This is off, but I wanted to share it with you guys... (and gals)

I had a scary medical emergency yesterday evening that required me to call 911 for assistance. It really made me stop and realize I better change a few things in my life.

Last night for some odd reason my heart went crazy. My heart rate shot up to 240 beats per minute. No matter what I did I could not get it to go down. It was a very painful experience and when it first hit, it dropped me to the ground on my face. In all my heart rate was over 230 BPM's for over half an hour. I was home alone with my daughter (who scary enough was in the bath tub at the time). I finally was able to get myself up on my feet. I did a number of things to try and droy my heart rate. My wife came home from shopping and we decided a call to 911 was needed. They came by and finally got my heart rate down. Even though it dropped it was still hitting at 120 to 125 BPM's, and that's still a little high (but was way better than 240). I've had cardio problems in the past (and actually had a minor attack several years ago). I just want to let you guys and gals know that you can never be too careful, and they hit at any age. I'm considerably younger than many members here (but not the youngest). I've made a lot of changes since my last episode, but even all those changes weren't enough. Sometimes you don't realize how precious life is until you're almost on your way out.

Just wanted to share.

Squeak

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 03-23-2005).]

Squeak, get yourself checked out. Find the problem and get yourself back on track. I've let my conditioning slip since my heart attack almost 3 yrs ago. Luckily, everything else is working properly, but I can tell that my lungs and heart are not what they should (could) be. We've got to take care of ourselves. Thanks for the heads up; hope you're feeling better.

Yeah I'm going to get myself checked out. Since last nights episode I've been a little short of breath today, and I still have some stiffness on the left side of my neck.

Squeak

I am sorry to hear this. I hope your feeling better. You are so young too. What would make your heart beat so fast?
Starkeeper

I had something similar happen about 15 years ago... I'd been taking an antihistimine/decongestant for a week that you're only supposed to take like for four days. My heart rate took off and I had to go the hospital. They gave me a shot and a slap on the wrist and I was fine, and a little smarter.

Many things can cause the increased heart rate. I tell you what though, a heart rate of 240 is something you'll never forget. What happens is that your heart is beating so fast that it doesn't have time to fill up with blood before before beating again.

Pro, that was the first question the EMT's asked me when they arrived was if I had taken any cold medications. The thing is I'm not currently on any medications, and haven't taken cold medicine for nearly five months.

Squeak

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 03-23-2005).]

Squeak.....Man take this as a warning...get your butt to a DR. and find out the cause of the high heart beat rate.....all they did last night was to treat the symptoms not the cause.....DON'T WAIT UNTILL IT'S TOO LATE and everyone is standing at your grave side
saying "he was a good man, if only he went to the Dr. he would still be with us". I hope that you fair well and listen to the advise of the Dr....I'm glad that you're still with us....
Tony

Squeak,

Hang in there and get checked out. Let's hope they can figure out why this happened.

Tom

Squeak,

Get your boney butt to an internist and cardiologist NOW! If your heart rate was 240 (6-beats per second), which is nearly immeasurable with anything other than an EKG machine, you were bordering on ventricular fibrulation, a condition that usually results in death within a few minutes. This is not something to think about for a day or two--this is something you take care of right away.

A person your age, in relatively good physical condition, should have a resting heart rate of 60 to 75 at most, and an average resting blood pressure of 120/70.

If you're reading this post, when you're finished get your boney butt on the phone and call your doctor and tell him what happened. Don't talk to his secretary or receptionist--talk to him or her. If the doctor is any good at all, he or she will have you diagnosed in the next few hours. Hesitate, procrastinate, put it off and this could be the last post you read.

Good luck,

Gary

Hi Squeak,
Since you already had a past medical history of ischemic heart disease and/or cardiac arrhythmias (irregular heart beats), it is really a must on your part to be under the care of Cardiologist. After thorough physical examinations and intensive laboratory investigations being conducted, you may need to take regular medications to prevent impending recurrent onset of cardiac irregularities and attacks. Undergoing balloon angioplasty (an operative procedure to dilate the narrowing of coronary arteries for blood to flow freely) or coronary artery bypass graft as a last resort can still be preventable if you are constantly under Cardiologist's treatment with regular check ups . Hope you are feeling better now.
From Jessie