Have you experienced a heart attack, or thought you had one?
Two nights ago, I thought I could not see another sunrise.
I woke up in the middle of a deep sleep with extreme pain on my chest. It felt like a ton of bricks was pressing against my chest. I could hardly breathe. When I did, pain shot through my entire upper torso.
“Oh God, not a heart attack please,” I told myself. And my mind was flooded by thoughts of my best friend who is still recuperating in the hospital due to a triple by-pass just a week ago.
I lied still in bed for what seemed an eternity, debating whether to drive to a nearby hospital or call my daughter who is a doctor…Then fell back to sleep.
The alarm woke me up. The pain, though less excruciating, was still there.
After having my regular breakfast of a loaf of bread and milk chocolate, topped off by watermelon, apple, and papaya, I went for my daily morning exercise.
My routine consists of 45 to 50 mins of brisk walk mixed with modified push-ups and isometrics. I do it regularly but this time, I want to see if my heart will hold up.
To my relief, it did. My chest pain was just one of those anomalies that can happen to an old bloke like me. It was not a heart problem at all.
Like most of us, I take my health for granted, you know, the machismo kind of thing. Besides, I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle, and a heart attack, to my mind, is as remote as the North Pole.
I take my health with some kind of panache, the machismo thing – like most of us. Not because I feel healthy, but because I lead an active lifestyle. I take a heart attack as remote as the North Pole.
But I wouldn’t recommend that kind of derring-do for you or other seniors out there. You’ll never know if your chest pain is the real thing and heart attack kills – without warning.
So watch out for these danger signals. If they happen without any real reason, consult your doctor. It is better to be dead sure than sure dead.
1. Excessive Fatigue:
Excessive fatigue can be due to strenuous activities or a coronary artery problem due to plaque build-up. This issue makes your heart work extra hard to get its normal supply of oxygen.
I asked a cousin how he knew that he had a heart problem. “Excessive fatigue,” he said. He could not climb a flight of stairs or walk the distance between two lampposts without pausing for breath.
2. Shortness of Breath:
Shortness of breath is also a good indicator of a heart problem. This happens when the heart pumps less oxygen to the lungs.
The heart and the lungs work together to keep your body functioning. If one is impaired, the other is also affected.
Shortness of breath is one of the things I observe very carefully each time I exercise. While it is normal to gasp for breath at the onset of extreme activity if it persists after a short period of adjustment then, get an appointment with your doctor.
3. Weakness:
Of course, if you are experiencing extreme fatigue and shortness of breath, it follows that you will feel weak.
Weakness results from the same reasons of other heart attack danger signals – lack of oxygen-carrying blood from your heart to your muscles.
4. Dizziness and/or Cold Sweat:
These conditions occur because of the poor cardiac circulation to the brain resulting in clamminess and dizziness, especially when suddenly getting up from a bed or chair.
This should not be mistaken for the dizziness you may experience due to sudden positional or motion change which can happen after sitting in front of the computer for long periods of time.
5. Discomfort or pain in the chest:
Chest pain or discomfort related to an impending heart attack is caused by diminished blood flow to the chest. It grows more intense until a heart attack occurs.
Call emergency is your chest pain or discomfort is accompanied by a heavy pressure or squeezing sensation in the chest, with pain radiating from to the neck. jaw and arm.
Take note, however, that these symptoms can also occur during a heartburn episode. Nevertheless, take no chances.
A heart attack is often called a “traitor disease,” or “a thief in the night,” because it strikes without warning.
Not exactly. Heart problems send out warning signals long before they happen – like an oncoming train. We just often ignore them, taking them as parts of aging. Maybe Yes. Maybe No. But would you play Russian Roulette with your health? I guess not.
To make you more attentive to your body, ask yourself this question, “Am I a potential candidate?”
The Mayo Clinic has an excellent article about the risk factors of a heart attack, especially for seniors like you and me. Read it, take note of the risk factors and keenly observed your body’s language.
Millions, worldwide, unnecessarily die of heart attack each year and in 2011, 787,000 Americans didn’t see another day or night of the harrowing experience of being struck down by the disease. Don’t be one of them.
Live a fuller life by doing something about your heart health; listen to it. Chances are you will hear it warning you that something is cooking, and it is not good for you.
The life you save will definitely your own.
~oOo~
