Betty's still in, but I'm confident she'll be discharged today. The great news is that all the tests--blood work, EKG, and nuclear stress test--came back normal or negative with no disease noted.
Betty called me as I was zooming down the Parkway to the hospital to ask me to stop at her house and pick up her laptop. I did, but she was feeling a little rocky and didn't use it much while I was there. Daughter Ellen called to express her concern and I'll give Betty that message.
While the patient napped, I walked to the boardwalk and pick her up an Italian ice, for which she had a hankering. She had some of it, but still had little appetite--not necessarily a bad thing for her--and felt nauseated again.
That last is what I think might be the bigger problem, although (understandably, I guess) the emphasis has been on her heart. I know I have no medical background, and may am way out in left field with this, but here's my current belief:
Considering the fact that no evidence has indicted a heart problem AND, very significantly, her out-of-control weight--ditto overeating and unhealthy eating--AND lack of exercise, AND the extreme heat we've been experiencing since she got to the east coast (she doesn't have central air), AND the pressure she's been under in planning the one-minute film festival for Atlantic City--I think all this combined to bring on the symptoms she suffered. I'm not suggesting for an instant that she was faking or that her health isn't a serious concern, but when you eliminate what a condition isn't, you have to start considering what it might be. To me, this seems most likely and I'm going to suggest she develop--right now, today--a healthier life style.
I hope I'm right.