A journey through a heart attack and out the other side
Discussion
sobering reading through this thread.
im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
pidsy said:
sobering reading through this thread.
im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
Good man.im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
What happened before the symptoms revealed - stiff neck etc? Surely they didn't happen out of the blue. Did you have a major stressful event?
Wish they knew what causes these damn things to healthy people because a lot of people I know are at risk. For instance, my dad it was finding out a financial adviser had ripped me off (then he got the usual symptoms) and now he's worried about something else that's happening to me, which is having an effect on his blood pressure (regardless of the drugs he's on).
Wish they knew what causes these damn things to healthy people because a lot of people I know are at risk. For instance, my dad it was finding out a financial adviser had ripped me off (then he got the usual symptoms) and now he's worried about something else that's happening to me, which is having an effect on his blood pressure (regardless of the drugs he's on).
The stiff neck came on over about 7 days. I thought it was just a case of me sleeping badly. Last week I even bought a new side sleeping pillow that helped a little. I felt very tired and earlier this year I had a viral infection that dragged on for weeks.
My appetite was the same, my sleep patterns no different, but I was very tired and out of sorts for the last week and very irritable.
Truth is, there's are all classic symptoms. But so is the case of a heart attack out of the blue.
And in part that is the uncertainty of it all.
Being thinner might have made a difference. But my cholesterol levels are well within guidelines. I cycle regularly and am quite cardio strong. So, some pros and some cons on the balance of risks.
Would a regular checkup have spotted the narrowing of the artery? Don't know, but possibly.
Is a pre heart attack intervention better than an acute intervention? Of course.
So if you get a chance, or your friends get the opportunity for a heart mot, take it, or urge them to take it.
I left my wife at home . I did not want her to come with me. I did not want her to see me die. I've been there. It does not leave you.
Believe me, those moments when you lie there thinking you're dying and the nurse won't answer when you ask that question, is a point in time of singular focus.
It's not the wish list. It's not regrets for things done or not done.
It's this.
Am I going to survive this?
There are a lot of seconds to fill with that thought and the brain cpu runs at quite a fast rate and is the most awesome multi processor.
The next question that follows is
What damage has it done?
And that's where I am now. That and,
What do I have to do to get back to where I was?
Can I get back there?
How long?
And then there are others that are just emerging. What will the drugs do by way of side effects?
All of these have answers. But the brain only listens to responses when it has first settled enough of the fear that is fight or flight.
I don't know if any of this answers your question. I hope it does. But if you have any doubts what so ever, go see your GP.
No wishing from me - I can't function like that and hindsight is unhelpful.
But do something today that might well mean you don't have to lie there wondering,
'Am I going to survive this'.
I thought of my mum, my dad, my sister, my wife I married only last September, my stepson, my friends Brad and Adam and my cousin dawn who's been my cancer buddy and my greatest inspiration. And I thought of my wedding and my lily and my promises.
f
k it, I'm crying now.
My appetite was the same, my sleep patterns no different, but I was very tired and out of sorts for the last week and very irritable.
Truth is, there's are all classic symptoms. But so is the case of a heart attack out of the blue.
And in part that is the uncertainty of it all.
Being thinner might have made a difference. But my cholesterol levels are well within guidelines. I cycle regularly and am quite cardio strong. So, some pros and some cons on the balance of risks.
Would a regular checkup have spotted the narrowing of the artery? Don't know, but possibly.
Is a pre heart attack intervention better than an acute intervention? Of course.
So if you get a chance, or your friends get the opportunity for a heart mot, take it, or urge them to take it.
I left my wife at home . I did not want her to come with me. I did not want her to see me die. I've been there. It does not leave you.
Believe me, those moments when you lie there thinking you're dying and the nurse won't answer when you ask that question, is a point in time of singular focus.
It's not the wish list. It's not regrets for things done or not done.
It's this.
Am I going to survive this?
There are a lot of seconds to fill with that thought and the brain cpu runs at quite a fast rate and is the most awesome multi processor.
The next question that follows is
What damage has it done?
And that's where I am now. That and,
What do I have to do to get back to where I was?
Can I get back there?
How long?
And then there are others that are just emerging. What will the drugs do by way of side effects?
All of these have answers. But the brain only listens to responses when it has first settled enough of the fear that is fight or flight.
I don't know if any of this answers your question. I hope it does. But if you have any doubts what so ever, go see your GP.
No wishing from me - I can't function like that and hindsight is unhelpful.
But do something today that might well mean you don't have to lie there wondering,
'Am I going to survive this'.
I thought of my mum, my dad, my sister, my wife I married only last September, my stepson, my friends Brad and Adam and my cousin dawn who's been my cancer buddy and my greatest inspiration. And I thought of my wedding and my lily and my promises.
f
k it, I'm crying now.Have they done the ultrasound yet? - that's when you'll know the full extent of the damage. Fingers crossed you'll have been lucky and it'll be very minor damage.
The only time I really lost it, mentally, was being driven home by my wife, as I had, at times, thought I'd never see my house, cats, family and friends again. Being in the car, being driven home, was such a massive relief.
The only time I really lost it, mentally, was being driven home by my wife, as I had, at times, thought I'd never see my house, cats, family and friends again. Being in the car, being driven home, was such a massive relief.
My heart attack happened when my twin boys were 18 months old, my wife had given up her job and I was the sole breadwinner. It was a bit of a tear-jerker for me in the lonely hours of the cardiology ward, a 35 year old amongst all the nonagenarians, thinking about the what-ifs.
I totally get where you're coming from. Luckily it's worked out for you.
I totally get where you're coming from. Luckily it's worked out for you.
Soov535 said:
pidsy said:
sobering reading through this thread.
im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
Good man.im 35
Dad died at 42
one uncle died at 45, the other at 47
all from undiagnosed Familial Hypercholesterolaemia. i know my cholesterol is high - was put on statins about 10 years ago and found that i was hugely allergic to them so spent some time on fibrates.
then basically buried my head in the sand.
just made an appointment to get my cholesterol checked again.
As always,you have managed to communicate the positives in a hugely stressful and challenging experience. I have long admired your ability to provide comfort and solace to so many people when addressing the very hard times in your life. I sincerely wish you the very best in your recovery, and have no doubt that you will continue to be a poster on PH that I am most impressed by.
In the quiet hours now I'm sleeping on the sofa - no stairs for me for a while as my wife is worried about me falling, I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank you all for your support.
She's asleep now and absolutely shattered. Like i said earlier, I know how hard it is to be the one at home worrying.
I have only now come to understand, albeit how fleetingly my first wife hid so much from me of what was happening to her. And she did a dammed good job of it. She could keep it all in and her self control and emotional management is something I've never experienced in another.
But I'm built differently and I need to process the emotion quickly to let the logic drive the decisions.
But I have no decisions to make. My drug regime is pretty much laid out, the plan for the next few weeks is sensible eating, plenty of sleep and then a cardio stress test.
But I can't stop thinking of the man I saw today with holes in his lungs.iys left the biggest impression. Well that and diabetes and how deadly it is.
I got the most horrible wake up call on Friday, but like lily said to me about cancer - a great message in crap packaging, it's made me look hard at my life. It's clichéd, but it has been a wakeup up call to living.
Ph had always come to my help in times of need and this time has been no different. For that and as always thank you.
But there is one person more than any other who I want to thank. His name is Brad. He came to the hospice when I asked and he had remained my most loyal and wonderful friend. We are so different and if it wasn't for lily dying we would never have met, but he has become my most wonderful of friends. He was my best man at my wedding and more than a few times of late he's been there when the past has been a monster.
Some of you know him, but he is the embodiment of all that is best in ph and in life. He'll be embarrassed when he reads this, he's a real mans man. But I am lost at ways of saying thank you to him.
It's only when you stand at the edge of losing everything do you realise what everything really is. Life. It is everything.
I loved. She died. I mourned. I love again. I am loved. I've always known that nothing else matters, that feathering life with fine things is great, but there are more important things.
Maybe this is all just the ramblings of a middle aged man post reality check. Possibly. But I also like to think that somewhere in all my words, if what we go through is shared and that sharing helps even one moment of one life in crisis, it's been worth it, that writing about lily's cancer made a difference, or my heart attack makes a difference, laying it bare, has been worth it.
Once again, thank you all. And Brad, write your travel diary this trip, I'm looking forward to a funny read. Love you man.
R.
She's asleep now and absolutely shattered. Like i said earlier, I know how hard it is to be the one at home worrying.
I have only now come to understand, albeit how fleetingly my first wife hid so much from me of what was happening to her. And she did a dammed good job of it. She could keep it all in and her self control and emotional management is something I've never experienced in another.
But I'm built differently and I need to process the emotion quickly to let the logic drive the decisions.
But I have no decisions to make. My drug regime is pretty much laid out, the plan for the next few weeks is sensible eating, plenty of sleep and then a cardio stress test.
But I can't stop thinking of the man I saw today with holes in his lungs.iys left the biggest impression. Well that and diabetes and how deadly it is.
I got the most horrible wake up call on Friday, but like lily said to me about cancer - a great message in crap packaging, it's made me look hard at my life. It's clichéd, but it has been a wakeup up call to living.
Ph had always come to my help in times of need and this time has been no different. For that and as always thank you.
But there is one person more than any other who I want to thank. His name is Brad. He came to the hospice when I asked and he had remained my most loyal and wonderful friend. We are so different and if it wasn't for lily dying we would never have met, but he has become my most wonderful of friends. He was my best man at my wedding and more than a few times of late he's been there when the past has been a monster.
Some of you know him, but he is the embodiment of all that is best in ph and in life. He'll be embarrassed when he reads this, he's a real mans man. But I am lost at ways of saying thank you to him.
It's only when you stand at the edge of losing everything do you realise what everything really is. Life. It is everything.
I loved. She died. I mourned. I love again. I am loved. I've always known that nothing else matters, that feathering life with fine things is great, but there are more important things.
Maybe this is all just the ramblings of a middle aged man post reality check. Possibly. But I also like to think that somewhere in all my words, if what we go through is shared and that sharing helps even one moment of one life in crisis, it's been worth it, that writing about lily's cancer made a difference, or my heart attack makes a difference, laying it bare, has been worth it.
Once again, thank you all. And Brad, write your travel diary this trip, I'm looking forward to a funny read. Love you man.
R.
Wake up call for me but not sure what else I can do. I already exercise regularly. Eat moderately healthy, consume natto for the circulation. Thrown out/given away all the stupid memory sleeping stuff that fixes you in place then snap when you move in sleep (maybe just me, but like to sleep with windows open so need free movement). The one thing is the stress, I don't want to reach that level where's there's no going back, the dreaded attack.
Hi, I thought my experiences might be of interest.During 2008/09 I wasnt feeling so good, short of breath,had to keep stopping when walking the dog,pain in collar bone area.Went to doc, after much nagging from home, luckily my doc is also a cardio and he sent me for tests.After angiogram etc it was found one of my arteries was virtually blocked.Booked in for stent at James Cook hospital, Middlesbro.At the pre op assesment I was asked if I would be willing to take part in trials of a new drug.It seems that at the time a massive amount of stents were being rejected, or moved from position, in people.The 'STARS' programme was to seek a better result of stents staying in place.I agreed and was prescribed a course of steroids,no not that kind,no big muscles. The pills were the size that are normally fed to horses and the first week I had to take 7 per day,next week 6 per day, reducing to nill after 8 weeks.I also had regular blood tests and after 6 months another angiogram to see how it went.There was only 400 people in these trials and as far as I know it has led to a form of steroids being prescribed to those who have just had a stent.Its easy to give cash for heart research,but they got my body instead!
had my appointment at the docs last week and associated blood test.
results back - 6.4 for cholesterol.
doctor wants to start the whole process again as its been 10 years since i started to ignore the problem i have.
although my records show that i was allergic to the previous 4 types of statins, the doc has now put me on Crestor.
im struggling a bit with the same symptoms as before - he has now booked me in for a liver function test as well as an enhanced angiogram.
im also waiting for a referral back to the cardio unit to see if theres something else they can do instead of statins.
thanks again to the OP for starting this thread.
results back - 6.4 for cholesterol.
doctor wants to start the whole process again as its been 10 years since i started to ignore the problem i have.
although my records show that i was allergic to the previous 4 types of statins, the doc has now put me on Crestor.
im struggling a bit with the same symptoms as before - he has now booked me in for a liver function test as well as an enhanced angiogram.
im also waiting for a referral back to the cardio unit to see if theres something else they can do instead of statins.
thanks again to the OP for starting this thread.
pidsy said:
had my appointment at the docs last week and associated blood test.
results back - 6.4 for cholesterol.
doctor wants to start the whole process again as its been 10 years since i started to ignore the problem i have.
although my records show that i was allergic to the previous 4 types of statins, the doc has now put me on Crestor.
im struggling a bit with the same symptoms as before - he has now booked me in for a liver function test as well as an enhanced angiogram.
im also waiting for a referral back to the cardio unit to see if theres something else they can do instead of statins.
thanks again to the OP for starting this thread.
Good man.results back - 6.4 for cholesterol.
doctor wants to start the whole process again as its been 10 years since i started to ignore the problem i have.
although my records show that i was allergic to the previous 4 types of statins, the doc has now put me on Crestor.
im struggling a bit with the same symptoms as before - he has now booked me in for a liver function test as well as an enhanced angiogram.
im also waiting for a referral back to the cardio unit to see if theres something else they can do instead of statins.
thanks again to the OP for starting this thread.
6.4 is not tragic at all.
Wishing you well.
Little update as me as well.
No beta blockers any more as I have asthma a day even the cardio selective of one has triggered that hateful asthma feeling. I'd rather live with a slightly higher risk of no top brake than daily with feeling crap with asthma.
So that just leaves asprin, clopidogerel and ramapril and a statin.
It's going to take some hard work to get back my physical strength. I can't wait to start cardio rehab.
No beta blockers any more as I have asthma a day even the cardio selective of one has triggered that hateful asthma feeling. I'd rather live with a slightly higher risk of no top brake than daily with feeling crap with asthma.
So that just leaves asprin, clopidogerel and ramapril and a statin.
It's going to take some hard work to get back my physical strength. I can't wait to start cardio rehab.
drivin_me_nuts said:
Little update as me as well.
No beta blockers any more as I have asthma a day even the cardio selective of one has triggered that hateful asthma feeling. I'd rather live with a slightly higher risk of no top brake than daily with feeling crap with asthma.
So that just leaves asprin, clopidogerel and ramapril and a statin.
It's going to take some hard work to get back my physical strength. I can't wait to start cardio rehab.
That's the spirit, broNo beta blockers any more as I have asthma a day even the cardio selective of one has triggered that hateful asthma feeling. I'd rather live with a slightly higher risk of no top brake than daily with feeling crap with asthma.
So that just leaves asprin, clopidogerel and ramapril and a statin.
It's going to take some hard work to get back my physical strength. I can't wait to start cardio rehab.
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