heartWomen’s Specialists had the distinction of celebrating one of our employees recently. Tammy was honored at the Go Red for Women luncheon sponsored by the American Heart Association.  Her story is important because many women ignore the symptoms.  See Tammy’s story below.

 

“I had my heart attack on the evening of July 31, 2016 at 47 years old. In hindsight, I started having symptoms 48 hours prior. I left work on a Friday evening with shoulder blade pain. I figured it was a knot and had my husband rub it that night. It continued intermittently through Saturday and was starting to make my fingers tingle. I took Tylenol and Advil and that relieved a little of the discomfort but I had a dull ache that felt like it was in the bone. I woke up on Sunday feeling so much better. I relaxed most of the day and decided early evening I was going to vacuum the pool. That was all it took. I went inside, sat on the couch and had the most excruciating chest pain, down my arm, up my neck into my jaw. I fell to the floor. I knew exactly what it had to be. I realized with my first grandbaby just 6 weeks away and my family witnessing this that I had to go to the Emergency Room. I did not want to be a statistic. The EKG was normal but my labs were not. I went to the cath lab with a 90% blockage of my LAD artery and had a stent placed. I have no family history, no high cholesterol and no high blood pressure.  Very happily 6 weeks later I spent another night in the hospital and witnessed the beautiful birth of my grandbaby Brielle Mae.”

 

Tammy’s story is not unique as many women miss the warnings signs.  If you have any of the following symptoms, be proactive and seek help.

  • Shortness of breath.
  • Pain in the back, neck, jaw or one or both arms.
  • Cold sweat, nausea/vomiting or lightheadedness.
  • Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, or pain in the center of your chest that lasts more than a few minutes. This pain can go away and then come back.

 

If you have any of these signs, call 9-1-1 and get to a healthcare facility right away.