Heart Troubles! I Thought I was Dying – My ER Trip

Strong Heart?

I always thought I was healthy as a horse… strong… not invincible but strong none-the-less. You have heard that saying that your life can change in an instant? Well, it did for me not too long ago.

This blog is built around healthy living and I follow the tips I have written about; however, I had a great lesson in life. Let me explain. I have asthma and there have been times when certain things will cause me to have an asthma attack. I haven’t had an attack in a long time. But for the past couple of months (June and July), my breathing has not been quite right.

Shock!

One day at work, I started to feel some tightness in my chest making it feel like when I had my last big asthma attack. I decided to go to the doctor on my way home from work to see if they could give me some medicine. (Remember all of this is happening during COVID-19). They did the usual screening such as taking your temperature and blood pressure, etc. Thankfully, I did not have COVID-19. What they did tell me shocked me to my core! Can you believe they told me that my blood pressure was high? Not just a little high – a lot high!

I was in shock. Let’s face it – I monitor what I eat, I go to the gym religiously, I get cardio in. I practice what I preach. They ran several tests to be sure that there was nothing else going on. Blood tests, EKG, checked my lungs… you name it, they did it (as much as they could in a doctor’s office). They did not feel there was anything life threatening.

So, they gave me a breathing treatment using a nebulizer, and that seemed to help, but they also gave me a prescription for blood pressure medicine. Wait a minute! This is not happening to me! I kept thinking to myself – I exercise, I eat right, I take healthy supplements. Why do I have high blood pressure? I did feel much better that evening, but I still was questioning where did I go wrong.

I said to myself, let me change my diet a little more. I lowered my salt intake. I began eating the plant based diet more often. I eliminated red meats and increased my water intake. I also started taking the medicine that was prescribed for me. This will help, right? My blood pressure will go back to normal, right?

WRONG! I got a blood pressure monitor for my wrist so I could track my readings. Even with the changes I made, I still had elevated readings. Why? And that pressure in my chest especially when I was laying down at night was still there. I could not get a full night’s rest.

One night I was up and down so much that I decided when I got up at 4:30 AM that something needed to be done. I needed to see what the problem was. I told my wife that I was going to go to the hospital and have things checked out.

Emergency Room

HERE IS WHERE THINGS GET INTERESTING (as if they weren’t already interesting). First of all, when I went there I had no idea that it would become an overnight stay. I had every intention of them giving me something for my breathing and send me on my way. But even the best laid plans… The triage nurse checked my blood pressure and it was sky high. The staff hopped into action to figure out what was going on. (This is the beginning of what I meant when I said things can change in an instance – never take anything for granted).

I was placed in a room in the ER since there were no beds available due to Covid-19, hooked up to machines, and given an IV. They gave me some medicines to try and lower my blood pressure, but it still stayed high. As a last resort, they gave me nitroglycerin which is used for “chest pain and to open up blood vessels so more blood flows to the heart”.

Once I got three doses of nitroglycerin, the pressure in my chest was relieved and I was breathing much easier. I did not know that this indicates that this is truly a heart issue.  Now the doctors had to figure out what was causing my blood pressure to be so high. Because the nitroglycerin gave me immediate relief, they were concerned that there might be a blockage somewhere.

Testing

I was taken for chest x-rays and that did not give the doctors any clues. The next step was a stress test. Stress tests are given for a variety of reasons.

In the realm of medical examinations, stress tests hold a vital position in assessing the cardiovascular health and endurance of individuals. These tests provide valuable insights into the functionality and resilience of the heart under demanding conditions. Here we will explore the significance of stress tests, the procedures involved, and why they are given to patients. By delving into the subject, we aim to shed light on how stress tests contribute to early detection, risk assessment, and overall heart health management.

These tests are also known as exercise tolerance tests or cardiac stress tests, are diagnostic procedures designed to evaluate the heart’s response to physical exertion. They involve monitoring the heart’s electrical activity, blood pressure, and other vital signs during exercise. Typically, patients are asked to perform activities such as walking on a treadmill or pedaling a stationary bicycle while connected to monitoring devices.

The primary objective of stress tests is to assess the heart’s capacity to endure increased demand for oxygen-rich blood during exercise. By gradually intensifying the workload, stress tests aim to simulate the stress experienced by the heart during daily activities or in more strenuous situations. The results obtained from these tests provide crucial information about the heart’s functionality, identifying potential abnormalities or limitations that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Reasons for Performing Stress Tests :

1. Risk Stratification and Prevention: Stress tests play a pivotal role in risk stratification, allowing healthcare providers to estimate the risk of future cardiac events. Individuals with known risk factors, such as a family history of heart disease or high blood pressure, may undergo stress tests to evaluate their cardiovascular fitness and assess the need for preventive measures. Identifying high-risk patients enables timely interventions, including lifestyle modifications, medication, or further investigations.
2. Post-Treatment Assessment: After cardiac interventions, such as angioplasty or bypass surgery, stress tests help evaluate the effectiveness of the procedure. By measuring the heart’s response to exercise, stress tests provide valuable insights into the success of interventions and guide further treatment plans.
3. Exercise Prescription and Training: Stress tests aid in determining the appropriate exercise intensity and limits for individuals recovering from heart conditions or those at risk. By establishing a baseline of cardiovascular fitness, healthcare professionals can tailor exercise prescriptions to optimize recovery, improve fitness levels, and minimize the risk of complications.
4. Monitoring Disease Progression: For individuals with known heart conditions, periodic stress tests enable healthcare providers to monitor the progression of the disease and evaluate the effectiveness of ongoing treatments. They provide objective data on changes in exercise tolerance and heart function, assisting in adapting treatment plans accordingly

The interesting thing about this was that it was not a “normal” stress test where you are on a treadmill. This one was given to me in my IV. Within seconds, I felt like I had been running top speed for 30 seconds.

The doctor let me know my results… I had a positive stress test. This indicates some sort of coronary artery disease but they did not know what. Their recommendation was not what I expected. They suggested an angiogram which is also known as a heart catheterization.

There are different ways to perform a heart catheterization. They can go through your groin or your wrist. Mine was performed through my wrist but we will get to that in a minute.

In each of the procedures I had done, there are risks and they make you sign a lot of papers acknowledging that you know the risks. The last one was the scariest. The list of things that can go wrong will make anyone without high blood pressure have a high reading! As I was signing the papers, my mind was racing with thoughts of having heart disease or a blockage. I did not want to die in my 50’s.

Decisions

My thoughts were all over the place. One thing is for sure, you definitely see life with a different perspective. I did discuss this with my family and this amazing nurse (she treated me with the utmost care and respect) to be sure that we were making the right decision.

My decision was to have the heart catheterization performed. It was scary to say the least and what made it worse is that because of Covid19, I was not allowed to have my family with me. I did have my phone so I was able to talk with everyone I love. Needless to say, I did not sleep that night. One – nerves. Two – all of the noise.

The next morning came and my nurse was able to get me a room and also allow my wife to come up to wait for me. We were all nervous.

I told you earlier that my procedure was done through my wrist. Trust me, this does not make it any less painful. I was given a sedative but it is not the kind that puts you to sleep. It only relaxes you. There are electrodes placed on your chest to monitor you. A cut is made in your artery so that they can place a thin catheter in so that the doctor can examine your arteries and your heart.

The procedure itself did not take long – maybe 20 or 30 minutes at most. When it was completed, the doctor told me that everything went well. There were no issues.

What Does it Mean?

What does that mean? Discussing things with the cardiologist, he said that training with heavy weights like I have for so many years can cause blood pressure to rise. Why would this happen? I have always believed that a mixture of weight training and cardio is the best mixture for overall health.

Weight lifting is an anaerobic exercise. This means that you burn carbs for energy and does not require oxygen. The problem that a lot of people have when lifting weights is that they hold their breath. I have trained for a long time and know to breathe as I lift. My blood pressure problem came from lifting extremely heavy weights for many years. Shocking I know. If you are shocked, think of how I felt!

This does not mean that you cannot or should not lift weights. This only means that you should lift within reason. What do I mean by this? You should train with weights that give your muscles slight resistance. This will allow the muscle to strengthen but not put the extra stress on your heart that could lead to high blood pressure or other cardiac issue. You can do body weight workouts or workout with bands. These are both excellent options.

This incident has made me make some changes to my workout regimen. Now, I focus more on cardio over weight training. I do not try to lift excessively. I still follow the things that I have discussed in my blog. I just have throttled back the intensity of my weight training.

Final Thoughts

I am doing good now. My blood pressure is under control and back to normal. There are several things that I have learned through this whole thing:

1. Monitor your blood pressure (purchase a blood pressure cuff for home use)
2. Never overtrain
3. Try to add more of a Mediterranean diet to your weekly meal plan
4.  Never take anything for granted

I plan to continue to follow my doctor’s advice and make cardio my top priority. Follow my blog to continue to get healthy living tips. Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts.

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