A Sad Story

One of the most frequent questions that I get from people is what I felt when I was having my heart attack.

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Then the second most frequently asked question is if I had any symptoms that lead to the heart attack.

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Earlier this year, I had a patient that was in for his biannual tooth cleaning. He first asked me how I was feeling and recovering and I replied that I was feeling better than ever.

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Then he went through the normal questioning, “What did you feel when you had your heart attack?”

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I told him my usual story that I instantly felt severe chest pain on the right side of my chest and then I threw up.

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Then he asked me if I had any symptoms leading up to it.

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I told him that I felt mild chest pain that radiated to my back, but I always ignored it because I thought it was acid reflux or blamed it on a muscle strain from lifting weights.

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He then told me that sometimes he feels some chest pain, but he thought that it might be reflux.

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I told him that he needed to get it checked out by his doctor. That fact that he is a male above the age of 50, he needed to assume it was heart related until proven otherwise.

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He told me that he had a doctor's appointment coming up in a few weeks and was going to have his doctor check it out.

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So a few weeks ago, this same patient of mine, went with his college friends on a hike in Montana, and he had a major heart attack on the mountain.

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He ended up dying on the mountain leaving behind his wife and 3 children under the age of 10.

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When I heard what happened, I was totally crushed. He was a fantastic guy, full of life, and the life of the party.

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I am telling this story because I don’t want this to happen to anyone. I had a heart attack last year. I was one of the lucky ones that survived but that is rare.

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Most people who have 100% blockage of their widow maker, don’t survive it.

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But I had signs prior to my heart attack that I ignored. I think any type of recurring chest pain should be checked out.

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I had signs and I blew it off. And my chest pain was exercise-induced discomfort. I would go for a walk or workout, and mild chest pain would appear.

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After 10 to 15 minutes, it would go away. I remember thinking “Is this my heart that’s causing this pain?” But then I would say to myself “Oh you’re just a hypochondriac, you’re fine.”

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Please, if you have chest pain of any kind, assume its heart related until proven otherwise. Get it checked out right away.

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Wishing everyone good health!

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Floss Like a Madman!

Emilio “Heart Safety Guy” Couret

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