The prospect of open-heart surgery did not frighten one East Peorian.
A combination of family support and her faith in God made 65-year-old Polly Baker confident she would recover well.
“A lot of people say, ‘Weren’t you afraid of dying?’” Baker said. “I just never thought about that.”
Diagnosed with an aneurysm on her ascending aorta three years ago, Baker underwent a day-long bypass surgery, followed by months of rehabilitation.
And, what resulted was not only a fixed heart, but a new outlook on life.
“I had no idea I had heart trouble,” she said of the shock felt after the diagnosis.
On Sunday, Baker reached the three-year milestone since her surgery. And, the celebration came one day before the start of American Heart Month — a time dedicated to cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 killer in the U.S.
February also is Women’s Heart Disease Awareness Month in Illinois. Statistics show cardiovascular disease kills more than 450,000 women each year, according to the American Heart Association.
“I don’t think women think they have heart problems,” Baker said. “They need to be aware and be more active.”
Baker said she feels lucky her doctors found the problem before it was too late. In fact, it was her orthopedic doctor who knew something was wrong, she said.
After multiple knee replacement surgeries, she started experiencing severe pain in her ribs.
“I was always out of breath,” she said, adding she blamed it on her knee surgeries. “But I never connected it to a heart issue. Sometimes I think to myself, ‘Why didn’t I realize there was anything wrong?’”
Weeks later, Baker went into surgery at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center. She credits her surgeon, Dr. James B. Williams, for her recovery because just two days after surgery, she was able to go home.
“I had a lot of family support,” Baker said. “I would not have been able to survive without them.”
Baker said her five siblings were by her side during her recovery, along with her husband, Michael Baker, and their daughter, Andrea Kupferschmid.
Baker still recalls the unbearable pain.
The hospital gave her a heart-shaped pillow to help ease the pain, she said. Patients hold the pillow near their chests when coughing or sneezing.
“You’re just glued together,” she said. “You’re breastbone is wired together, and then they glue your skin together.”
After surgery, Baker went through three months of heart rehabilitation at the Peoria RiverPlex, where she learned to monitor her blood sugar and blood pressure. She also completed various exercises and attended nutrition programs.
“It was a well-rounded recovery time,” she said.
Baker said she still exercises at area fitness facilities and now focuses on eating the right foods.
She also must monitor her diabetes, a side effect of the surgery.
“I’m more conscious of my health now,” she said. “Those things are important to monitor, and it’s not hard.”
Baker will retire this summer from her position as treasurer with the Special Education Association of Peoria County.
In her spare time, she focuses on her church and family — especially her two grandchildren, she said.
To date, Baker said she has not experienced further heart complications.
“I’m fine,” she said. “You can’t dwell on it. You have to live life to the fullest.”
East Peoria, Ill. —
