Warning Signs Before My Cardiac Arrests

[goldey]

Hi -- after I posted the description of my 4 cardiac arrests, a couple people asked for more details, like what early symptoms or warnings I had. So here goes. In the year before my cardiac arrests in July of 2018 I was awoken 4 times with breathing difficulties. I simply couldn't catch my breath and it was really scary. (I had high blood pressure and had been on hydrochlorothiazide fora few years.) But once I sat up on the side of the bed, my breathing returned to normal right away, and I was able to go right back to bed. (I sleep on my right side.) When those episodes happened, I figured it might be a small event of something like sleep apnea, etc, so I didn't really pay any attention to them. And never told my Doctor.

But about 3 AM that one Friday night I was woken up by a terrible pain in between my shoulder blades, and then the breathing problems. I sat up on the side of the bed, but this time it got better, but did not completely go away. I called my friend upstairs who is a cardiac ICU nurse to ask her to come down & take my pulse, etc -- but she said to call 911 immediately. Good thing I did,

About 15 minutes after arriving at the ER of a huge trauma hospital I suddenly couldn't breathe and bolted up in bed and called for help. I passed out then, and woke up later to find 9 people all around my bed, You can read my post where I describe everything that happened after that,

That pain in between the shoulder blades and the breathing were the ONLY warning signs I had. I never coughed, and I have never ever had chest pains. I guess I had AFIB before this, but nobody ever told me that I did, and I never noticed anything abnormal -- I was just being treated for the high blood pressure. In 2018 I was 70 years old, and about 240 lbs.

I was told at the ER that I had mild heart failure and AFIB. My heart failure has healed itself, and I supposedly still have AFIB, but I never notice it. So I have been blessed there, I am on 3 meds now for blood pressure and Bizoprolol 1,25 mg. And Xeralto of course. I no longer worry about my heart at all, my kidneys are in worse shape, <sigh<

[meadfoot]

Good heavens what a lot you have been through. Wishing you well for a better future. Stay safe.

[Ppiman]

You've had a tough time of it. Was it the heart attacks that affected your kidney function? You don't give your height, but weight and high blood pressure seem to accompany AF and heart problems more than anything else. Did they look at the physical cause of your problems?

Let's hope for better things.

Steve