Neil - your experience is a fairly close mirror of my own. Back in February 2005 I lit up my pipe (for what turned out to be the last time), put 50p in a ticket machine in a local car park - and promptly had a heart attack (there's no truth in the rumour that this was down to the shock of parting with 50p!). Like you, I had pains in the arm, someone tightening a wide belt across my chest and chronic nausea - and apparently I was greyer than my hair, which is saying a lot.
Within two hours, I'd had a trip to hospital under blues and twos, an assessment, and a stent fitted into my chest (via the femoral artery at the top of my thigh). Luckily, I was not allergic to any of the usual drugs used in these circumstances and was able to leave hospital a week later, have a month off work (no driving either) and then go back to 'normal' - but what was normal?
- On the day of the heart attack, once I came out of the anaesthetic, I asked my wife to go home and dustbin my pipe, baccy etc.
- We hid the salt pot away, together with the frying pan
- We finished what we had in the butter dish, and replaced it with olive oil based margerine
- We bought a pill box to keep me on track with daily doses of Atenolol, Simvastatin, Aspirin and Ramipril
Now, 15 years later, I've just had my annual review with a specialist Coronary Heart Disease Nurse and at the moment, it's all green lights.
I think what I'm trying to say is that, in many respects, heart problems can be dealt with, can actually extend your life (because you're pushed into a healthier lifestyle) and don't really interfere with the way you go about your business. Five years ago I was diagnosed as Type 2 diabetic - but with the healthier diet I had already adopted, plus a few more adjustments, I have been able to keep this under control without any more pills to rattle around inside me.
My sincere best wishes to you.
Rod