3 years post HA ( aged 42) with 5 stents fitted

[David-75]

Just thought I would quickly write an update mainly for anybody unfortunate enough to have a reason to start using this forum ( which I mean in the nicest way- as it is a great place filled with some lovely and knowledgeable people). I had a HA 3 years ago and had 5 stents fitted. I was 42 and a young father who played sport and went to the gym regularly, but had smoked from 18-30, pushed myself in a stressful job for a number of years ; but probably more pertinently have the family history of heart issues.

So what does 3years later look like?- all is good really - I have dropped the competitive sport but still run a decent 5k most days and some weights and stretching on other days (without pushing it too hard- that’s the tricky bit for me!), still seems a bit unreal at times but I have almost accepted it now🙂.

Went through the ‘mourning’ stages and still have the very occasional off day - but generally in good mental and physical shape. How did I get here?- well time passing obviously helps!, but also talking to folk- some great people on here really helped in the early days to offer some support, perspective and experience as did talking to a counsellor and BHF nurses. I would advise talking to anyone outside of your immediate circle- those closest to you are going through it too and so you may naturally try and shield them from it, but you need to air your thoughts/emotions too; it’s a big deal!- probably worse for ‘youngsters’ like me too. Medications take some getting used to - but ok at the moment and hope to come off Bisoprolol soon.

I had a few false alarms after with anxiety initially but I am learning. I go to a cardiologist once a year to do a check up(privately) and stick to a pescatarian diet ,watching the saturated fat etc. For the long term I hope they will soon have a way of looking inside stents to do a checkup without invasive angiogram - (which I will have again at the ten year mark all being well). So, thanks to all that offered advice initially (you know who you are) and I hope you are all well too( happy to see many familiar names still posting). Also, if you are new to this and this strikes a chord - I am more than willing to chat and offer any support I can.

Ps. You will also get annoyed by how many people say “ooh , you almost gave me a heart attack” .. so irritating lol.

PPS. I would have titled this ‘the new normal’, but now Covid has taken that phrase. lol.

Keep strong; there is a lot of living to do. Best wishes and apologies for the long post!

[Hidden]

Excellent post, good to hear you are doing so well.

[Kristin1812 Heart Star]

Lovely post. So good to hear how well you are doing.

[Imin]

Lovely post. Your early days resonate so much with me and it’s so good to read you are doing well.

I am 46, mum of two beautiful daughters, wife of very caring husband and sister, Aunty and friend. I had a HA and two stents eight months ago after losing both my mum and dad to heart disease and watching my brother recover from HA and two stents when he was 38 and my sister living with angina...strong family history!

I have never smoked or drank alcohol, I’m not overweight and I lead an active life with exercise. On discharge I was told I have no modifiable risk factors so I felt a little out of control. If I had been told to stop smoking, cut out alcohol, lose weight or exercise more then I would have had something to control and act on - to be told to keep doing what you are doing to reduce risk just didn’t make sense to me as I’d had a HA doing what I was doing! I did enjoy cake and coffee with my friends but not everyday, usually for someone’s birthday and I enjoyed the occasional takeaway, biscuit and crisps...I miss crisps the most!

I had cut all ‘treats’ to a dangerous level - I lost weight I could not afford to lose because of a feeling of guilt that eating the odd cake, chocolate, biscuit or crisps had nearly lost my children their mum. I was so scared I would block my arteries further I was avoiding occasions with friends and family as I didn’t want them worrying about me refusing the cake and chocolates. My GP actually told me to try to have the odd treat as life is for enjoying and I was now deemed medically underweight. She told me my body needed some fat to absorb the vitamins and minerals I was eating in bucketloads!!!

I took it too far...I lived on fish, veg, fruit and whole grains. My cardiac nurse kept telling me to eat everything, including treats, in moderation. She told me this while picking a biscuit out of a tin the department had been given as a thank you gift! The trouble is no one has ever given a prescription for what moderation is! 😉

I have now actually enjoyed some birthday cake and even the odd chocolate. I’ve introduced cheese and chicken back into my diet and am getting good fats in with oily fish and eggs. I am back to a healthy weight and trying to get on top of my fears. Like most who visit this forum, my fear is born from not being able to see how my arteries are getting on. Like you said, I very much hope that there will be scan developed to see how our arteries and stents are getting on without being invasive. I just have to trust the meds and my diet and exercise are doing the trick and, in the words of my cardiologist, significantly reducing the risk of further HA’s and slowing future progression of heart disease.

Thanks again for your post. It’s very positive for those of us who are still struggling a little. I do look forward to enjoying all my days with my family and friends and am thankful for them all.

[David-75 in reply to Imin]

Hi Imin, thanks for your reply. Yes- that sounds pretty similar , but you of course have the added frustration of not having indulged in the usual known vices that contribute to this condition. We also sound similar in our initial over-response ; I lost too much too; it really did not take much effort either! I lost a bit of muscle straight away and have had to fight to get that back - but the diet change was over controlled initially and I had to adjust to ensure I was getting all the vitamins and minerals etc. I have the balance now and have relaxed a bit but I read lots initially and found lots of conflicting research, lots of books from American cardiologists mainly- but also found a lot of common denominators that mainly point to a plant based diet ; not actually too far from the med diet which is what BHF etc suggest anyway. So, like you again, I now just have the very occasional ‘treat’ but have a varied and tasty diet I think. The good thing is we live in this era- I work at a university where there is a substantial amount of ongoing research and the advancements in the last 40 years have been pretty amazing. My cardiologist stopped short of telling me about some research he was involved in as obviously confidential, but he is genuinely optimistic about future developments;

I think that was in relation to reviewing stents too ; so perhaps there is some improved imaging technology around the corner. I have no doubt that we will have moved on significantly in the next decade in treatment and prevention - this disease will be beaten. We do have some pretty smart drugs now- so I am hopeful that I can halt or severely slow this progression with the measures I will continue to take aided by the meds. I am pleased to hear that you also seem to have control now of what works for you- as you say, you have a life to live! ( and blessed by great support too by the sounds of things). I’m waffling on again, lol - lovely to hear from you and all the best!. Keep in touch.

[Imin in reply to David-75]

That sounds promising - some advancement in imaging would greatly help to alleviate some anxieties about what’s going on with the arteries as well as how the stents are holding up!

It’s good to read that others have gone through similar issues while recovering...it helps to make you feel normal! Friends and family were very concerned about my taking the diet and exercise regime too fat but we have now got to a point where I will indulge and they will no longer say “Go on, one won’t hurt”!

It’s been lovely chatting with you. Take care

[Loveheart123]

Hiya glad your doing ok ... was wondering about the smoking did you give up ... was it hard to and how did you .....

[David-75 in reply to Loveheart123]

Hi Carmen- thanks for that. Yes, gave up smoking when I was 30; i smoked about 10-15 a day , but could be more when I was out and socialising (which was a lot in my twenties I suppose!). I subscribed to the ‘breaking the routine and finding a new hand to mouth replacement’ method - Chuppa Chup lollies. Yep, looked silly - but took me 3 or 4 weeks to break the habit. 1 extra week to break the lolly addiction😁. Usually smoked the same each day - 1 with my coffee, 1 at the bus stop, 1 before going into work etc etc. So I just did different things - went to the gym in the morning before work sometimes, walked to work, brought lunch with me so I didn’t go out at lunch, stayed away from smoking mates for a while until I was strong enough. Pretty drastic- but it was only a few weeks. Also did the saving the money in a jar thing too. The cost of cigs these days - that would be a decent weekend break away if you smoke 20 a day!. Are you trying to quit at the moment?

[Loveheart123 in reply to David-75]

Yes ... I've got myself down to maybe five a day ... but if I run out I can go without .... as you say it's habit I feel I got to have them in the house ....

I will persevere though ...

[Handel]

That was a lovely post David 75. Really pleased you're doing well. xxx

[ben_morris]

Great post David-75 and it’s nice to read a successful recovery story. I am 4 weeks post HA and your story is an inspiration on my recovery process

Thanks

Ben

[David-75 in reply to ben_morris]

Cheers Ben, that’s why I posted again and it will be your turn to do the same in a few years time!. That’s how these forums work. There are folks on here that have lived with heart conditions for decades - and they surface now and again alongside a more regular crowd on this forum who kindly offer support through their own experience. So shout up if you have any queries, no matter how daft -It really helped me in those early stages that you are currently working through. Wishing you a speedy recovery mate. All the best. Let me know how you get on.

[Smerblue]

Thanks for sharing. I know what you mean about speaking to someone outside your circle. Apart from up to now I haven't. Had a HA on Feb 6 last year having a shower after boot camp. Same as you I was fit did marathons, 1/2s and my favourite 10ks. At 52 i ran my home 10 k In a PB I'm in hospital at the moment suffering from undiagnosed pain, tightness and palps. Never been one to worry too much but this whole experience has changed all that. A couple of nights ago I had had an episode that lasted an hour and a half of waves of pain. That night I wrote my loved ones letters just in case. I've been in hospital now for 5 days and the episodes are getting worse, however nothing shows up on ECGs. I had a echocardiogram after the latest episode but the specialists didn't tell me anything. The cardio nurse said the cardiologist will probably speak to me on her rounds tomorrow. Sorry to go on just got carried away. Keep keeping on.

[David-75 in reply to Smerblue]

I’m so sorry to hear you are having to go through that- knowing what it is and what is going to be done takes away a great deal of the stress; even if still not exactly a great place to be. I hope that the fact ECG is not recording anything is at least some positive. Assume bloods are coming back ok too? Yes, you sound on another level to me if you did marathons (only 1/2’s for me too much of a lightweight!). I wonder if it could be meds?. I am sure they will get to the bottom of it tomorrow. I think a few of us have written those letters, but we are still here ; keep strong mate and try your best to zone out for as long as you can. Let me know how you get on.

[Outforawalk]

Thanks David, I have a very similar story. 42, ex smoker and coming off a heart attack start of March and 4 stents fitted. Nice to know life goes on. Struggling a bit with an entirely healthy diet at the moment but have made significant improvements and will keep chipping away. All the best.

[David-75 in reply to Outforawalk]

Thanks outforawalk. Yes, definitely a life to be had. It was definitely nerve-racking for me for the first few months/year - baby stepping back to normal life ; first walk alone, building up exercise, first time shopping, first time alone with my daughter, first day back at work etc etc. The stents had to settle in, I had to calm the inner ‘red alert’ voices for every ache I felt (not many in retrospect- but heightened senses and focus at the time did not help). Some get there quicker of course. I felt vulnerable for the first time in my life, but that new perspective gained probably has served me quite well in reassessing priorities. I am in a fortunate position to many (who have other heart issues or other ailments/challenges). It sounds like you are coming along well though- I went too hard on the diet change I think and had to readjust; so probably better to go gradual to whatever works for you (in-line with the medical advice of course). I am sure you will get there- keep up the good work mate. All the best and let me know how you get on.