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Open letter to all Freepers, Matters of the Heart
7-21-2011 | Battle Axe

Posted on 08/21/2011 7:04:33 PM PDT by Battle Axe

I found my good friend dead on the floor on July 18, 2011. Life will never be the same.

He had been in an automobile accident 9 days before, but the autopsy showed he had severe coronary disease with multiple blockages. The EMTs said he had been gone for 3-4 hours.

Please don't let this happen to any of my FreeperFriends.

He had no symptoms of heart trouble other than a little high cholesterol. Treatment with diet and exercise put the numbers back in good territory and he could pass a stress test better than I could.

What he needed was a heart catherization test that would have shown the blockages. But that test was never suggested. They say I have two more weeks to wait until the final determination of what happened. He was only 65.


TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: cholesterol; heartattack
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To: Battle Axe

I’m sorry for your loss, will keep you and his family in prayer.


21 posted on 08/21/2011 7:37:56 PM PDT by StayoutdaBushesWay (Every man dies, but not every man really lives.)
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To: Battle Axe
"He had no symptoms of heart trouble other than a little high cholesterol."

I can pretty well guarantee he had some symptoms, like tiny grabbing pains in his chest, but most men are in denial.

Sorry for the loss of your friend.

22 posted on 08/21/2011 7:40:55 PM PDT by Spunky (“Never interupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.” Napolean)
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To: Battle Axe

I am so sorry for your loss. And thank you for bringing this up. For years my husband had experienced chest pains. He kept chalking it up to a hiatal hernia and did nothing. Last year he had a heart attack and had to have an emergency quintuple bypass. MEN...GET YOUR HEART CHECKED.


23 posted on 08/21/2011 7:41:50 PM PDT by Hildy (Hollywood liberals once embraced Communism "because they hadn't invented Pilates yet"- David Mamet)
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To: Battle Axe

I’m so sorry. Prayers up for you and for your friend’s loved ones.


24 posted on 08/21/2011 7:43:46 PM PDT by Allegra (Hey! Stop looking at my tagline like that.)
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To: Battle Axe

Thank you for sharing.


25 posted on 08/21/2011 7:49:29 PM PDT by andyk (Income != Wealth)
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To: Battle Axe

God Bless you Battle... thanks for the warning.


26 posted on 08/21/2011 7:51:27 PM PDT by GOPJ (126 people were indicted for being terrorists in the last two years. Every one of them was Muslim.)
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To: Battle Axe

I am sorry to hear of your loss.

I was diagnosed with A-fib two & half years ago. Long story short I neglected my meds and got really sick early this year. A heart cath showed one blocked artery and a leaky mitral valve long overdue for repair. Open heart surgery in March, recovery made much easier by a loving new wife, and now I’m fine at 62.

I was blessed. Don’t ignore symptoms and it’s not being hypochondriatic to have the tests done, I’m a guy and I know I’m supposed to make fun of those who do or else I’m Alan Alda. Well, thanks to a wife who is much smarter than me (she had open heart following a year in Iraq) I’m here to tell the tale.

Hate it when others are right. And I still refuse to ask directions and I don’t have a GPS.

;^)


27 posted on 08/21/2011 7:59:59 PM PDT by elcid1970 ("Deport Muslims. Nuke Mecca. Death to Islam. Freedom for mankind.")
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To: Recovering Ex-hippie
How long have you been on the Statins? Get to know your body real well, and the minute you feel weaker it could be the Statins are destroying you muscles. It has been recommended by some doctors to take CoQ10 while on them because this is what Statins are depleting out of you system.

I believe the Statins have destroyed my husbands muscle mass. He has a terrible time getting in and out of cars, chairs, bed, etc.

There was a report that came out last year by the FDA advising doctors to be very careful about putting people on 80mg of Zocor because they are now finding patients are losing muscle mass.

FDA Warning

I have been telling my husbands doctor for years that I believed his cholesterol medicine was destroying his muscles. I asked him about my husband taking the CoQ10 and he didn't even know what it was. He would not listen to me. Now he is trying to say he believes my husband has Parkinsons. I don't believe it and will not take his word for it. We will go to a Neurologist and see what they say.

As far as the FDA only saying 80mg of Zocor, I personally believe it could be ANY of the STATINS and any amount.

28 posted on 08/21/2011 8:14:13 PM PDT by Spunky (“Never interupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.” Napolean)
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To: Battle Axe
So sorry for your loss. Prayers for you and your loved ones. Fish Oil supplements, Vitamin D3, Omega3 & Omega6, CoQ10 and Resveratrol will work wonders for your physical well being. Other supplements as well.

God Bless.

29 posted on 08/21/2011 8:16:18 PM PDT by texgal (end no-fault divorce laws return DUE PROCESS & EQUAL PROTECTION to ALL citizens))
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To: All

I had a routine annual checkup this past Feb. There were some anomolies in the EKG. I was referred to a heart specialist and underwent a stress test combined with a scan. The results were not good.
I then underwent a heart cath and discovered that I had substantial damage to arteries feeding the heart. Finally the specialist reccomended bypass surgery which I underwent successfully - 4 way - in March. All of this with no symptoms of any kind.
Today I am off meds, have a steady 120/70 BP and feel, at 70, ready for the next 20 years.
Have your heart checked, today.


30 posted on 08/21/2011 8:17:00 PM PDT by Louis Foxwell (O assumes the trappings of the presidency, not its mantle. He is not presidential.)
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To: Battle Axe

I’m so sorry for your loss. Heart disease runs deep on my dad’s side of the family- ALL of my uncles had heart attacks, or died of heart attacks. My dad had his first heart attack while still young- in his 40’s, in fact I was still in high school. Triple bypass in 2000, but then died of complications of diabetes in 2005. I’m still young- and female, but I try to be vigilant about my health, eat right, excersise, regular checkups, etc. Scary stuff.
I worry about my older brother following in my dad’s footsteps...heavy smoker, etc.


31 posted on 08/21/2011 8:33:15 PM PDT by gore_sux_2000 (Sarah Palin can touch M.C. Hammer.)
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To: Spunky

I take a very small amt of Zetia—10 mg..couldn’t do the other statins, muscle achiness. I am VERY in tune with my body and also very proactive in my healthcare.

Zetia functions differently than Zocor and that group and Zetia works well..I also take fish oil..I take the brand “ Wholemega “..its a bit pricier , but much better than any of the others.( Wholefoods carries it )

I also exercise. ..walking, stretching, and some limited ‘pump you up” class.

All of this is a balncing act of balancing the risks of the medicine and what we are trying to avoid by taking it.


32 posted on 08/21/2011 8:33:46 PM PDT by Recovering Ex-hippie (where is the Great Santini when we need him??)
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To: Battle Axe

I am so very sorry. One never knows what will take one out eventually.

I had a sweet friend who was so worried about her apartment on the
Ground floor, safety, all that. Then she was hit by a truck on the street in Manhattan. She didn’t even make it to 30.

Your friend was blessed by your friendship. May you see each other again in greener pastures.


33 posted on 08/21/2011 8:36:45 PM PDT by Yaelle ( Me too)
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To: Battle Axe

>> Please everyone take care of your heart.

Excellent advise.

Non-invasive tests: nuclear stress test, sonograms.


34 posted on 08/21/2011 9:06:00 PM PDT by Gene Eric (Your Hope has been Redistributed. Here's your damn Change!)
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To: Battle Axe
They won't schedule a heart cath unless you are experiencing chest pain or shortness of breath, or one of several other symptoms indicating a blockage. They can't just look at someone(unfortunately) and say, "Hey, buddy, you look like you need a heart cath"!

That said, I am sorry for your loss and it is too bad your friend didn't have chest pains or some other symptom that would have led to a heart cath, which would surely have saved his life.

Also, unfortunately, all to many people lie to Doctors when they are asked if they have chest pains or shortness of breath, and a lot of people attribute the shortness of breath to simply getting older and fail to mention it to their docs.

35 posted on 08/21/2011 9:18:12 PM PDT by calex59
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To: Spunky

Amen. I was going to say the same thing. Statins are suicide in a pill. They are killing my husband by degrees and He won’t go off them. First it was Sleep Apnia, then it was type 2 Diabetes, now it’s Emphezema. He’s grossly overweight and can’t lose it. Is weak and has hip pain so bad he can hardly walk. I believe it all starts with Statins. I will not take them. If I die from high Cholesterol so be it. At least I will die from only one problem instead of a dozen.


36 posted on 08/21/2011 9:44:24 PM PDT by WVNan
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To: StayoutdaBushesWay
It's not a good idea if the person is asymptomatic as it can shear off a clot and cause an embolism.

I used to have a problem with Atrial Fibrillation; it was an electrical problem, and I'd been told, when it was first diagnosed, that I might need a 'jumpstart', from time to time, or even a Cardiac Ablation.

I went to the ER on Christmas Day, 2007, with an irregular heartbeat, and difficulty in breathing, and it turned out I was in heart failure. Before they did the Cardiac ElectroConversion, the 'jumpstart', I had to have a TEE test (Trans Esophageal Echo), to make sure there were no clots in my heart that would be let loose by the Conversion. After these two procedures, I was taken in for a Heart Cath. I don't remember much about it, except I did wake up near the end, and asked the doc if there were any blockages. He said no, there wasn't even any plaque anywhere. Turns out my heart had been attacked by some sort of virus, because there was no physiological cause for the heart failure.

I continued to have A-Fib, having to have another jumpstart during that summer, so I decided to have a Cardiac Ablation. The first one was about 50% successful, so I had another, the last one being two years ago, and it seem to have solved the A-Fib, which is great! I really hated having to take blood thinners! Now I just take a low dose, daily, of a blood pressure med and an anti-arrhythmia.

37 posted on 08/21/2011 10:09:21 PM PDT by SuziQ
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To: Battle Axe

I’m very sorry for your loss.
Thank you for the message. Good work.


38 posted on 08/21/2011 10:20:49 PM PDT by patriot08 (TEXAS GAL- born and bred and proud of it!)
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To: calex59
They won't schedule a heart cath unless you are experiencing chest pain or shortness of breath, or one of several other symptoms indicating a blockage.

Or if you fail a stress test - highly recommended if there is a history of heart disease in your family. This disease is also known as 'the silent killer' because most people either don't have symptoms before the heart attack or they attribute them to other conditions. Pain can occur anywhere in the body, one guy went to a dentist thinking he had a toothache, turned out he was having a heart attack.

39 posted on 08/21/2011 11:39:08 PM PDT by fellowpatriot
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To: Battle Axe

my condolences ,Battle Axe

thank you for reminding us.


40 posted on 08/22/2011 3:12:57 AM PDT by aimee5291
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