My story is similar to KCRunnerSteve's, except I've never been in shape enough to run a marathon. But it sounds like we had the same kind of attack.

On 7/25/12 I had just finished a lunchtime workout on the elliptical (36 minutes at max heart rate) and had just started my cool down when I felt chest pains. I hoped it was reflux, so I finished the cool down, had some water, and the pain lessened. After showering I went up the long staircase at the gym and the pain came back, then lessened again. I drove back to work, then walked up the stairs to my floor when the pain returned, a bit harder. I called our emergency number at work. They came, ECGed me, and there was no heart attack signature at that point. With the chest pain on exertion though, they strongly urged me to take an ambulance to the ER. I knew that was the right thing to do even though my pain was only mild to moderate. However, while in the ambulance the pain became intense as a blockage in my left coronary artery became complete. I went straight up to the cath lab and the blockage was gone 20 minutes or so later and a stent was placed.

I've been moderately overweight most of my life (I'm 56) and have a strong family history of cardiac disease. But I'd been trying to prevent this for a long time. I've been on statins and aspirin for over 10 years with my cholesterol reasonably well managed. I've been doing semi regular exercise for all that time as well. I have had regular checkups thru the years, including stress tests. My diet had been fairly clean--my problem wasn't that I ate junk, it was portion control. Still, I had a blockage in the "widow-maker" artery (the LAD) that wasn't large enough to cause symptoms on its own but apparently ruptured, leading to the formation of a blood clot that completed the blockage. (This was a "vulnerable plaque" heart attack.) I am very lucky to still be here and to have had a good outcome.

Two months later I've lost almost 15 pounds since before the attack (10 lbs since I started MFP), and am working out harder at cardiac rehab than I ever have before. I feel great. It was my rehab nurse who suggested MFP to me, and with the help of my wife (who's a clinical dietitian) I use MFP to track calories and sodium and fat intake. I think it's helping quite a bit.

I hope everyone is doing well out there, and that folks who have had an attack recently are well on the mend. @BlestBliss--yes, I felt fatigued too. I think part of it was getting acclimated to the beta blocker and much higher dose of statin. After a couple of weeks on rehab though, things really turned around for me.

Welcome, CathyD! Hope you are feeling better physically and emotionally after having gone through it. Best wishes to you (and to us all!) as you continue through your recovery.

Vailara, you've been losing weight, too! Good for you!

As I've told folks who ask my about "my secret" for losing weight, there's nothing like a heart attack to put you off your appetite. :ohwell: But still, now that I've come to terms with having had one, it still takes work and discipline to lose weight, so I don't really mean to underestimate what we're doing here.

No med changes for me, at least yet.

My LDLs are right about where they want them, so too soon to lower the statin I'm taking (too bad on that one because the stinking pill is the size of a house).

They were going to up the level of beta blocker I'm taking, but my resting heart rate and BP are all fairly low at present--probably also because of all the exercise I'm doing. After losing a bit of weight, I find that for the first time in my adult life I'm prone to feeling cold, especially my hands, so I might try talking them into reducing the beta blocker a bit.

Vailara - I am on 4 different medications now. I wasn't on any for heart related issues before. As soon I was home from the hospital I was scared "healthier". I quit smoking, no fast food and lower portions of everything. I did not lose a pound then once I faithfully started tracking my food I lost 3 lbs in the 1st week. I am determined to get control of this and hopefully off all the medicines, but my cardiologist said I would be on all 4 types of the medicine for at least a year. So that gives me a goal.....

joe_d - thanks for the welcome message and sharing your story. )

On January 21st, 2011, I was doing a fitness test at my employers gym facility. I had finished the test and was talking with one of the trainers afterwards to review my fitness results. He had congratulated me on my “elite” cardio fitness since I completed the 1.5 mile run in 12:11 (not bad for 50 years old!). We were going over workout plan recommendations and probably 5 to 10 minutes after I completed the run, I just collapsed with no warning whatsoever. No pain, no shortness of breath – nada. Just talking and next thing you know, I’m in full cardiac arrest after having a major heart attack.

One of the other trainers turned out to be my guardian angel as she started CPR immediately and then used an AED unit to restart my heart. The paramedics told me she had my heart going again before they arrived at the building. I was transported to the hospital in was out of the cath lab within an hour of my heart attack having the left anterior descending and right proximal arteries stented.

I had lost weight and become physically active back in 2007 by becoming a regular participant in triathlons, half marathons and marathons. My cardiologist said that my underlying fitness level was key to my survival and recovery.

I went through cardiac rehab to resume exercise with monitoring and was quickly released to resume running as long as I agreed to keep my heart rate below a certain level. As a result, I was able to complete a half marathon only 58 days after my heart attack/cardiac arrest.

I was given an unrestricted release about 10 months after the heart attack and I have continued to run half and full marathons since then. I just completed the Goofy Challenge 2 weeks ago completing both the Disney World half and full marathon.

Todays meds and treatment allow a much better outcome and it is possible to resume an active lifestyle. All things considered, I am very lucky and aside from having a governor on my heart with the beta blockers and needing to stay away from sharp objects on account of the Plavix, life is good.

Hi im new here just found this group. My first one was Feb 2006 at 18 years old. I woke up in the morning having this one. Second one April 2008 at 20 years old. I was out with friends though I wasnt feeling good for days. 1 stent each time in the same artery. I am now 25 with 2 toddlers and my hearts been fine ever since. No family history they don't understand why it happened. Sorry I havent written more but im on the tablet and its slow going on here

Thanks Vailara. I think i was 6lb something i wouldn't have thought that was too small? Thinking back to the time i believe it could have been stress related.

Hi y'all ~ I'm Dawn! I'm not new to MFP, or new to heart attack, but just saw this discussion & I thought I'd share my story. :brokenheart:

My heart attack happened when I was 28 years old, in 2001. I was out of town at a family reunion, and at a restaurant with my entire extended family when I suddenly became really hot and felt like I couldn't breathe. I asked my fiancee' (it was 3 months before my wedding) to take me outside so that I could get some fresh air. By the time I reached the door of the restaurant, I had severe crushing chest pain affecting my entire chest and upper arms. I couldn't breathe, and my family rushed me to the hospital. Because of my age, they assumed I was having a muscle spasm in my chest, so they gave me a shot of muscle relaxers. In the meantime, they did blood tests to check for elevated cardiac enzymes and an EKG. The muscle relaxers worked to relieve pain, and they were getting ready to release me, when the tests results came back. They told me I had some "abnormalities" so they needed to transfer me by ambulance to a bigger hospital (an hour away) for further testing. When I got there, I had more tests done, and was asked lots of questions. Nobody could give me answers about what was going on. Finally, after 14 hours in the ER, they admitted me to the hospital and gave me a proper room. I was starving, so they brought me a huge greasy cheeseburger and fries :noway: . Just as I was about to take my first bite, a doctor came into the room and said "STOP! Don't eat that! You've had a heart attack! You are going in for emergency surgery right now! I was in complete shock--28 year olds don't have heart attacks...right? I had angioplasty and had a stent placed in a small artery. I recovered quickly, and even got married 3 months later! BUT...since that day, I've had 3 angiograms and two more angioplasties. I now have 5 total stents, (3 of which were placed to repair a tear in my left MAIN artery--the one that brings blood to the LAD artery and 2/3 of my heart!) I've also had anxiety, panic attacks, and severe side effects from the meds they've put me on (statins!).

Doctors couldn't tell me why I had blockages. I have no family history of heart disease, do not have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. I was not overweight, was young, & was in fairly good shape at the time of the heart attack. I did smoke, was on birth control pills, had some stress planning my wedding, didn't watch my diet very closely, and was born prematurely (4lbs) - but my docs didn't think any of those things were serious contributors.

It's been a loooong journey for me, but the GOOD news is that I've gotten my health together and have been stable and feeling great since 2008. My outlook on life has changed and I'm very grateful to still be alive. I truly appreciate the positive things and people I have in my life. I've come to believe through my own research that chronic inflammation, caused by what I was putting into my body (smoke, junk food) and a constant state of dehydration, were major contributors, if not THE cause of my heart problems. I am here to hold myself accountable for changing the way I eat and treat my body.

Sorry so long ~ thanks for reading! Feel free to add me if you need some support!

Hi Vailara! Thanks for responding. I'm thankfully no longer having issues with my meds. I've stopped taking the biggest culprit--the statins, cholesterol lowering drugs. When I was lowering my cholesterol I had severe muscle breakdown in my legs. At 33, my 60 year old mother could outwalk me. It was painful and scary. I also lost memory because of the statins - but hey! My cholesterol numbers looked great! It made me think...why is reducing my cholesterol causing these problems? Maybe I need cholesterol? I started doing my own research and have really started to think differently about cholesterol. Here is an interesting article that kinda sums up what I've come to believe through my own experiences and research:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/08/10/making-sense-of-your-cholesterol-numbers.aspx

I also had issues with Atenolol. My doctor wanted me to take it as a beta blocker, but it was making my blood pressure fall too low. I'm now taking half of what my doctors recommend and it still has quite a bit of affect on heart rate and blood pressure.

So happy for you that you have been able to reduce your meds! Great news!! Thanks for the request ~ I'm glad we're friends! :-)

Vailara ~ I'm so glad you aren't having problems with the statins! There is a lot of conflicting info out there about statins, for sure! Side effects from them was definitely miserable. My legs would burn just walking across the room! I've read that there may be some genetic factors involved as to who has issues with them. My dad had similar problems. I've since read that it's very important to take CoQ10 while on them - this wasn't something that was recommended to me when I was taking them 10 years ago. For me, the side effects from the meds were way worse than the initial heart attack. That was painful and scary, but I was up and feeling good within a few days. I had years of feeling sick from the meds they were giving me. I'm glad we've both got them worked out now. :-)