Good morning everyone. Finally getting to see Cardiologist on tuesday after my referral for the surgery was overlooked. I was in hospital again two days ago, basically sitting at home, felt nausea kick in and my resting heart rate went up to 168bpm and blood pressure 153/102 😒 . Usual scenario in A & E, ecg good, bloods good and "palpitations werent a major concern" I was bewildered, surely a resting heart rate of 168 is a little more than palpitations or anxiety ? They did however spot that a previously repaired hernia had recurred and could possibly explain my chest pains and nausea so im having that looked into with my GP. Along with meds side effects, this stomach thing I really feel like a ticking time bomb. I dread going to bed in case i dont wake up, i think the stillness makes me hyper aware of bodily functions. When I do wake up its usually to chest pains or the feeling of dread we all know accompanied with a high blood pressure reading which is exhausting. Im trying to stay positive, im 44 with a wife and 4 kids and trying to interact with day to day things always results in feeling crappy, dizzy and that "somethings not right" feeling. The strangest part is that i can go out for a brisk walk for miles and dont get any symptoms, even with 3 blocked vessels. Apart from 12 hour daily walks im at a loss. Im sorry for the lengthy doom and gloom post, I try to hide this overwhelming fear from my wife, just wandering if anyone else has these fears ? I know i should be happy that each trip to A & E results in good ecg, bloods etc, i eat super healthy, dropped my cholesterol from 6.7 to 3.6, weight from 14st 7 to 12st 12 *bmi from 28.9 to 25.1) but i generally feel like im fading away
Update on CABG: Good morning everyone... - British Heart Fou...
Update on CABG
Hi Stevie335
We’ve all been there, experiencing doom and gloom at some point so you’re not alone in this. I still feel like this some days and I’m sorry you’re feeling like this.
I don’t have much advice to offer but in regards to your symptoms, apart from the hernia being a possible cause, you may find that after the CABG your symptoms have resolved.
Do you have a surgery date yet?
All the best.
Tos
Thank you for your reply. No date yet, was supposed to be referred in April but it got overlooked, I complained and they got me an appointment with the senior cardiologist for this tuesday coming so fingers crossed I can get some answers to put my mind at rest.
Is this the first time you’ve experienced palpitations? They can be normal in most instances. I have previously, and still do sometimes, suffer with palpitations. If they are not frequent, I wouldn’t think they are bothersome.
Usually my paplitations feel like a slight flutter or a firm heart beat once or twice, never had the elevated pulse rate, it read on my loop recorder of between 160 and 170bpm for approx 5 mins
An elevated heart rate like that for 5 minutes can be scary. Hydration is key in this weather, are you drinking enough?
I hope you get to the bottom of it at your appointment next week.
I've had palpitations as you describe - a firm beat or a flutter since my early 20s, 45 years ago. Had HA end 2019 (family history, so knew it was out to get me), and in the aftermath several connected short hospitalisations probably to do with myocardial remodelling and drug tolerance issues. One of these involved very high blood pressure of 210/140 and 160bpm along with a severe headache. Medics were nonchalant as you describe. I do wonder if they genuinely don't believe it's an issue, they don't care, or perhaps they are trying to calm the patient with reassuring words. The jury is still out. A&E doctor said "Im not really concerned about your blood pressure level." Exasperated, I replied, "Well I wouldn't be concerned either if it was you that had it. But seeing as it's me I am rather concerned." Had CABG in May 21. Recovery was a long climb, but I do seem to have levelled off into a stable condition now with a lot less problems.
I spoke to a doctor in A&E a few days ago and she told me that i neednt worry about blood pressure readings between 130 and 160 theyre common, my question was " then why, with an average reading around 117 was i put on blood pressure meds ? " I have my pre op tomorrow, believe it or not, apart from angiogram this is the first time ive even spoke to a cardiologist face to face, ive got my list of questions ready 🤣. Docs keep telling me that because of my age (44) the recovery wont be that bad, kind of get the feeling they just wanna use me to improve their statistics 🤣
Hello 
I had 3 heart attacks and a triple Bypass and still have the same fears you describe for some it can be hard to move on but when you have seen the Consultant and got some answers then I think things will start to improve it is all this not quite knowing that can get to some more and rightly so
It is good you can do your walks and not get any symptoms and I would keep that up the best you can as it is helping you heart to keep pumping round
Do not say sorry about what you feel is a doom and gloom post this Community is here for that si we can share with others the good as well as the not so good
I understand you do not want to burden you wife but without burdening my Husband it would have been so much harder I can imagine she would be a great support and want to help you
Let us know how you get on x
Thanks for your ever kind words, im just a bit old fashioned, im supposed to be the strong one, she is amazing, its just a pride thing i think, I dont like her to know my fear etc, although, she knows when the time comes how fearful i am about the urine catheter being inserted 🤣🤣. How has your recovery been ?
The strongest and bravest thing anyone can do is to be honest with our nearest and dearest about what is going on and how we are feeling and ask for help if we need it.Giving people simple information and helping them understand by explaining in a "matter of fact" , non scary way what happens when we are having an episode , or how they can best help when we have symptoms is the most considerate thing to do for people too.
When they don't know what's going on or what to do they worry more , quite often imagining things far worse than the things that are going on. They quietly stress inside about how to cope but don't want to tell you because they don't want you to worry more,
It becomes a big , fat vicious circle of silence that does nobody any good.
Explaining things, especially how to help in an emergency , or what they need to communicate for you if you go to hospital makes life feel a lot easier for all , and the reduction in stress reduces the symptoms too.
If our loved ones know we are trying to cope with feeling anxious if we go quiet , get a bit irritated or go for a lie down they aren't going to panic that we are getting an episode . They are also less likely to react with harsh words and give us a hug instead when we are a bit rude which also helps us to control our stress.
It sounds like the heat is causing you an increase in symptoms and that you could also be suffering from a bit of autonomic nervous system dysfunction , which can be why when you walk for sometime your heart rate is stable , but when you change position or move up and down quite quickly your circulation is finding it hard to catch up and get the blood to the places it needs to go so your heart beats faster to try and compensate for that.
Both the hernia and the heart treatment can cause these symptoms as well as poor temperature control, unusual sleep patterns , dizziness , fatigue and numbness or pins and needles in your hands and feet.
Try to move slower from one position to another, like sitting to standing , and vice versa, especially if you've been in one place for some time. Have a cool drink of water quite quickly before getting up from bed or a chair, wait as you stand with a few deep breaths and another drink of water before you walk off. Keep water with you all the time. Don't turn your head too quickly. Try doing some deep relaxing breathing in bed for a few minutes before getting up. Enjoy the walks , the oxygen will do you good.
You might want to check your salt levels by asking the GP to test your sodium. Potassium and Magnesium , they can go out of balance in hot weather, as you don't just lose water when you sweat but salts too and that can increase symptoms like palpitations and heart rate. You may find you need a supplement or electrolytes but having the blood test first is advisable in our situations m rather than just taking them.
Thank you, im going to have a good sit and chat with my wife tonight and bear all I think, you make so much sense in what you say and i truly appreciate it. Thank you
Don't worry about the catheter going in. When I had my triple bypass last year the catheter didn't get put in until I was asleep. Knew nothing about it.
Good Luck hope everything goes alright for you, I also have a hiatus hernia I get more chest pains now and had 2 stents in 2017 fine for 3 years but getting chest pains 3 years now on and off many when resting fine when I exercise
Thanks Gaz, Im in for a scan on the hernia next week, got the letter through yesterday so fingers crossed
Gaz can I ask what the chest pain feels like!
I’ve been referred to gastrio by cardio but my pain is left shoulder back and upper left chest onto arm !
Thats the same here, more tingling in the back and some tenderness at the tip of my sternum
Hi I have chest pains on right hand side , top of chest , left side and middle just to the left they are mostly dull pains 1/5 pains put sometimes they are sharp pains, The pains only last about 5 sec then go, I have a hiatus hernia and coronary artery disease two stents in in 2017
firstly sorry to hear how your feeling but your not alone mate.
40 year old with 3 kids here mate !
A few things you said there I can relate too !
The ‘going to bed thing’ I am with you on that ! I struggle to get to sleep and often wake in the night in a cold sweat, pins and needles in arm and racing heart ( we’ll heart rate is like 90 - but I have a resting of 43 so nearly doubles)
I have started using the CALM app and put that on to go to sleep seems to take away the laying there feeling every twinge !!
I get a lot of random pains, like you I can go for a walk or do something strenuous with no pain yet have pain when say resting !
I too have had significant weight loss 14’10 to 13st and cholesterol drop!
I feel like I am doing everything I can but now need the drs to do there bit
Thanks for the replyIts crap aint it ? Doing all the right things, best shape ive ever been in, mentally want to do all the things we should be doing then bang, reality strikes 😒
yes absolutely, I am so desperate to get back to exercising yet I am getting pains randomly, not with exertion per say but more afterwards when start to rest and doesn’t seem to be any sense too it !
I I’ve asked the question and been told basically it’s not ‘typical angina pain’ but if I have pain to go to A&E.. I said what am I supposed to do just push through the pain !!! But I can’t carry on like this ! I want to go back to work I want to be doing things with kids but then I get pain and then what … A&E .
I almost just want to crack on and then tell them I told you so when I get taken to hospital !!
Im in A & E now, was on the way out with my family as its my boys 7th birthday, got chest pains and the usual wierd sensations so i thought id better get checked over, been here 4hours and no doctor yet, its so frustrating, i know ill get sent home after around 7 hours with the final warning "any chest pains come back to A & E 🤣
Hope you get checked out properly. A&E is never fun, I was taken in around 9:15pm on Thursday and whilst I was straight in to RAT bay and tests started there was still loads of waiting about for results of blood tests. Luckily I was on a trolley as soon I got there so far more comfortable than a chair in the waiting room. Finally got home Friday tea time after loads of tests and lots of waiting around.Now on day 2 of increased isosorbide mononitrate and with a banging headache.
All the best and hope all ok eventually.
So sorry to hear how your struggling my husband was similar to you getting told nothing wrong when obviously there was. He was only 47 when he had his first heart attack and it was so lucky we were near the hospital at the time so I drove him straight there with him trying to get air and his head out of the window of the car. At the hospital I called some paramedics over who took him straight away thank goodness and he got given the clot busting drug which saved his life. He has since had one lot of stents and recently had to be re-stented as he is now 60 years old and they had blocked again. We actually went private initially to see someone as his referral waiting time although urgent was 18 months. Hope you get somewhere this Tuesday. I know exactly how scary it all is and best of luck getting it sorted.
Thank you, yeh the waiting is awful but im "counting the sleeps" to see my consultant, atm i realy think im more struggling mentally than physically so hoping speaking to them will help settle things.
Hi Stevie,
I'm really sorry to hear that you have been put into limbo as a result of your referral being overlooked. That must make the waiting doubly difficult, annoying and stressful. I was very fortunate in that the doctor that dealt with my heart attack (two stents), actually knew the surgeon he referred me to and I had a consultation just a month after my heart atrack. Thereafter everything went smoothly, the admin was brilliant and I knew the how, when and where at all times, even when my op was postponed twice. It was 10 months after the initial consultation that I had the surgery. The system can work, so I really hope it does for you after your consultation on Tuesday.
I hope that you get some comfort from relating to what others have said about their experiences. I must admit to being quite relaxed about the situation for two reasons. Firstly I had a temporary "fix" with the stents and I was back walking the hills as I love to do. Secondly my wife had what I would call a "watching brief" and was keeping tabs on everything. I would say that she was much more stressed than I was, but she needed to be involved and however your wife might react, I would encourage you to share your feelings with her.
The other thing I would say is that staying positive certainly helps. Worrying about the op, especially with regards to the details does not help. I had a few concerns as the op date approached, but all my fears proved to be unfounded. I was certainly well looked after.
A bypass op is major surgery, but the surgeon and his team will be extremely professional and you will be in good hands. Recovery takes time. The one thing that I was not prepared for was how much it took out of me physically. I was quite fit before the op, even walking in the Cheviots a few days beforehand, but afterwards I wasn't able to get up any path with much of a gradient. It slowly got better and at six months post op I was walking with my friend in the Southern Uplands in Scotland.
So look to the future! With my very best wishes for Tuesday and beyond,
Gerald
Thanks Gerald, I want to confirm with the consultant that this surgery is in my best interests as on my discharge notes it was stated that "patient expressed preference for cabg" in honesty with 10mg Diazepam in my system I cannot remember this
My wife was present with me at all consultations to check I wasn't agreeing to anything under duress. Although the alternative for me was to have further stents, a bypass was recommended as it would potentially give me greater time before further intervention was required. I went with the recommendation and my wife agreed with this. I can honestly say 5 years on I still think it was the right decision.
Im so pleased you are doing well, my wife is coming with me tomorrow too as I kind of play things down but Ive come to the decision that im just going to go for it. My only concern is the recovery, our lives are very busy and I am worried that 6 months recovery for me is going to put a massive burden on my wifes shoulders. I think sub consciously thats why ive lost the weight, dropped the cholesterol etc becauwe i want to go in there as healthy as i can to aid in recovery. Just the head i need to get in the zone now. Thanks for the reply.
Well, generally the fitter you are pre-op, the quicker you will bounce back post-op. It won't be easy at first, but you will see improvements day by day. I keep a comprehensive heath file and see I managed a slow 0.8 mile one week after my op. By two weeks it was 2 miles non-stop. Then progress slowed up for a bit, but at 5 weeks I managed 4.4 miles in 69 minutes non-stop. Of course I couldn't carry a backpack until 13 weeks as the sternum takes that long to heal, but once I reached that stage I was able to climb some small hills carrying a load and it progressed bit by bit from there. I'm now 71 and still climb 3000 foot mountains up in Scotland. Exactly when I will hang up my boots... well who knows. What is humbling is that there are many on this forum that are much younger than I am and are unable to do even a small percentage of what I do. I certainly feel blessed.
To be fair id have struggled to do 3000 foot climb before diagnosis 🤣 My head is getting into the zone now just a bit apprehensive of the pain during recovery but also the prospect of a fresh start is exciting.
Well we are all different. I will never run any real distance. I did manage to train for a 10k in my 30s, but I've never enjoyed running. A slow-ish bimble up a mountain carrying a decent backpack is enough for me. I'm definitely a tortoise. 😀
As for pain, well I've never had any pain from the bypass itself. My sternum was a bit sore for a while and the sites where they harvested the donor vessels (leg and arm) have some nerve damage and occasionally ache - an application of Ibuprofen gel sorts them out. I reckon I have more arthritis related aches than anything else, but at my age that's normal.
Thanks for sharing your journey, the positives are definitely starting to out weigh the negatives. Ive got my pre op meeting tomorrow so i will update then, thanks again for your help
Hi Stevie,Sometimes things are difficult to detect if all the usual tests come back normal!! Doctors tend to send you home if nothing shows up as they are under staffed and just too tired to look in to anything else!! The thing is though, we know our own bodies don't we? and we know when something just isn't right!! So the chest pains you feel are real and not imagined!! The only way the doctors know something is wrong with your heart is by blood tests showing elevated troponin levels and cardio enzymes being in your blood stream. If this hadn't shown up with you then it is likely it may not be your heart? I know that stress and anxiety can cause nausea, dizziness and chest pain too. At night when it's quiet you are more aware of any sensation in your chest area as you are not relaxed and are almost looking for it!! I know because I've experienced all of this. It's a horrible thing and can be quite debilitating. It's mind over matter and takes strength of character to train your mind to think of something else and just not go there!!! It takes time to do that!! Listening to calming music or relaxation apps helped me. I really hope you manage to get to the bottom of what is going on one way or another and that you find peace so that you can start enjoying your life again. Take care
Thank you, its like a well rehearsed play now when I go to Hospital, just feel like im wasting peoples time. Ive prepareda list of questions for the consultant on tuesday so hopefully ill get some answers
Hello and good morning Steve, don’t worry. There’s nothing to worry about only worrying. I had a triple heart bypass 18 months ago. I was one week into being 50 years old. I’d suffered with chest pain and inflammation for the nine months prior to surgery. An heart attack instigated immediate surgery. Along with the intermittent chest pain, chronic reflux and inflammation (generalised to the feet) all tests were always good and clear, I was fit not over weight and always busy. All blood tests only highlighting inflammation. I was or had been told for the nine months that the pain was associated with the reflux and I was prescribed antacids. Anyway - I had the heart attack. I’d been doing yoga every day for months eating supper healthy (everything made from scratch) nothing improved with the chest pain. The problem was unidentified until surgery. It was immediately resolved. I enjoyed the experience. The heart attack was a blessing. The surgery was and is obviously life changing. It is wonderful. After a few months strength returns to the legs and the body and the chest heals and you’re off!!! Don’t fear. I can run, walk hills, possibly do anything and more post surgery. See out, see your future and look forward. The experience of CABG is a good one for me and for most and will if you allow it - give you a second life, one in which you might be more aware of diet and happy with the the odd treat! But daily you’ll be able. Very able if you want to be. There’s days now, I forget I had surgery and went through all of what that was and the remember and smile and laugh even sometimes. It’s brilliant. Don’t worry you have to see beyond today to tomorrow and a positive blue sky horizon. You’ll get there but don’t live in your head. Let yourself free and believe what I’m saying - everything will be ok and fine and you will be laughing and living and loving every minute in everything you go on to do. Don’t be static - and have faith. You’ll be ok. Believe in this. Believe in your future and let go of the doubt. You are your own tomorrow now!
Shigg, thank you for this, im trying everyday to be more optimistic about the surgery and your reply has definitely helped, i want to feel better and get rid of these fears then i get they guy whos doing my blood pressure and observations yesterday telling me the pain when you come round and afterwards is the worst ever, thanks for that mate 🤣. Ive made myself a promise to listen to the teams instructions fully and go into this with a positive mind set, you have achieved great things and if i can come out the other end even half where youve got to ill be a happy man. Thank you
Nothing new there Steve. All I can offer is you WILL feel a difference after surgery (give it some time) and your outlook on life will improve.
Thanks Toni, today has probably been the best one in ages, think my head is settling a bit now
Certainly be aware of your mental health surrounding all this Steve. A knock to our perceived mortality understandably affects us. You wont be able to lift anything as heavy as a kettle for a bit after surgery, but we're all different and want to . I guarantee that WELL within six months you'll be carrying the lightest shopping bag out of Sainsbury's
I forgot to say, Shigg put it in a nutshell
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