Visiting the Pediatric Cardiologist

Gabriel was diagnosed with a heart condition when he was 18 months old. The pediatrician asked us to get his murmur checked, just in case it was something more severe but he thought that his heart murmur was a holing closing by itself. It didn't sound serious so I wasn't nervous at all when we went to the dr. It seemed like a run of the mill appointment. Never mind that I was very pregnant and dealing with a high risk pregnancy at the time.
We found out that Gabriel has a bicuspid aortic valve. It reminds me of a time bomb. It can get worse at any time or he might remain stable for the rest of his life. We have no idea what the future will hold. We do know that puberty will be a challenging time because his heart will grow and it is unknown if his valve will be able to handle the change. Though he has no restrictions now, we don't know if Gabriel will be allowed to play sports when he is older.
I tend to forget about Gabriel's heart condition because his other issues are more immediate and are more recognizable day to day. In the beginning, he went to the cardiologist every 4 months but we have graduated to annual appointments.
About 9 months ago, the pediatrician heard a murmur while listening to Lane's heart. I heard the same thing - "I think you should get her murmur checked out, just in case." I typically make appointments for my children immediately but I dreaded finding out about another heart problem. A few weeks ago, the pediatrician asked if I followed up with a cardiologist. I was embarrassed to tell him that I hadn't taken her yet.

Today was cardiologist day. Lane was a perfect patient. She sat still for her EKG and for the doctor. Gabriel, on the other hand, was completely flipped out by the EKG stickers and cords. He thought that it was going to turn him into a robot. He was scared that he was going ot have his blood drawn again. Gabriel has been a great patient for years until the past couple months. I don't know what changed for him but he now hates the doctor. He tried to kick and hit the nurses and I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.
Gabriel did better with his echo and then we met with the cardiologist a final time. We received good news today - something we aren't used to when we go to doctor appointments. Lane has an innocent murmur and doesn't need to go back to the cardiologist. Gabriel is stable and doesn't have to go back for two years. I don't have to worry about heart conditions until Gabriel is 10 years old!