An echocardiogram is an ultrasound of the heart. VERY INTERESTING! I've had A LOT of ultrasounds of my uterus and can tell exactly what things are down there but had no clue of what I was seeing of my heart. The technician would say, "As you can tell these are the four chambers of your heart" or "You probably already knew this is a valve" Uh, NO! Very cool. I almost asked her if I got a picture of my ultrasound like they've sent home with me from my pregnancy ultrasounds.
As I am trying to get healthy and as I age I'm realizing more and more how important my heart is to keep me going. It was fascinating to watch it move and pump away and to realize that is going on inside me and that it is working in unison with many other organs.
Below is an e-mail that was forwarded to me two days ago. PLEASE stop and take the time to read it, especially if you are a woman!!!! We HAVE to take care of ourselves!
FEMALE HEART ATTACKS
I was aware that female heart attacks are different, but this is the
best description I've ever read.
Women and heart attacks (Myocardial infraction).
Did you know that women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that
men have when experiencing heart attack .... you know, the sudden
stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest &
dropping to the floor that we see in the movies.
Here is the true story of one woman's personal experience with a heart
attack.
'I had a heart attack at about 10 :30 PM with NO prior exertion, NO
prior emotional trauma that one would suspect might have brought it
on.
I was sitting all snugly & warm on a cold evening, with my purring cat
in my lap, reading an interesting story my friend had sent me, and
actually thinking, 'A-A-h, this is the life, all cozy and warm in my
soft, cushy Lazy Boy recliner with my feet propped up.
A moment later, I felt that awful sensation of indigestion, when
you've been in a hurry and grabbed a bite of sandwich and washed it
down with a dash of water, and that hurried bite seems to feel like
you've swallowed a golf ball going down the esophagus in slow motion
and it is most uncomfortable. You realize you shouldn't have gulped it
down so fast and needed to chew it more thoroughly and this time drink
a glass of water to hasten its progress down to the stomach. This was
my initial sensation--- the only trouble was that I hadn't taken a bite
of anything since about 5:00 p.m.
After it seemed to subside, the next sensation was like little
squeezing motions that seemed to be racing up my SPINE (hind-sight, it
was probably my aorta spasming), gaining speed as they continued
racing up and under my sternum (breast bone,where one presses
rhythmically when administering CPR).
This fascinating process continued on into my throat and branched out
into both jaws. 'AHA!! NOW I stopped puzzling about what was happening
-- we all have read and/or heard about pain in the jaws being one o f
the signals of an M I happening, haven't we? I said aloud to myself
and the cat, Dear God, I think I'm having a heart attack!
I lowered the footrest dumping the cat from my lap, started to take a
step and fell on the floor instead. I thought to myself, If this is a
heart attack, I shouldn't be walking into the next room where the
phone is or anywhere else ... but, on the other hand, if I don't,
nobody will know that I need help, and if I wait any longer I may not
be able to get up in moment.
I pulled myself up with the arms of the chair, walked slowly into the
next room and dialed the Paramedics ... I told her I thought I was
having a heart attack due to the pressure building under the sternum
and radiating into my jaws. I didn't feel hysterical or afraid, just
stating the facts. She said she was sending the Paramedics over
immediately, asked if the front door was near to me, and if so, to
unbolt the door and then lie down on the floor where they could see me
when they came in.
I unlocked the door and then laid down on the floor as instructed and
lost consciousness, as I don't remember the medics coming in, their
examination, lifting me onto a gurney or getting me into their
ambulance, or hearing the call they made to St. Jude ER on the way,
but I did briefly awaken when we arrived and saw that the Cardiologist
was already there in his surgical blues and cap, helping the medics
pull my stretcher out of the ambulance. He was bending over me asking
questions (probably something like 'Have you taken any medications? ')
but I couldn't make my mind interpret what he was saying, or form an
answer, and nodded off again, not waking up until the Cardiologist
and partner had already threaded the teeny angiogram balloon up my
femoral artery into the Aorta and into my heart where they installed 2
side by side Stents to hold open my right coronary artery. 'I know it
sounds like all my thinking and actions at home must have taken at
least 20-30 minutes befor e calling the Paramedics, but actually it
took perhaps 4-5 minutes before the call, and both the fire station
and St. Jude are only minutes away from my home, and my Cardiologist
was already to go to the OR in his scrubs and get going on restarting
my heart (which had stopped somewhere between my arrival and the
procedure) and installing the stents.
'Why have I written all of this to you with so much detail? Because I
want all of you who are so important in my life to know what I
learned first hand.'
1. Be aware that something very different is happening in your body
not the usual men's symptoms but inexplicable things happening (until
my sternum and jaws got into the act). It is said that many more
women than men die of their first (and last) M I because they didn't
know they were having one and commonly mistake it as indigestion, take
some Maalox or other anti-heartburn preparation and go to bed, hoping
they'll feel better in the morning when they wake up ... which doesn't
happen. My female friends, your symptoms might not be exactly like
mine, so I advise you to call the Paramedics if ANYTHING is
unpleasantly happening that you've not felt before. It is better to
have a 'false alarm' visitation than to risk your life guessing what
it might be!
2. Note that I said 'Call the Paramedics .' And if you can take an
asprin. Ladies, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE! Do NOT try to drive yourself
to the ER you are a hazard to others on the road. Do NOT have your
panicked husband who will be speeding and looking anxiously at what's
happening with you instead of the road. Do NOT call your doctor -- he
doesn't know where you live and if it's at night you won't reach him
anyway, and if it's daytime, his assistants (or answering service)
will tell you to call the Paramedics. He doesn't carry the equipment
in his car that you need to be saved! The Paramedics do, principally
OXYGEN that you need ASAP. Your Dr.will be notified later.
3. Don't assume it couldn't be a heart attack because you have a
normal cholesterol count. Research has discovered that a cholesterol
elevated reading is rarely the cause of an M I (unless it's
unbelievably high and/or accompanied by high blood pressure).M I's
are usually caused by long-term stress and inflammation in the body,
which dumps all sorts of deadly hormones into your system to sludge
things up in there. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep.
Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know, the better chance we
could survive.
I didn't know any of this Kiki. Thanks for posting it.
ReplyDeleteWow - thanks for posting. I've read a few things about female heart attacks, but having more information is always helpful.
ReplyDeleteWow, very scary post but so helpful. I had no idea about any of that and part of getting healthy should be learning the unhealthy signs too. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou know, I've seen that email countless times... but I reread it every time I see it. It's too important not to have it fresh in my mind.
ReplyDeleteGreat post ! My father had 2 heart attacks, but died of breast cancer. That ironic twist has made me pay close attention to those things that break the rules. Men do die of breast cancer and women do suffer heart attacks- it is still the number one killer of women today. And yet so little is ever said about a woman's symptoms.
ReplyDeleteI work in the cardiac operating rooms, and it amazed me how many women had ignored clues that things weren't ok with their health. Sometimes I think we get too caught up with losing weight for how we look, we need to keep getting healthy as one of our ultimate goals, because that's the life or death reality.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the post!
Good post! I have read something similar... I am glad you are taking getting your health back on track so seriously. I think a lot of women overlook care for themselves because of family. You are awesome and I am glad to hear of your progress!
ReplyDelete