So I had a heart attack today

[Badger]

Was in Court a bit after 9:00 this morning for a bond hearing on one of my clients. I was given the nice news from the judge in Chambers that she was willing to let my guy out on house arrest. I went out into the courtroom to start filling out the form on the computer and felt pains in my chest. I thought it might have been a moment's indigestion or cramp and would go away after a few seconds.

But nope. The pain kept getting worse, I suffered shortness of breath, had some difficulty walking when I went to the water fountain in the hallway outside and back, and felt stabbing pains in my fingertips. I went to the bailiff and advised I needed a medic. Fortunately the hospital was rather close by so they got there quickly. They ran an ekg and wheeled me out on a gurney. A bit embarrassing to happen in front of numerous professional colleagues, but what can one do..

Though I was hoping it might have just been angina - admittedly I'm not even entirely sure what angina is, but I just keep hearing it referred to as a frequent false alarm for heart attacks. Maybe a panic attack? I've rarely had one and never with physical symptoms, but my hopes were there. Alas, the paramedics told me in the ambulance that from the results of the EKG that sure enough I was having a heart attack. They scooted me off to the hospital for a quick procedure. When I say quick I mean very quick. From the time they moved me from the ambulance gurney to the ER table the entire matter was done in maybe 20 to 30 minutes. They stuck a stint up into my heart through my leg near my groin - let's just say I got something of a Brazilian treatment- and quickly knocked out the blockage. The pain went away Within just a minute or two. It was somewhere from around a seven on a scale from 1 to 10 down to a barely a one almost immediately.

I'm now sitting in a hospital bed where I'll be kept overnight for monitoring and go home sometime tomorrow morning or afternoon depending on when the doctor makes his rounds. The before and after pictures of my heart show one - artery? Ventricle? I got C pluses in high school biology - was completely blocked off, but the after photo shows it being as wide open as a four-lane highway. I have a slight tightness in my chest still, but I am infinitely better.

Lol! A few minutes after I called my wife I texted her at 9:38 this morning to let her know that 911 was on their way. This is when I was still in court and before the medics arrived. At 11:10 a.m. I was on the phone with a prospective new client from my hospital bed who ultimately hired me for a minor traffic case. Lol lol! Nothing Stops me!

EDIT: truth be told it's a was a very sobering incident. I'm only 53 years old. Too young for this s***. All I can think about on the ambulance ride over and until they completed the procedure was about my little boys. One just turned 14 and the other turns 12 and about 6 weeks. I refuse to let them go this early. There is some heart disease history on my mom's side of the family, so despite being a non-smoker I'm going to have to make some Lifestyle Changes. 60 plus hours a week or not, I'm still going to have to Now find 20 minutes a day for at least a brisk walk on the treadmill which I did for some time until the demands of work necessitated that I just couldn't take that time during the afternoon. Now I have to.

My dear slightly hippy-ish wife has already laid out an entire list of vegetables we will now be eating more of.

But yeah, it's still now sinking in as I sit here. That may have been the scariest hour of my life.

[Badger]

Oh no, Badger! Will most definitely be thinking of you.  

Just as a little bit of a PSA for us all (and one, as usual, that nobody asked for): the Hollywood-clichè "clutch the chest, keel over" stereotype isn't always what happens with heart attacks.  

MI's in men may begin as a sensation similar to indigestion.  If it progresses to shortness of breath, cold sweats, numbness in the extremities, squeezing pain in the chest (angina) that radiates to the neck/jaw, etc., seek medical attention immediately.  

Infarctions in women don't always involve acute chest pain (though they can).  For some reason, female heart attacks may begin as stomach pains, dizziness, or isolated pain in the neck or jaw. Still, heart attacks in women are typically accompanied by cold sweats, shortness of breath, and so on.  

Oh and if you suspect a heart attack, call 911 first, then make sure to CHEW Aspirin rather than swallowing it whole. Chewing helps deliver the Aspirin much faster to your bloodstream.  

Know the signs, folks.  And get better soon, Badger!

Excellent point, pqg. Every single thing you described with the exception of sweating is exactly what I experienced.
According to the docs here actually chewing and swallowing children's aspirin, usually like 280 mg tablets per day, can help you avoid heart problems long-term. Ditto for a glass of red wine, two if you're male, a day.

Also, both heart disease and cholesterol buildup are very much driven by genetic factors. The latter almost entirely. Diet and exercise won't get your cholesterol down at all, and one really needs to rely on medication. The perfect American response! The point being though if you have that kind of history please get yourselves checked out by a doctor early on

[Badger]

Glad you aren't dead.

Me too!

[Badger]

Glad to hear you're OK! How big of an attack does it qualify as? Hopefully not too bad. You're too young for that.

Time to leave the red meat for the voters and not your gullet

Obviously can't answer for Badger without specifics, but in general:  

1.  The CAS (coronary artery spasm) infarction is often referred to as the "silent" heart attack.  This occurs when a coronary artery tightens (or "spasms"), restricting blood flow.  The silent moniker stems from the fact that people may experience symptoms that pass after some time.  It is not until later -- via blood test, etc. etc. -- that they are made aware that they have had a heart attack.  CAS infarctions can still be quite serious, though, and should warrant medical attention.  

2.  An NSTEMI (Non-ST-segment-elevated myocardial infarction) is your "mild" heart attack.  This is typically caused by <100% arterial blockage.  Without getting too deep into the medical mumbo-jumbo, NSTEMI's get their name due to the fact that the EKG segments (the line thingy in my signature) won't be elevated.  As with a CAS-I, it's still a medical emergency that requires immediate attention.  

3.  A STEMI (ST-segment-elevated myocardial infarction) is your "massive" heart attack -- the clutch-and-drop infarction.  This is typically caused by 100% arterial blockage.  Here, the EKG segments are markedly elevated.  This is a true medical emergency in every sense of the terminology -- every precious second counts with a STEMI.  

Thanks virginia. And this was definitely a textbook Category 2 NSTEMI attack. Though with the one possible exception, pqg, that even the paramedics were able to tell from my EKG that I was in fact having a heart attack?

[Badger]

So I just talked to the doctor and will be getting out of here in the next few hours. So I'm going to have to take medications, including baby aspirin every day for the rest of my life. No biggie.

I'm going to have to find a new cardio of at least 20 minutes, if not 30 to 40, every day. A hassle, but I'll just watch TV I guess while walking and killed two birds with one stone and what little free time I have.

But the big kicker is I've got a really cut down on carbs. Ugh! That is not going to be easy.

[Badger]

So I just talked to the doctor and will be getting out of here in the next few hours. So I'm going to have to take medications, including baby aspirin every day for the rest of my life. No biggie.

I'm going to have to find a new cardio of at least 20 minutes, if not 30 to 40, every day. A hassle, but I'll just watch TV I guess while walking and killed two birds with one stone and what little free time I have.

But the big kicker is I've got a really cut down on carbs. Ugh! That is not going to be easy. I'll miss pasta.

[Badger]

Damn, Badger, I'm sorry. Wishing you the best! And I concur, maybe start posting here less for the sake of your health.

Thank you sir.

[Badger]

So I just talked to the doctor and will be getting out of here in the next few hours. So I'm going to have to take medications, including baby aspirin every day for the rest of my life. No biggie.

I'm going to have to find a new cardio of at least 20 minutes, if not 30 to 40, every day. A hassle, but I'll just watch TV I guess while walking and killed two birds with one stone and what little free time I have.

But the big kicker is I've got a really cut down on carbs. Ugh! That is not going to be easy.

---

Also Badger, I'm not a psychologist, but make sure you're taking care of yourself mentally as well.  You've just been through a scary event.  Be sure to do what you can to limit your stress.  And please be kind to yourself!

Serious question. I'm embarrassed to use this citation, but I've seen multiple sitcom tropes where someone gets a diagnosis of high blood pressure, heart problems, hypertension, etc, and they are instructed to try to take it easy. It's only when the individual actually bursts loose and benster spleen somewhat that they actually suffer a reduction in stress. Off the top of my head I can think of all in the family, the jeffersons, and MASH.

Any truth to that whatsoever, or has TV from my childhood lied to me?

[Badger]

So I just talked to the doctor and will be getting out of here in the next few hours. So I'm going to have to take medications, including baby aspirin every day for the rest of my life. No biggie.

I'm going to have to find a new cardio of at least 20 minutes, if not 30 to 40, every day. A hassle, but I'll just watch TV I guess while walking and killed two birds with one stone and what little free time I have.

But the big kicker is I've got a really cut down on carbs. Ugh! That is not going to be easy.

---

Also Badger, I'm not a psychologist, but make sure you're taking care of yourself mentally as well.  You've just been through a scary event.  Be sure to do what you can to limit your stress.  And please be kind to yourself!

Serious question. I'm embarrassed to use this citation, but I've seen multiple sitcom tropes where someone gets a diagnosis of high blood pressure, heart problems, hypertension, etc, and they are instructed to try to take it easy. It's only when the individual actually bursts loose and benster spleen somewhat that they actually suffer a reduction in stress. Off the top of my head I can think of all in the family, the jeffersons, and MASH.

Any truth to that whatsoever, or has TV from my childhood lied to me?

Sorry, Badge, you're gonna have to clarify "benster spleen" for me

Sorry. We've been through this voice to text app drill before. I meant vent ones spleen

[Badger]

At the risk of attention whoring by bumping this thread, I just want to thank everyone quite sincerely for outpouring of support and well wishes. It was one month ago today - well, yesterday since it's after midnight and that I had my heart attack, I've been doing pretty well. I've been eating much better and have shed a solid 10 lb or so, and want to do another 10 lb. The problem is after the first two weeks the demands of my job took over again and I have not been able to get a good 20 minutes in on the treadmill or walking around the neighborhood as I did for the first two weeks. I need to do it again for the sake of my heart as well as to lose those additional pounds.

But what can I do? I put in a fool 7 hour day today driving 4 hours round trip to visit incarcerated client and meeting with him in the jail library for 3 hours. Last weekend I put in a solid 10 and 1/2 hours on Sunday. The saddest part is it isn't being a workaholic for the sake of work, but having to put in those enormous number of hours in order to keep my chin barely above water with the demands of my job.

But enough whining. I'll find the solution I'm reasonably certain. Or at least hoping. Thank you again everyone for your kind words and well wishes. Wish me luck.

[Badger]

At the risk of attention whoring by bumping this thread, I just want to thank everyone quite sincerely for outpouring of support and well wishes. It was one month ago today - well, yesterday since it's after midnight and that I had my heart attack, I've been doing pretty well. I've been eating much better and have shed a solid 10 lb or so, and want to do another 10 lb. The problem is after the first two weeks the demands of my job took over again and I have not been able to get a good 20 minutes in on the treadmill or walking around the neighborhood as I did for the first two weeks. I need to do it again for the sake of my heart as well as to lose those additional pounds.

But what can I do? I put in a fool 7 hour day today driving 4 hours round trip to visit incarcerated client and meeting with him in the jail library for 3 hours. Last weekend I put in a solid 10 and 1/2 hours on Sunday. The saddest part is it isn't being a workaholic for the sake of work, but having to put in those enormous number of hours in order to keep my chin barely above water with the demands of my job.

But enough whining. I'll find the solution I'm reasonably certain. Or at least hoping. Thank you again everyone for your kind words and well wishes. Wish me luck.

Did you file a special motion to allow your client to post here from jail so your FF ratings can go up?  (Asking for a friend.)

As I mentioned in my original post, he is now on house arrest rather than jail, thank you very much.

[Badger]

At the risk of attention whoring by bumping this thread, I just want to thank everyone quite sincerely for outpouring of support and well wishes. It was one month ago today - well, yesterday since it's after midnight and that I had my heart attack, I've been doing pretty well. I've been eating much better and have shed a solid 10 lb or so, and want to do another 10 lb. The problem is after the first two weeks the demands of my job took over again and I have not been able to get a good 20 minutes in on the treadmill or walking around the neighborhood as I did for the first two weeks. I need to do it again for the sake of my heart as well as to lose those additional pounds.

But what can I do? I put in a fool 7 hour day today driving 4 hours round trip to visit incarcerated client and meeting with him in the jail library for 3 hours. Last weekend I put in a solid 10 and 1/2 hours on Sunday. The saddest part is it isn't being a workaholic for the sake of work, but having to put in those enormous number of hours in order to keep my chin barely above water with the demands of my job.

But enough whining. I'll find the solution I'm reasonably certain. Or at least hoping. Thank you again everyone for your kind words and well wishes. Wish me luck.

Did you file a special motion to allow your client to post here from jail so your FF ratings can go up?  (Asking for a friend.)

My guy, this ain’t the place for it.

I'm being sarcastic.

It's all good, I took it as a joke. And if the risk of violating tos, fuzzy was class enough to send me a PM to make sure I didn't have an objection to the Post, which FTR I don't.