It might not be heartburn!!!

[Pherris]

I would like to make sure all my fellow FM'ers take signs of heartburn seriously. About 3 weeks ago I had been fishing all day eating the typical junk food and bouncing pretty good in the boat so when later that evening I started to get heartburn really bad I did not think it was anything more because I have acid reflux disease so that furthered my feeling that what I was experiencing was nothing more then that, really bad heartburn. It lasted for about 6-8 hours and I must say I was sure it was the worst case of heartburn/indigestion I had ever had. It was accompanied by cold sweats and nausea but I just kept telling myself it would go away. It did pass and the following day I felt really tired and slept most of the day. The next day I went to Leech for a weeks vacation not feeling 100% but nothing real specific other then low energy level. For the next couple of weeks I still felt tired but again just thought I had been pushing it to hard. On this past Wednesday I felt my heart racing and when I took my pulse it seemed it was very erratic so I did some reading on the web and decided I should pay a visit to the emergency room. While I must say they were not real happy when I told them about my "Heartburn" episode and the fact that I did not go to the hospitol. They did an EKG and they were immediately able to tell I had had a serious heart attack. I had to have an angiogram immediately where it was discovered that I had several blocked arteries and had to have 2 stints put in to open two of the arteries 2 are still 100% blocked and they can not do anything about, and 2 more will probably get stints next week. The reason I share this is because I am only 38 years old and thought I was in good health. I had a stress echo test 18 months ago and was told I had no blockage ( There is a 5% error I have found out) and I did not have the pain in the arm or pressure on the chest or any of the other classic symptoms, I am a non smoker and in generally good health so I thought and that is why I was sure it was not a heart attack. The Dr. said I was very lucky to survive but with diet, exercises, medication, I should be able to lead a perfectly normal life active life. It was a scary thing and can not stress strongly enough to take even the smallest symptoms seriously. Fortunately for me I will be able to fish for years to come and would hate for anyone to go through what I did. Remember it may not just be heartburn. Also everyone should take an aspirin a day that is something I have done for a few years and the Dr. said it may have been what saved my life. Please dont take chances it is better to error on the side of caution.

[BDR]

Pherris- Sounds like your a lucky guy!! Glad your hear to tell the story. Your story is very similiar as my fathers. He did not take too good care of his health after the triple bypass and has had problems recently again 10 years later.

Take care of yourself.

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I'd rather be skunked than follow the crowd!

Brian Rogers

JR's Tackle
Catch-N Tackle and Bio Bait

[Rick]

Thanks Pherris!!!

If your story helps just one person, it will have been worht the telling.

Thank goodness you are OK!!!!

[Phred52]

Kinda scarey the way OUR mortality is driven home, isn't it? At 20, I thought I'd Live FOREVER,At 30, I looked at my dad, At 40, I looked in the mirror, And at 50, I look at the obit column. If MY name isn't there, It's gonna be a GOOD day. Not Quite sure what to look for in my 60'S though. Any ideas? And then there are the guys that are declared PERFECTLY healthy. And they're worm food 2 weeks later. Seen that twice! Guys, Take care of yourselves,I can't catch 'em all!!! I DO NEED help. Besides, I need someone to talk to on the lakes.

[delmuts]

man i am glad you're getting better! i'm 52. and yes i'm like 52. i check the obit. collum too! one just never knows what life will bring. i developed a philosiphy(sp?) a few years bac;( while waiting to be cut out of a f 150 by the fire dept) to live each day to the fullest. it could be ones health, or some thing else that takes us from here.take care of yourselves, and as the saying goes! make each day count ! del

[LEECH21]

heart attacks are a scary thing. my father was 42 and in pretty good health. in fact he was in the national guards for 22 years. he happened to just quit the guards but had to take one last test, a two mile run. he did great, in fact, he ran it faster than kids half his age. a week later he died from a heart attack. that was five years ago. i now take one day at a time and thank god for each one. get yourselves checked out. good fishing and even better health.

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<*))))))))><{

[Kingfisher]

Pherris, Thanks for sharing your experience. In 1982 my chest would tighten up from exertion. I went to two different Dr's., one diagnosed me with alaergies, the other with a cold. Being my father had died prematurely from heart disease I was sure that it was my heart. I insisted on seeing a cardiologist. After just going across my chest with his stethoscope, he knew I had problems, had an angiogram, and the Dr. discovered I was ready to blow up. Had a by-pass and kept on a vigorous diet and exercise program and have lived a normal life for over 20 years. Had my second by-pass a year and half ago, am exercising 150 minutes a week, staying on a low fat, low sugar, low cholesterol, low salt diet, and am enjoying a very active life syle. I am happy to hear you made it and I wish you a healthy life. My advise to everyone, if you have a health problem, do your research and find the very best cardiologist and heart surgeon available. My heart surgeon said most people spend more time researching buying a car then finding a good Dr.

[Hoss05]

The same thing happened to my dad a couple of weeks ago. He woke up complaining about bad heartburn. He also said that his arms hurt and my mom and I tried to get him to go to the hospital but he wouldn't. Then he started throwing up and the pain got worse. When mom finally got him to go to the hospital his left cirumflex artery was 97% blocked. The doctor told him that if he hadn't went in when he did, he wouldn't have made it through the night! Luckily they but a stint in the artery and he seems to be doing fine.

[Lowlight]

I'm glad to hear your doing well. As someone who makes their living in Emergency Medical Services I just wanted to pass on to FMers that not all individuals have all of the 'classic' signs/symptoms of heart attack. Many individuals have some signs and not others. I have transported a number of 'under 40' heart attack patients. A little advice to those over 35 years old - especially if you have a family history of heart problems. Spend 10 minutes on the web and become familiar with some of the signs/symptoms of Myocardial Infarction (heart attack). It could save your life or the life of someone you love. And remember, with a heart attack, the earlier you get treatment the more heart muscle you may save.

[luckyc]

Agreed with everyone, you have to watch out for that ticker, even if you don't have any heart attack symtoms. My father-in-law was only 48 years old and in perfect shape (ex-marine) was playing in a company golf tournment when he felt funny on the ninth hole. The other three went out to play and he sat on the cart, they looked back and he was slumped over, air med's were flown in but he was gone. This was 3 days before our wedding. Needless to say my wife is a real stickler on getting that stress test and physical now that I'm over fifty. So don't be cheap on your health, you might not get that second chance to fix it. Live to fish another day.

[1Yogi]

My Dad complained of angina for a long time and didn't know it. Also ate rolaids like lemon drops. He and his youngest brother died within a year of one another from heart problems. In 2000 I had a stress problem that mimicked a heart attack and discovered I have the same congenital heart valve problem they do. I was only 40 at the tome and Dad had been gone for 5 years. I too thought nothing of the constant angina as I was "only" 40. Thanks for letting all of know about what happened, and reminding me to take better care of myself.

[Pherris]

Thanks for all the kind words. To add to what Medevac mentioned about family history my cardiologist told me that was the biggest contributing factor to my blockage, my mothers side has a strong history of cardiovascular disease. According to my Dr. with the amount of blockage I have for my age it had to begin in my early or even pre teens. Also time between the heart attack and treatment is critical. None of my damage can be reversed because of the amount of time that passed from the attack to the time I went to the hospital. I was told that I still have about 65% heart function overall. While that may seem low I was told you only need 40% to live a very normal active healthy life. You can bet I will certainly make sure the 65% is treated very well from here on out. The other good news is it looks like I will be cleared to get back in the boat in a week or so even if they have to put in the other stints tomorrow. Take care of yourselves folks life is precious. Thanks again for the kind thoughts.

[Mark Christianson]

Wow. I do not even know what to say.
Wait.........
Yes I do know what to say. My wife, my 7 year old son, and my 2 1/2 year old daughter are all in bed after a great weeked together at my parents cabin.
I have had all 3 of them in very scary and even life threatening situations.
My wife had pre-cancerous cervical cells several years ago. It scared the daylights out of me. They were all removed successfully.
My son was born at 26 1/2 weeks. He was in grave danger of not even living. Here he is today with absolutely no health issues at all.
My daughters heart rate dive bombed during delivery, and the doctors did an emergency C-section and had her delivered within 6 minutes of the signs of danger. She has no problems at all today.

And yet, as time passes, I seem to slowly move these things to the back of my mind.

After this many scares, you would think that I would have everything prioritized in my life in a proper manner, but I don't.

Pherris,
I personally wish you the best, and it is fantastic to see you sharing this experience to knock some of us back into our senses.....

I have a family that I need to make sure gets an extra special hug tomorrow.

Take care and thanks for your post!

[fivebucks]

I've been thinking of you Pherris. I think I might call the Doc today and set up a stress test due to family history. Take care of yourself and we'll be in touch.

[Pherris]

Thanks Fivebucks. I will calling you Tuesday to get back on track. Wont have the results of todays test for 24 hours. I am sure I will be around awhile to keep our fishing talk and other stuff going. Thanks again!!

[fishermn]

Pherris,

Thanks for your story. Like you, I am in my late 30's and I too often have severe acid reflux. However to complicate matters I also have asthma. The combination of the two sometimes results in shortness of breath, and chest pain at the same time. Again like you, I have been ignoring these symptoms, but after reading your story, I will definitely have myself evaluated more carefully. In fact after reading your message, I have set up an appointment for a physical, and I will talk to my doc about this. I too had a cardiac stress test about 6 years ago and it showed no signs of any problems. Thats when I was diagnosed with acid reflux. Unfortunately, sometimes we get used to living with symptoms of things like this that could potentially mask a much bigger problem.
Thanks again for your message, I know it gave me the push to get myself checked over.

[united jigsticker]

Here I am, a young guy, who has experienced the majority of the symptoms above along with severe chest cramping and pains, shortness of breath, severe heartburn, nausea, and pain in the arm, all combined at once on a semi frequent basis a couple years ago.

Being in the mindstate of "too young" to have problems, I ignored them.

I have not seen a doctor about these issues to this day, but it tells me that I better get in and insist on having some tests done.

Since these symptoms, I have lost 55 pounds and taken up a far more active lifestyle that includes running 3 miles a day 3-5 times a week and moderate weight training 4 days a week.

I must admit that 99% of these symptoms have ceased since the change in my physical behavior and diet. That is good news. But it is also a sign.

I am glad you are OK Pherris! We don't need to lose anyone else! Thank you for your eye opening story!

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Good fishing,
UJ
[email protected]