Member Profiles
KAREN
I was a fairly healthy woman, or so I thought, in my mid forties with two young children. I had my daughter at 40, and my son at 42....so my activity levels were quite high when my problems began. Oh yes, I also need to mention that I was smoking at the time, and had been for about 25 years.
One day I was outside trying to empty my children's wading pool..which was
extremely heavy. The next day I went school shopping with my two older
daughters and began receiving shooting pains in my left arm. This I attributed
to carrying lot of clothes on my left arm around the store. I saw down and
rested and it went away. I then began to notice a pain in my upper spine,
between my shoulder blades and pain in both hands noticed while folding clothes.
I went to my family doctor then because this pain was getting to be a real
nuisance thinking I had pulled a muscle or pinched a nerve. My doctor said he
thought it was just a pinched nerve, my EKG was fine, and gave me not only pain
relievers, muscle relaxants, but "nitro" in case the pain gets severe and doesn't
go away....and just to be sure he scheduled a Cardiolyte stress test. I did the
stress test without any problems. Several days later when lifting a couch I
experienced chest pain so I went to the ER. After being monitored for 6 hours,
and having a normal EKG I was sent home with the diagnosis of muscle sprain.
About a week later I was driving to the doctor's to receive the results of my
stress test when I became so dizzy I don't know how I drove there, or got into
the office where I just about collapsed. I was then rushed to the Intensive Care
Unit because my stress test was abnormal. I was transferred to another hospital
and had an angiogram, and it was discovered my mian coronary artery was 98%
blocked. I was told I was lucky, that usually heart attacks at that spot were
fatal. I had a stent placement and have had no problems for 5 years now. I just
want women to know that if they have any weird symptoms (as my hand pain) to find
a doctor who will take the time to look for a real reason of their
pain...everyone, especially women, experience cardiac related problems
differently. I was lucky, and want you to be too!
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