the pathophysiology paper i never wrote

2 years ago from tonight was the last Valentine's Day I spent with "someone." We went out for a nice, romantic dinner and to see "Sideways" and then everything fell apart at about 6 in the morning. We had a patho exam that day, but as soon as I went to school and saw Gwen she said, "You don't have to take the exam. Just go home and write me a 500-word essay on broken hearts instead." I took the exam and never wrote the paper. But 2 years out, I decided to actually look into it.

So there actually is a condition called stress cardiomyopathy, or "broken heart syndrome." When something horrible happens to you, your body responds by going into fight or flight (or fright or fuck). Your brain produces mass quantities of stress hormones as a defense (to help you run from the tiger). You have piles of adrenaline and other stress hormones in your system that basically stun your heart, causing weakness of the muscle, and making doctors think (erroneously) that you're having a heart attack.

Fortunately, it's reversible (is that fortunate?), which is why our broken hearts mend. And like childbirth and tattoos, it's painful; yet we choose to potentially put ourselves through the experience over and over and over...

Anyway...

Maybe Colin and I will meet some eligible singles tomorrow at the GEHM Clinic who will be our valentine. If not, I've got valentines for two 9 year-olds and a big, black dog. And for the most part, they help me remain hyperadrenaline-free.

Happy Hallmark holiday.

How many days til school's out: 69
How many days til my favorite non-Hallmark holiday, Purim: 15
How many cranes I have folded: 676
How many shots of Hemlock it would have been fun to do tonight: about 30
How many times Ursy has coughed tonight: 0
How itchy I am right now: really, really itchy
How unhappy I am about this: very