know what was wrong. Until a blood test in 2021 revealed an infection in the blood which was life-threatening. But where? Following advice, Julie admitted herself to her local hospital. After an echocardiogram, it was discovered her heart had been affected and she was transferred to King’s College Hospital, London. There Julie had another procedure that revealed she had endocarditis, an infection of the inner lining of the heart and/or valve, and it had so severely damaged her aortic valve that it needed replacing. She was then transferred to St Thomas’s Hospital under their Adult Congenital Heart Disease team.
Follow Julie’s journey from the symptoms, tests, then hospital stays that included surgery and a pacemaker being fitted, to recovering both in hospital and at home. All during a pandemic. Julie has included tips on how to cope with the symptoms, being in hospital and recovering from home, which can be used for any serious illness.
This book is for anyone who wants to learn about heart conditions either personally or medically, and/or to raise awareness.
Book Excerpt
What is endocarditis?
It is an infection of the lining of the heart and/or valve.
There are two types: acute and chronic.
Acute is when it comes on quickly and often comes with fever and night sweats.
Chronic is when it slowly develops and takes time to be recognised and diagnosed. The symptoms are often the same for both: weight loss, muscle pain, anemia, which makes you tired, and skin rashes.
Guess which one I had?
Yes, the second, where it develops over time. For me, it was a year. A long year of not knowing what was wrong with me.
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About the Author
Julie Day
Julie Day has Asperger’s Syndrome.
She is an indie author of children’s books about ‘Autism meets magical realism’ and mermaid and teen angels.
She also writes for adults about helpful ghosts and cozy mysteries, short magical realism stories and has had one accepted for the ‘Modern Magic’ anthology by Knight Writing Press, and the ‘Magick & Mistletoe’ anthology by Dragon Soul Press.
She has recently published her memoir about having endocarditis. She is a member of the Alliance for Independent Authors (ALLi) UK.
