Last month, Adam had his first ever sports physical since he will play football this fall. Everything was fine, but the doctor heard a heart murmur and said we'd need to see the pediatric cardiologist the next time he came to Bismarck. This mama, prone to anxiety as she is, fell apart. We've known Adam has a murmur since he was a newborn. Gracey has one too. But for whatever reason, the doctor thought that it should be checked out by an expert. He assured me it was probably nothing and signed the sports release, but "probably nothing" is never reassuring.
Today was the big appointment. I was a mess most of the day, crying between Avon deliveries and on the verge of a panic attack. Adam was very nervous but tried to be tough. He went to the bathroom three times while we waited for the appointment. Scott was our rock, concealing his own worries to reassure both of us and lead us in prayer. Repeatedly.
Dr. P came in and asked us and Adam some questions. He was a little concerned when I told him about Gracey's valve issue as a newborn. (read about that here) Then he listened to Adam's heart. For. A. Long. Time. In several different locations front and back. Then he listened to, palpated and timed major arteries. It. Took. Forever.
He told us that Adam's murmur sounds innocent. He said it's the kind of murmur that is common in children aged 2-5. Adam is 9. He said since Adam isn't having any ill effects of a murmur (passing out, chest pain, etc) and that all of his valves and arteries sound good otherwise, so an EKG isn't necessary at this point. But if when he is 12 the murmur is still there, then it will be time for an EKG as a 12-year-old heart should not sound like a 2-5 year-old heart.
Then he drew a sketch of the heart and explained that some cardiologists thing this type of murmur is caused by an extra ligament in the heart that kind of reverberates the way a harp string does. The ligament has no purpose, most people don't have this little extra ligament and all it does is make a musical sound in the heart.
You could hear a collective sigh of relief come from the three of us.
As we got up to leave, I said to Adam, "Dude, I think Dr. P just said you have music in your heart."
Dr. P agreed and said that yes, Adam does indeed have a musical heart.
I started crying (again) and could only whisper, "Thank you Jesus."
As we got into the elevator, Adam looked at Scott and said, "I've got a song in my heart, Dad. A song in my heart for Jesus."
I don't want Adam to have an EKG in three years. I want his murmur to go away and to never cause us stress or worry again. Yet, if having a murmur will keep Adam's heart turned toward Jesus, then I can live with that.
