Ye ole Cafe

[Rose5555]

Sorry to hear about your discs and heart attack B2G! I had read somewhere else on this site that you had problems with your discs but never knew you had had a major heart attack. Can't imagine how that must have been. If you don't mind me asking, do you know what caused it? - feel free to not answer.

I_S, Fireplaces, Rose555, thank you for your concern - It is very much appreciated, but quite unnecessary :-)

I woke up one morning barely able to breathe, it felt like there was an elephant sitting on my chest.  No other side effects such as numbness or shooting pains in my arms or legs, but I couldn't get enough air in my lungs to summon the energy to sit up.  My wife and I sleep in separate bedrooms (because I'm a snoring monster), she's upstairs and I'm in the basement, so I was lucky I keep my cell phone right next to me every night (never know when I'll be called in to work).  I was able to use the cell phone to dial 911, which scared my wife to death, as you might imagine, she had no idea what was going on in my room, and it was 5AM, and up roll a fire truck, an ambulance, and a police car, their occupants banging on the door.

The EMTs couldn't figure out how to best stabilize me other than to put me on oxygen, and the ER doctor kept me on that while he did an angiogram and blood work.  He seemed both surprised and interested at the results - My cholesterol (LDL and HDL) were right in the normal range, there were no blockages in my coronary arteries, yet 1/4 of the right side of my heart was covered with scar tissue, indicating I had had a heart attack some time ago and never noticed it. He brought in a cardiac specialist to confer, and what they found after seemingly endless tests was that the heart attack itself was at least three years in the past, based on the scar tissue, but they did eventually narrow down the cause of it - What I have is pulmonary hypertension, a type of high blood pressure that affects arteries in the lungs and the right side of the heart.

Shortness of breath, dizziness, and chest pressure are symptoms.

The condition worsens over time, it does not improve, but medications and oxygen therapy help lessen symptoms and improve quality of life.  Not to "woe is me" or create drama where none is necessary, but the condition is almost certainly going to ensure I don't live to a ripe old age...Which is why I carry so much bloody expensive life insurance on myself as well as sock everything possible into the 401K and make extra payments against the principal on our mortgage...If the worst happens, our house will be paid off, and my wife will have an annuity established that will actually pay her more on a monthly basis than I make now - Plus, she won't have any bills...All of the plastic is in my name, so she can just sent them a death certificate and voila - Debt free, home paid for, and an annuity that will take care of her for more years than she likely has remaining, which will split into three smaller annuity accounts (one for each of our kids) when Thanatos comes for her.

And as Forrest Gump might say, "That's all I have to say about that".

Best,

- b2g

Excellent post in every way. 
Obviously I'm not saying your condition is excellent but how you have faced it head on AND set your SO up for life, if the worst case scenario happens, is very admirable!

I entirely agree; it absolutely sucks that you have had to deal with such a serious health issue in your life - but my goodness, you are dealing with it so well, so thoroughly and so sensibly. That's what counsellors will always tell you; you can't affect what happens to you, only the way you react to it. I am full of admiration for you because of how you are dealing with this unfair blow.