Hi heartwife,

Well I just had my first HA at age 58 on 2/13. Out of the blue with near perfect health before. And all I can say is the mental shock is deep. I have been sooo depressed since then. And being alone makes it so much worse. Your husband is VERY lucky to have you. I would say don't attempt to minimize what he is probably going through but just be supportive and understanding as you can be. Which you probably zlready are judging from your comments above. Best of luck and I hope and pray for you. Peter

My husband has a massive HA at the age of 42, it helps to realize that both of you went through it. He may have had the HA but you also went through it because you are picking up the pieces and trying to help him, best advice help each other. Feb. 28th will make the 4 year mark for my husband, still on all his meds but if he didn't take them he probably wouldn't be here, so keep your head up!

Things can always be worse, trust me. Your husband made it through his heart attack, and although 40 is young to be having a heart attack of any sort, it is also a good age to recover from a heart attack. At least thats what i am telling myself, you see Im 29 (yes you read that right twenty nine) and i just had the same heart attack on Feb 18/14 as your husband, except my stent is covering two blockages not just the one. This is just a temporary set back. Im taking this as an opportunity to start off fresh, i truly believe i am in a better position to improve on my health than i was 2 weeks ago, at least i am getting some blood flow now so i can do some activities? just a thought but if you're always focused on the negative side of things you'll never see the positive

29..yikes. Mark15 I admire your attitude. Peter

Thank you for your replies. We are slowly trying to adjust. My husband is having a very hard time getting used to the new diet. He hates eating at home every day. Earlier he went out 4-5 times a week!! I think I am also confused about that. If we go out once a week, does he always need to watch the sodium etc or is it ok once a week to indulge a little?? Very confusing. And wow! Heart attack at 29?! I admire your attitude. I'm trying to be positive but am still very shaken. I feel like all our life's plans have changed...

Heartwife,
totally with you on what the heck to eat. I wander through the grocery store mentally eliminating almost everything except some veggies, nuts and fish. Today I bought some Girl Scout cookies from a girl (duh) who showed up at our office. 2 boxes and I felt like I had sinned. Haha. Against myself? It is really life-changing and not in a very good way. But things could always be worse..so I keep repeating.

Thats been my biggest struggle too, diets suck. End of story. I don't know what kind of shape your husband is in physically but personally i am 5' 9" (ish i think) and was walking around at 190-195 before my heart attack which was the biggest i have ever been before. My doctor told me as far as diet is concerned I should be sticking to the food guide so no more than 1500MG of sodium daily and keep the cholesterol levels below 35-45MG daily. NO red meats (which i personally LOVE steak like every other guy on the planet I'm sure) and that poultry and fish were my best bets. I know its not what your husband wants to hear but...

The diet change was hard for me too, and I was already on a healthy diet. Everything tasted bland without sodium, and it took a long time (a couple of years) to really adjust, but now industrial food tastes so salty and greasy that it doesn't tempt me anymore. Your taste buds adjust very quickly to salty food, so it's especially important not to backslide -- you don't want to have to start adjusting all over again.

You have both just had the biggest shock of your lives. No matter how much you wish it, you can't go back to the way things were before. I encourage both you and your husband to be active in this forum, and to spend some time reading back through older posts about other people's experiences. I know it really helped me to learn that others were going through changes much like my own.

My EF is in the low 40% range. That's enough damage to slow you down, but it won't stop you. Your doctor is right about the heart being stunned. Your husband's energy level will improve, very slowly, over the next year.

hey heartwife,


I had a widowmaker 3 yrs ago at age 50, resulting in a LAD stent.


No heart issues before and I never smoked or drank. Was not grossly overweight. (I did like fatty & salty foods though.)


So changed my diet and lost 25 lbs. Went back to work almost immediately but was careful to reduce stress on the job.


After 5 months was able to get back to all my pre-HA activities.


For me, the major issue was anxiety (and at first an inability to sleep).


Prescription meds for anxiety & to sleep helped a lot during those tough 5 months. Once I was able to somewhat trust my heart again, things got a lot better and I discontinued those meds. Initially every little twinge or slight pressure anywhere in my chest or shoulders made me pause and wonder if something bad was going to happen. It didn't.


I still take Lipitor & three other meds daily, but they don't seem to have significant adverse effects.


Things will get better, for both you and your husband. He's a survivor and with your great support your lives should get back on track.

Thank you all. And Jay, could I ask what your EF was after the heart attack and then later? Did it improve? What he's currently having the hardest time with is giving up good he loves. He's lost 10 lb but was a really thin guy to start with! But the giving up of fatty food and exercise has made him lose more... We saw a nutritionist which helped. So here's a question. Do you all never indulge anymore, ever? What about salt? Nutritionist said his bp is not high and has never been so salt should be controlled but it's not the most important. Saturated and trans fat is.

By the way heartwife:

Just yesterday big new study published questioning the link between fatty diet and heart disease. Large controlled study reported in Annals of Internal Medicine. Or here is link to a popular take on it. This just gets more confusing all the time!

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/blogs/daily-dose/2014/03/19/new-study-fuels-debate-dietary-fats-and-heart-disease/ni2udnGRteJ4DGuamv0VCL/blog.html

Peter

hi heartwife,

my EF afterwards was significantly diminished and hasn't rebounded much, but since I have a desk job and only golf recreationally, I have been able to do everything I did before.

My cardiologist said that patients shouldn't get caught up in numbers, but focus on doing the best they can. I hadn't run since high school basketball anyway, so it seems my EF is more a theoretical construct rather than an actual obstacle. Recently I had to walk up thirteen flights of stairs in a building, and could do it easily (with a short pause halfway up).

Others have posted that they indulge once a week or so. Every now and then I have some cookies or potato chips or a candy bar. I've done some backsliding, but overall my diet is so much better now.

As long as I'm sensible, everything is on the menu.

Hello Heartwife,

Listen to the cardiologist, your husband's 40% EF is good. Take one day at a time. Throw out the salt and if you must, replace it with sea salt. Life is STILL full of possibilities.

I'm a cancer survivor, going on 16 yrs. I was diagnosed with level 3-4 CHF a year ago after being misdiagnosed with asthma for six months. My first EF was 20%, then it went down to 5% right before Christmas. It's now up to 15%. Thanks Obamacare, I'm finally getting a defibrillator implanted. I want to live a long life for not only myself but for my kids and grandkids. I'm not about to give up now - I beat cancer - I can beat this too!

wow LRay thats incredible

heartwife I was told by my cardiologist that with salt levels i should stay around the recommended levels for everyone which is 1500MG sodium per day, but they also told me that I can "borrow" from other days, so if i have a couple really good days where I am at 1000MG or so then i can have a day where i indulge a little more. No one can just stop there bad habits overnight and its unrealistic to expect anyone to do their diet perfectly.