Shock

[Whippets-2]

My husband has had a heart attack, no warning, no family history. It happened last Saturday. Admitted into CCU, one failed angiogram, abandoned due to his blood pressure falling. He is now home, awaiting a cardiac mri scan. It is very shocking for him , so much medication. Prior to this it was a challenge for him to take paracetamol. I feel so helpless. I don’t want to hover, and make him feel more anxious. But it’s hard. What’s the best path to follow?

[Hidden]

Hello

I am so sorry to hear your Husband had a heart attack and the shock which I can assure you if there is a family history or not we all feel and it takes some processing

The cocktail of medications is the standard procedure for us all and I was like your Husband you would struggle to get me to take a vitamin and then all of a sudden I had all these medications I had to take and we do have to take them as they are hopefully going to protect our hearts so somehow even those of us that never liked meds dutifully take this new cocktail of meds knowing these are really important

You should not feel useless this is something unexpected and both of you need time

Is your Husband anxious or is he doing alright sometimes partners can be more anxious than the person that has the heart attack

Talking I think is a good place to start and honesty , ask him , ask him how he feels , let him know you want to do all you can to support him but afraid you might make matters worse so could he tell you what he needs and when and you are there for him

Both of you if you have family and friends might find it easier to talk with them about how you are feeling as they are not as emotionally involved , keeping in contact with our family and friends can be a huge help

You both will get through this it just takes time but keep that communication open between you both

I hope he gets the tests done he needs quickly to get to the bottom of why he had his heart attack and that could help you both to feel more settled

If you have time please try and update us and let us know how you are both doing x

[080311]

Hello Whippets-2

Welcome to the forum, it’s not somewhere you would choose to join but somewhere you can come to ask questions and get some support.

Firstly, when we have a heart issue, it’s as if the ground as opened up under our feet, the feeling of this can’t be happening but oh my goodness it is.

You need to be your husbands cheerleader, shoulder to lean on and everything in between. He as started a journey to getting back to some normality, having his scan done and finding out what treatment he will need.

It’s a scary time for you both and your family, but you will get there. I say when we have heart problems the life we knew flies out of the window and this new life flies in. We have a new diet to follow medication to take Doctors/Cardiologist appointments to attend. But after a while it becomes the new norm!

Stay strong for your husband but remember to take time for yourself. You are both members of the Hearties family and we are all here to help where we can.

Best wishes Pauline

[Jako999]

I’m relatively new to all this but pretty much the same about 13 weeks ago 2 heart attack and a quadruple heart bypass massive shock. It’s going to take a long time to get over it all but the main thing is he made it he’s alive and that a good start point the meds are there to keep it that way, his body will soon stabilise and he will be able to get the angio done. Use the gtn if he gets chest pains but remember to sit down and call999 if required. It’s really hard to deal with mentally I now have a councillor and some happy meds tell him we all feel like he does it’s totally normal we have just dodged being dead and that is so hard to deal with he needs to talk to people even if it’s only on here. I was a normal fully healthy 55 year old man 4 months ago now I’m in lots of meds and scared to do a lot of things and just burst in to tears. Thierry is a lot of help on here take it and good luck

[Heyjude31]

Hello, I am so very sorry to hear about your husbands heart attack. There is not a lot I can add to what other hearties have already said. I am 11 months post heart bypass x4. Please reach out to us here as much as you wish to, we will try and offer any support we can knowing that we are not medically qualified. It may be a long slow journey ahead, it is tremendously traumatic I think for both the patient and partner. However you will get there, it will just take time. The physical recovery is sometimes easier than the psychological impact, so please don’t be afraid to ask for help. The medication is very important naturally and can take a while to get your head around,

Take good care, never be afraid to ask for help, there may be loads of questions which might be an idea to write down with so much going on. You will get there, be kind to yourselves, Judi

[LiamHam]

So sorry to hear about your husbands situation. I myself had a HA a month ago out of blue, very fit/ strong 51yo. My wife was a star, she kept me together and positive and couldn’t have done it without her.

Be positive and strong as they can do wonders these days and follow all advice given from the medical teams. Show him that there is a path back to a normal ish life. Maybe a few pills and lifestyle changes but no reason you both can’t have a full and long life with this.

Be firm but positive, you can make such a difference.

Good luck 🙂

[devonian186]

Lets remember James Lovelock had a heart attack at 55 and lived to 105 and had a great career. Also Hunter Davies had a triple bypass three year ago at 84 and recently bought a new house on the IOW.

[Writerman]

Like a number of others I have recently been through the same 'mill' that your husband is going through. I had a heart attack on June 4 and am now ten weeks past my triple by pass, aortic valve replacement and insertion of a pacemaker.

The cocktail of drugs you refer to are standard for those of that have heart problems.I was just like your hubby, I wouldn't take any pills I didn't have to and now I am on a whole lot of them.

It is a traumatic experience, not least for our other halves who have to shoulder the extra burden for a while. For my part I am steadily improving and start cardiac rehab next week. NHS have been superb and I am extremely lucky to live just 25 minutes from The Royal Papworth heart hospital here in Cambridge.

I have had to be positive about the future for both of us and I have every intention of resuming a normal life as soon as I can. Maintain a positive outlook if you can and come back here if anything or everything is worrying you.

[Zbignieva]

Hi,

Heart disease often comes out of the blue, it is amazing how such a serious disease can often have no symptoms…..

Medicine has come a long way in the care of cardiac patients, and there are a lot of us.

I would write a list of all the questions that you have and take it to one of your local BNF support groups, the cardiac rehab nurses in attendance are invaluable and very well informed.

You will get through this.

[reidmar]

Sorry to read of your news unfortunately like a lot of us on here it does come out of the blue and a total shock. The positive thing is he's still around and on their radar for action to make things better. I know my own wife went through a hell of a time with my own and I maybe didn't help matters with claming up and saying little. Looking back the saying "it's good to talk" means so much. I can only maybe suggest that you make him aware that you're there for him should he want to talk through anything. (if not with you then maybe a close friend) - don't feel left out of its a friend as it's most likely that he doesn't wish to worry you, even though it will normally be the case that you're worried. If you've a close friend that you can talk to that'll also help you to off load from your mind.

Wishing best wishes for both of you and take care.