When the surgeon arrived around 4 p.m. I was informed that two arteries were blocked and the third one was partially blocked and I would require a triple heart bypass. He then asked what we would be doing over the Christmas period and we informed him we hoped to go to Manchester for the holidays.

I do not think he was overjoyed with this, but said we could go and  spend the holidays with the family and the surgery would be arranged for the third week in January but if I should experience any pains in the chest whilst we were away I had to get to hospital ASAP as if the third one blocked I would die.

He explained that during the operation there would be some risks and I may not awaken from the operation or that I may suffer a severe stoke, but as I was young to have the op these risks should be minimal.

Then he followed up with “go and enjoy your holiday and we will see you in the new year”

I thought it was amusing to be told that you are going to have an operation where you could die or suffer a stroke and that the blood supply to the heart is so bad that you could effectively die at anytime then to be told to go and enjoy your holiday.

This did not make for a happy holiday.

I have to say that from the minute he said about getting to the hospital if I experienced any chest pains, I had chest pains continuously until I had the operation albeit very mild pains.

I was really feeling good until I went for this test and I was hoping to return to work after the holiday, this really knocked me back to reality I really felt low but I tried not to let it show as Ann had enough to think about at the moment.

She was really worried but wouldn’t show it apart from not letting me do much of anything.

There were things to be done that I always did which she refused to let me do, like change the oil in the car or anything that would need a little exertion.

I was made to feel like an invalid in the space of a few minutes, one minute I was allowed to do anything the next basically just breath and no more.