Friday the 13th

Last Friday morning, I woke up around 3:30 AM with chest pain wrapping around my back that lasted about 10 minutes. About 20 minutes later, the pain returned this time running to the arm and jaw.

Now, I had never missed a day from work due to illness my entire life and joked that my existence will lead to a medical journal article concluding that Red Bull and Marlboro Menthols taken in tandem are beneficial for human longevity. But, the nature and return of the chest pain, even through the pain was not overwhelming, caused me to become a little concerned that my symptoms might be compatible with a heart attack. However, I also inherited a Croatian personality trait, manifested by my late parents and grandparents, that one should avoid seeking the services of a doctor for a medical problem until one either hears the fluttering of angel wings or the sound of charcoal being fired up. Given the profession I chose for a living, I figured the signification of a big time medical problem would more likely be the sound of briquets hissing rather than fluttering wings. But, the only nighttime sounds I could hear were Anne's and Lloyd's snoring. Both have the capacity to sleep soundly even if the bedroom were being ransacked by Mongol tribesmen.

So...what to do...what to do???


My brilliant solution? I got out of bed, grabbed the laptop, and googled---What are the symptoms of a heart attack?

Thanks God for my Michigan education :roll:

My late night web research caused me to conclude that since I was neither sweating nor feeling faint or nauseous, it was unlikely that I was having a heart attack

The pain subsided and I fell back to sleep.

When I woke up, I felt drained and tense all day. After taking Lloyd to the dog park at 5, Anne and I concluded that I might be suffering from some sort of hypertensive episode and I drove myself to the ER.

In discussing my symptoms with the ER doc, he initially shared my thought that my problems were likely not a heart attack. But the timing of the symptoms concerned him. After doing a lab work up, he came back to my bed with a sheepish grin and told me that the enzyme studies confirmed that I had suffered a heart attack. And off to the ICU I went.

A heart cath done on Saturday morning revealed total blockage of a branch of the circumflex artery so the blockage was stented during this procedure.

I was discharged home late Monday and am now on a regimen of meds to address the typical medical issues associated with coronary artery disease and provided a list of contraindicated activities. I bid a sad farewell to the Butt Hutt, grilled in butter Serbian pork sausages, Wisconsin cheese curds, and BAPP bets with TOK. (God, I hope someone in Texas invents a heart smart pecan pie as tasty as the buttery crusted BAPP.)

Moral of this Story: If you wake up in the middle of the night with chest pain, set aside the stupid urge to try and gut out the pain. Avoid the crazy temptation to play Internet Cardiologist at 3 AM. Wake up the wife and go to the doctor. Had I done that, I might have have lessened the damage done to my heart muscle by foregoing treatment until hours after the infarct.

With changes in my diet and behaviors, I am optimistic that I will remain an active member in good standing of this board for years to come. Bob

 

Holy **** Bob! I am glad you're on the bounce back and still with us. You're the only Michigan man I've ever liked.

I had those type of pains not too long ago, but never sought medical treatment. I recently was able to acquire some of that thar nifty insurance so I went to the Dr to get everything checked out. For me, it's all stress related stuff so I was glad to hear that. Funny enough, when I had my pains, I did the same thing you did..

The internet age, for better or worse.

I'm deeply glad you're on the mend.

 

8)

That's the spirit lad! We're men! We don't go to no stinking doctors! We work on our own cars don't we? We'll figure it out!

 

Take care of yourself! Advice that I rarely follow myself. I too am stubborn. When I need to cut weight I resort to a regimen of vodka and pistachio nuts.

I am happy you came to your senses long enough to go to the ER and wish you a full recovery.

Your post was extremely well written. My diagnosis is that your mental capacity is intact.

 

Wow Bob, that's scary. Take care of yourself. Cut down on the cheese curds a little. Be well.

 

Damn Bobda, glad to have it turn out as well as it did. Despite the fact you have to give up so many tasty treats, we'd rather have you available to share your rich wit than a bunch of empty plates.

 

Bobda, only you could describe a life threatening episode with such intelligent and self deprecating humor that your friends laugh heartily before coming to their senses and saying, My gosh! Thank God you're OK.

It's not just a Croatian personality trait. Per JO'Co, it's a "man" trait.

I have a thought for you. I'll send it in an email.

P,S. I never cease to be amazed at the talent on this board. We have two of the greatest story tellers here that I've ever known in you and JO'Co. :wink:

 

Bobda...I sure am glad to hear that you are still with us. I will let my baker know that he'll have to find a new client as I will be no longer sending BAPP's out of state. We do grow nice veggies in the state, I can substitute all that Broccoli that GHW Bush didn't like and refused to eat!

Seriously, really really really glad things are ok now.

 

We are all glad that we were so blessed to read another fantastically written post Bobda, remember Lloyd needs walking and probably is not interested in the charcoal burning in the background no matter how familiar it may smell to him....

Very happy to hear you got checked out my friend and appreciate the advice given as well, take care and enjoy the wheat thins...

If you need peaches or citrus I'm your man....

 

Thanks for the comments, guys. Lucky I am still around and similarly lucky to be a participant on this great board.

 

I'm glad that this story had a happy ending. So many neglected symptoms do not end this well.

I must now get on my soap box for a minute. In an unrelated incident, there is a 14 year old man child in Dell Children's hospital with 4 broken ribs, a punctured lung, a chest tube due to the punctured lung, and a skull fracture. He is there due to being in an auto roll over accident and being ejected through the sunroof due to no seat belt. Two kids (belted in) walked away with minor injuries, This kid was not so lucky. It appears that he will in time make a full recovery but he has a long road ahead of him.

Please friends, wear seat belts. They save lives.