What went wrong in your heart?

priv8life
priv8life Posts: 24 Member
My right coronary artery became blocked...requiring 2 stents.

Replies

  • han0115
    han0115 Posts: 8
    One stent!
  • wd61dp
    wd61dp Posts: 19 Member
    Right Coronary Artery, 5 Stents. I had life long inflammation issues. Turns out I had a number of food allergies and now follow a very strict diet.
  • Same here. RCA was 100% blocked!! I had no clue... no real symptoms before the actual heart attack on 8/4/2012. I have before and after pictures and now totally open. had my last cigarette about 15 min before my attack and doc also checked lungs they are clear and unremarkable!!! A miracle after 45+ yrs of smoking. now waiting for my Chantix prescription assistance cant afford it at $200 a month. Getting harder and harder everyday... even the butts on the parking lot ground are starting to look good... =)
  • Keiko385
    Keiko385 Posts: 514 Member
    A miracle after 45+ yrs of smoking. now waiting for my Chantix prescription assistance cant afford it at $200 a month. Getting harder and harder everyday... even the butts on the parking lot ground are starting to look good... =)

    Have your tried using the patch while you wait on your presciption? The cost is about the same or less as a carton of cigarettes It worked well enough to kill the cravings I had, if my hands need something to do I pick up my knitting or would go for a walk once I was able even if it was down to the end of the driveway and back.

    The nice thing is the bulk of the built up nicotine is out of your system after the 1st week so you are past the hardest part you just need to work on the "habit"
  • BlueJean4114
    BlueJean4114 Posts: 594 Member
    to OP''s question,
    i have a sloppy, floppy mitral valve.
    I have had since childhood, but, it wasn't that bad, i was very athletic all my life despite it.

    As a child, i had to hang upside by my knees, or otherwise have my heart upside down,
    to experience palpitations from back-flow of blood from bottom of my heart to top of my heart. I was an adult when i found out, not everyone experiences that, ha ha, thought it was normal.

    but, overtime, the palpitations began to increase.
    But, during mentalpause, as so often happens, my palpitations really escalated. I began to experience chest pain now, after activity, or after the Bad arrythmia.

    I now have multiple arrhythmias, nonstop, and now, the back-flow of blood through the now much-floppier valves, is far far worse.
    Now, even driving over railroad tracks, can cause backflow of blood from lower chambers(ventricles) back up into upper chambers (atria) and send me into the Bad arrhythmia, the one that makes me dizzy very rapidly, where i begin to see dots and hear that high-pitch "wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" noise that precedes loss of consciousness.
    I have to pull over, and wait til it subsides, if doing the valsalva maneuver did not prevent the backflow of blood while driving over the tracks, or even a good size speed-bump.


    Usually,
    i can avoid activities which i know will jiggle my heart around TOO much/cause arrhythmia,
    and usually,
    resting for a while helps the racing pounding heart subside again. But, this really limits and also interrupts many activities. I also gained 30+ pounds at this time, after being a runner all my life before..... I was becoming a "cardiac cripple".

    Jumping up and down,
    or
    kneeling down and putting ear on the floor to see under the sofa,
    are both guaranteed arrhythmias
    both cause backflow of blood.



    still, i believe, losing weight will help my heart.
  • iamnotjerry
    iamnotjerry Posts: 17 Member
    Heart attack 8/12 99% blockage, required 2 stents. At 57 it meant a complete lifestyle change, which I embrase daily.
  • gracie97007
    gracie97007 Posts: 25 Member
    I had one of my arteries have a stent put in after I experienced a heart attack. I didn't see it coming. I didn't feel bad and my numbers for my BP and cholesterol were good. Plus I walked 12 to 14 thousand steps per day.
    My artery was 90% blocked. Still seems so serile.
    Now trying to figure out how to eat differently. Any ideas on what you eat to help? I have been doing different dietary changes since this happened
  • vasocreta
    vasocreta Posts: 1 Member
    I'm a mystery. I had an NSTEMI, however I cleared whatever blockage was there on my own. No stent needed. Now, I'm on meds for the rest of my life. Yeah!
    Best medical hypothesis offered: temporary blood clot in a minor arterial branch.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,472 Member
    I hope you're well now, Vasocreta. It's a pain to be on meds for life, but I suppose worth it if they prevent another attack.
  • usedtobee
    usedtobee Posts: 15 Member
    In 2016 I suffered a spontaneous coronary artery dissection (known as SCAD), which occurred in the left anterior descending (LAD) artery of my heart, causing a NSTEMI. This happened to me whilst running on the treadmill at the gym. I had no stents as this would have risked causing further damage to the artery. I've been medically managed since then, and remain under review by a local cardiology team. In the early days of recovery I was really scared to ever exercise again, but eventually got active again, having been advised to avoid isometric or really intense weight training exercise. I now walk three times a week - each one a 5km very brisk walk out then 4km moderately walk home. I'd really like to run, but just don't seem to be able to sustain running very well, especially up hills! SCAD is increasingly being recognised thankfully, and around 80% of the time affects healthy and fit women who have no classic risk factors for heart disease. SCAD also similarly affects fit and active men. For more information on SCAD see www.beatscad.org.uk. It's good to know that this group is here on MFP. I desperately want to get back into the habit of using MFP again this year, as I have unfortunately lapsed in logging in over the last year or so, and I realise that I now need MFP more than ever to gain and sustain a healthy weight, shape and lifestyle.
  • khill1968
    khill1968 Posts: 1 Member
    One week ago I suffered a STEMI heart attack, with complete blockage of my left circumflex artery. Cath lab was occupied, so they tried TPA. It finally worked after about 60 minutes and a short episode of v-fib. One stent was placed.

    Now trying to pick up the pieces, including many lifestyle changes. Very overwhelming right now, both mentally and emotionally. But dedicated to seeing this through. I knew I needed to make the changes, so hopefully will be able to stick to everything as best I can.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,472 Member
    I've only just checked in on this group after a long time. I hope things are going well for you. I felt it was overwhelming at the beginning too.
  • mike072563
    mike072563 Posts: 3 Member
    Is this group still active? I recently experienced a heart attack and am looking to see what others’ experiences have been like.