On 1st April this year, I started feeling like I was getting heart burn or indigestion. Didn't think much of it. Popped to the shop for a couple of things for my wife, who had pulled her back. When I got back, it felt much worse. I took her things upstairs to her and took some gaviscon, for the heart burn. The pain was rapidly getting worse to the point that I couldn't stand up any more and dropped to my knees. Hilariously, my wife looked at me and said, "Don't be so dramatic".
Within 2 minutes of that we rang for an ambulance only to be told it could take up to 2 hours. We decided to go by car instead. Got into town and about 5 minutes away from the hospital, only to get caught up in a traffic jam. I noticed a police car coming towards us and started waving frantically at, at the same time my wife jumped out the car and explained what we thought was happening. They bundled me in there car and blue lighted me to a&e.
I was taken straight to resus Bay, hooked up to ecg, and was told, yes, you are having a heart attack. They immediately decided to blue light me to a local-ish hospital with a specialist heart unit. I went straight from the ambulance into the cath lab/OR where I had 2 stents fitted via Angioplasty. I was then taken to a recovery room.
This whole process probably took less than 2 hours to complete from one hospital to the other and being fixed.
I am now on day 2 of being back at home.
The problem I feel I'm having now is it all happened so quickly I haven't really had chance for it to sink in. I still can't believe it actually happened.
Don't get me wrong, I'm over the moon with the excellent and very rapid treatment that I got, but I'm worried that I haven't got particularly upset about it yet and I'm afraid that when it does hit me it's going to knock me sideways.
Anyway, long story over. I look forward to being able to share advice etc as time goes on and I learn to deal with the bombshell that has just upturned the lives of me and my family.
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Commbel
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A warm welcome to you, I hope that you find all the support and information you are after.
Ask the questions or just express yourself here and we will do our very best to help guide you along your journey.
Wam ! Bam ! Thank you Mam !
Yes that's how this heart thing seems to work and hit the bulk of us,
We are pushed along at breath neck speed, they do what they need to do and flood us with a hundred and one questions, explanations and drugs, then push us out home wondering what the hell has just happened.
Slowly you will progress though stages that almost mirror bereavement and the quite times are the worst as your mind slowly ticks over and you begin to understand just how fragile and wonderful this life really is.
And that's not being dramatic { that line of yours via your wife made me smile }
I would like to tell you that the next part will be easy for you, but I don't know you yet and to be honest it isn't for many of us.
And the many of us is the secret , there are many of us, you are not alone, but believe me you will think it now and then.
Talk talk talk,
Talk to your wife, Talk to your Drs, Talk to your heart team, find out as much or as little as you want to about your diagnosis { we are always here }
Small steps, time will pass, you will get though this, to live this life is worth a bit of effort on all our parts.
When I had my most recent heart attack I too also thought I had ingestion and took gaviscon, I think they do a good profit out of us hearties.
I know it's a shock and will take a while, but definitely do Cardic Rehab when it's offered, and post on here we'll all help if we can
V x
Hello
What a journey you had there you could not have written it and thank goodness that police car was there to help get you there quicker
You will no doubt go through all kinds of thoughts and emotions as the after shock hits you and none will be wrong that others have felt or thought to but just keep coming on and talking and we will do our best to support you if you need it
I imagine at some stage the Rehab Nurses will invite you along to Rehab Classes and when they do I would accept as they will benefit you but for now take your time be kind to yourself and talk don't hold anything in x
Thank you all for your replies. I hope you're doing OK.
Today I'm having one of the not so good days, of which I'm sure there will be many, but it's nice to realise that you're not alone and that there's always someone to talk too. My wife and kids have been a great help. Especially given that my wife and stepdaughter are quiting smoking with me (could be interesting lol).
I will definitely be returning here on what I would imagine will be a regular basis.
Aw welcome to the forum and sorry to hear about your heart attack experience but so glad that you was able to be seen so quickly and thank goodness there was a police car that drove you there! 🚨👮♂️I've never experienced one but I can imagine it will knock you sideways once you have time for it sink in. Take care and wish you all the best with your recovery!
Hi and welcome, I had my heart attack a few months ago and also initially thought it was indigestion or reflux.The whole thing with A&E, angiogram etc went fast and time seemed to just go by and before I knew it I was home too, with a pile of medications I'd never had before.
I felt ok at first, but I think my emotions were just temporarily switched off because it was too much of a shock to process. My physical health improved but the emotional side went downhill instead, so that's where I am at the moment. Taking it one day at a time.
Everyone's journey is individual, but just remember there's no right or wrong way to feel and we're all here to answer any question, there's no silly questions here!
Welcome to the group and thank you for sharing your experience.
I speak for myself but am sure that many others who have had a similar experience also share your sentiments. It comes as a 'bolt from the blue' for so many people and the psychological impact is potentially underestimated.
I have no doubt you'll find this group will help to share your thoughts and feelings with others in a similar situation.
Personally, I went through disbelief followed by denial but eventually came to terms with what happened to me and then came acceptance and gratitude that it happened in the way that it did so that I could receive treatment before something more serious occurred.
It's a much overused term but I do think 'journey' is appropriate and yours may well be different. There is support, notably cardiac rehabilitation, which will help with the physical side but will also help to reassure.
Hi A similar story to mine. I thought I had heartburn too. I rang my son who lives 10 mins away from me and said I felt strange and had tingling feeling in my chest and jaw. He came round and gave me an aspirin, saying it won't do any harm. He was right the docs were very pleased he did that. He Rang 999 and we were lucky the ambulance team were round the corner buying sandwiches at the garage. ECG showed I was having a STEMI heart attack. Blue lighted to hospital cardiac in 20 mins and in cath lab for 25 mins stent inserted. Yes, I know what you mean it feels like a bad dream. Its a real shock. Mine was 7 months ago. Be positive and take all the good advice offered by the NHS.. Sometimes the meds need adjusting if you get side effects but you could be lucky and get none. As previously advised do the cardiac rehab as soon as recommended. It is hard at first but its the best way to repair your heart muscle and get your confidence back. If you have any depressive or anxious thoughts use talking therapies before they fester. Most of all take care of yourself. Wishing you well. x
Hi Commbel,You've had a huge shock and it will take a wee while for everything to sink in. I'm so glad that you were seen quickly and that your hospital got you stented quickly. Its time for you to rest now
Your heart needs to recover from being interfered with, and you need to recover both physically and emotionally. I'm not sure where you had this done, but most hospitals offer support from a cardio rehab team. If so, then phone them if you need to talk/ have any concerns or questions. I had my first heart attack in 2021 and was stented, then another one in 2022 and was stented, then another one on 5th January this year where I ended up having a double heart bypass. I am recovering really well at home. Having my first and subsequent heart attacks then this operation had changed my life forever. I no longer smoke or touch alcohol and I try to eat as healthy as I can. Life is very precious and worth living . I wish you all the luck in the world. If you can, talk to your wife, don't bottle up your feelings! talking really does help if you are able to do it.
anything out of the ordinary seems surreal! in 2021 my sister (84) and OH visited from the US, she had been in hospital in Memphis a month before for an ablation but she was given 2 different lots of sedative as she was anxious, so was completely out of it to the extent they couldn't do the job. 10 days later (!) they tried again but it didn't work. She was discharged with 'temporary' oxygen, which she then decided was the solution, managed to get a cert. to fly (!) and arrived complete with mobile oxygen gadget. She went downhill whilst here, was with us a week getting worse, was hospitalised on the Monday and died in stoke Mandeville on the Friday! Repatriated back to the States for burial. It all happened in sort of slow motion, like treacle, the hospital wanting her notes from Memphis, there isn't ANY contact between GP and hospital but the US hospitals do not use email only FAX!!! -who has a working fax machine here at home any more- the 6 hour time difference made things tough too. It all seemed surreal, and even now I don't really know how we all got through it but we did! She wanted to come 'home' for the last time, so she got her wish!
Hi Commbel This is a v helpful forum - lots of people on here (of which I am not one), who are very experienced in "matters of the heart." Enjoy the hoped for warm summer months ahead of us and best of luck with your recovery. x
Welcome and just to say after my HA and CA and stay in hospital for one month in the heart transplant ward (I didn't need a transplant but it was a possibility), I came home. That evening my son (25 at the time, I was 55) was playing the piano and singing "Have I told you lately". I just burst into tears and sobbed uncontrollably for some time. I couldn't understand it then but obviously all my bottled up emotions came out from the trauma of all I'd been through. I did feel better afterwards. I know you won't be surprised if it hits you at some point maybe in some other way. Talking, walking (when you feel recovered), eating well, keeping positive and giving up smoking are certainly all beneficial to you on your road to recovery. All the best.
Hi - wow not surprised your heads whirling- I had a HA just over a year ago - no stents but veins ballooned - came out and felt fantastic - better than before I had it - what I will say is take it easy for a couple of weeks and then build up by walking and increasing the time - nothing too strenuous but enough to get your heart going and listen to how you’re feeling - stop if you don’t feel right- year on for me and as far as this is concerned it’s all good - I also have aFib and working to get that resolved but no longer feel like I’m in my last inning - best of luck to you for a quick full recovery and a good life most definitely goes on
Welcome to the group, and thank you for sharing your journey, and what a journey it’s been. I hope you get all the support you need in this group and medically.
An incredible story, indeed take your time to let everything sink in. Once your heart settles down to an easier life (no exertions needed to push blood past blockages) you should feel a lot stronger, if you don't already. But be assured, you have purpose ahead of you ( this is nothing to worry about!). Think about the circumstances, if you hadn't been caught up in traffic you wouldn't have seen the police car and you would have probably driven to A&E and then have to wait however long for triage to assess you, plus you would have had to walk further no doubt to get into A&E. That extra time could have made a difference to the outcome and not a positive one. I believe the way everything fell into place to allow you to be treated so quickly was no accident, forgive me for preaching but I see the hand of God at work in the precision timing that cut through red tape and traffic to get you speedy and effective treatment before real damage was done.
Thank you for the messages. Yesterday was a bad one, mood wise. Today has been better. I'm so pleased I found this little hub of kindness. I apologise for not replying to each message, but I will endeaver to get better at that. I'm not brilliant at getting thoughts out at the moment but reading all the supportive messages has been brilliant, so thank you all.
Hello and Welcome to the club no one wanted to join. But I can’t add anything more than all the wise and experienced others have already told you. Except to reiterate if you can get a cardiac rehab course go on it. Believe me it will help you adjust and answer in person a lot of those questions you will have in the next few months. Take care and let us know how you get on. We are happy to celebrate your goods days and empathise your bad days with you.
Welcome to the club no one wants to join and then again no one wants to leave this online club as it is friendship and advice from lived experiences is second to none
I was at the this didn’t happen to me stage several weeks ago and 4 months later still have days like that where I’m in disbelief
Take each day as it comes takes a while to process everything and then some
Best advice accept cardio rehab when offered, don’t push yourself too hard too early especially if you are fatigued
Ask anything you like on here someone will have experienced it and will get back to you
Talk about how you feel no stiff upper lip nonsense
You had good and not so good days in life before your attack same applies there will be good not so good and just this is not happening days gradually the good days become more than the bad ones
If there is emotional support available where you are, take it, the emotional recovery and adjustment is as important as the physical
Look forward to hearing your progress on your journey, you will make it, the encouragement and support on this forum is warm and inspirational
Commbel, I just had two stents put in and am now home but experiencing indigestion. Several people have mentioned this. I have a cardio dr’s appt upcoming but this is making me very nervous and anxious.
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