Heart Attack Update

February, 2008

Life isn't always simple, and that applies to one's health.

I'm going to share what happened to me, but this is not medical advice. Please talk with your doctor if you have any concerns, but also don't be afraid to look beyond the medical profession.

I Almost Died

When you have a heart attack you're given a regimen of pills to take. Plavix to thin the blood was one of them. It wasn't pleasant because it made me bruise so easily, and when I cut myself, it took a long time to heal.

About 10 months after my heart attack I ate some sharp seeds without chewing them thoroughly. To make a long story short, a blood vessel in my duodenum (the part of the bowel immediately following the stomach) was punctured.

I began to bleed to death, but I didn't know it. Even though I knew the symptoms of a bleed, I couldn't accept that it was happening to me until I was too weak to stand up.

Charlie rushed me to the hospital and thank God for modern medicine! The doctor did a scope, found the bleed, and cauterized it. I received a couple units of blood, and I recovered in a few days.

Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if the puncture had occurred further down in the bowel?

I stopped taking Plavix.

Other Strange Symptoms

Another medication I was given after my heart attach was Lipitor, one of the Statin drugs, to reduce cholesterol. Even though my cholesterol was low, my cardiologist felt I should take it because of other benefits.

After several months I began to have leg muscle pain and hip pain. Turns out I'm one of the people who react to statins, so I decided to quit that drug as well. What a relief when the muscle aches went away!

Cholesterol Mystery

About a year after my heart attack I had my cholesterol checked. The "bad" cholesterol had climbed dramatically.

The only thing I had changed since my heart attack was my diet. My stress level didn't change significantly (I'm still working on that!) and my exercise remained about the same. The only thing I had done religiously was to avoid almost all fats and most meat.

Could my change in diet have affected my cholesterol? My cardiologist said no. My naturopath said yes.

A Different Path

I've made a personal choice to marry the advice of the medical community and alternative medicine. I still take one medication (Toprol) but instead of aspirin I take fish oil, and I take a regimen of natural supplements: vitamins B, E, and one called Cardio-Plus.

I also eat more moderately. I watch what I eat, but I don't avoid all fat.

It's been over a year since I made these changes, and so far I've faired better than I did before. I haven't had my cholesterol checked lately, though, to see if that has improved.

This is Not Medical Advice

Please do not think I'm giving you medical advice! I'm not telling you to follow the path I've followed. What I AM saying is that only you can make the decisions (based on the best information you can get) that affect YOUR life.

Because I worked in the medical profession for years, I'm familiar with its marvelous capabilities AND its limitations. I'm forever grateful that medical doctors and hospitals have been there for me when I needed them. I don't agree with everything they recommend, but I definitely appreciate their role in keeping me healthy.

I also look to doctors outside the medical profession for advice and help.

I firmly believe doctors should be partners with us, helping us to make the most informed decisions. When doctors disagree, you, the patient, will have to make the final choice!

Respectfully,

Linda Sattgast