Yet another heart attack in our membership, this time it's mine

[muscle89]

arko do you have a family history of heart attaks mom , dad , brother sister before age of 60 also did you take baby aspirin 81 mg before your attack or any high hemocrit> thanks for any help bro

 

[Arko.]

arko do you have a family history of heart attaks mom , dad , brother sister before age of 60 also did you take baby aspirin 81 mg before your attack or any high hemocrit> thanks for any help bro

Both parents have treated high bp. I've never taken aspirin until this past week, its part of the protocol they have me on.
No heart attacks in either side of my family though.

 

[Arko.]

Here is a post I made on the 8th on the kimbo slice thread...

............
Makes me wonder about things...

I would have to guess the reason he lost all his muscle mass was that he stopped using gear after a warning from doctors about his heart..
Same with shamrock and other over 40 years old guys that lose their physique..
It's definitely starting to make me think about what my own future holds.
Been on for over 20yrs.. Almost never use orals, other than proviron here and there..
Hope I get at least warning signs!
RIP KIMBO, hope we can all learn from your life and this tragic loss.
................

I believe we all have instincts, an inner voice... Guess this was mine at the time!

 

[tenny]

Here is a post I made on the 8th on the kimbo slice thread...

............
Makes me wonder about things...

I would have to guess the reason he lost all his muscle mass was that he stopped using gear after a warning from doctors about his heart..
Same with shamrock and other over 40 years old guys that lose their physique..
It's definitely starting to make me think about what my own future holds.
Been on for over 20yrs.. Almost never use orals, other than proviron here and there..
Hope I get at least warning signs!
RIP KIMBO, hope we can all learn from your life and this tragic loss.
................

I believe we all have instincts, an inner voice... Guess this was mine at the time!

wow....i remember reading what you wrote here....

shit hits hard....and your never looking for it.

 

[chainheart]

Arko do you have sleep apnea and use a c-pap or bi-pap machine?


remember NO nitrix oxide...

- Dr. Louis Ignarro wrote a book "NO More Heart Disease after he discovered "the atom" of cardiovascular health--a tiny molecule called Nitric Oxide. NO, as it is known by chemists, is a signaling molecule produced by the body, and is a vasodilator that helps control blood flow to every part of the body. Dr. Ignarro's findings led to the development of Viagra. Nitric Oxide has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. NO relaxes and enlarges the blood vessels, prevents blood clots that trigger strokes and heart attacks, and regulates blood pressure and the accumulation of plaque in the blood vessels."

his book is from 2004 (i'm sure there are improvements since then. he was the one to recommended L-Arginine plus L-Citrulline - which all became history.)

 

[chinaboy]

Hope you're doing well Arko. Thanks for sharing and sorry you had to go through all this. But it's awesome of you to tell you story. Keep posting please.

 

[southoftheborder]

They allowed my wife and kids in, which felt both good and not so good because it was comforting to me but I can only imagine distressing to them. I felt a tremendous sense of guilt for putting them through it, which is hard to make sense of now.
My pain level stayed low for about 5-10mins or so, and I was talking no problem then all of a sudden shot straight back up to a 9-10 in seconds.. They said its a 2nd incident, and likely more clot had built back up so my family had to go through seeing it which I wish they hadn't.
They put me on an iv drip of nitro if I remember correctly, and gave me if dilaudid which is a painkiller..
The pain seemed to level off at a 6-7, and I remember begging them for more painkiller but they said we can only give you so much..
Over the next hour they arranged for a helicopter to take me to a hospital that was equipped to for cardiac procedures but the weather wouldn't permit so they arranged for a transfer via ambulance. At some point my pain level went up and down between a 6-7 and a 2-3...
Then they decided I needed an art line put in to get better accuracy of pressure I think they said. They prepped my left wrist, telling me this is likely to be painful..
They were right, as they attempted to put the line in they hit a nerve which I don't blame them for at all. They do the procedure by using ultrasound and insert the needle while watching the ultrasound screen so im sure its not easy..
When they finally found it, and tried to insert a line it would only go so far so they had to pull it out, and begin the whole procedure again on a different artery but after trying and trying it just wouldn't go. They explained it was because my arteries kept spasming so they abandoned the idea all together..

Thank you again for sharing your story.

This is scary and definitely a wake up call.

I think most people here on this board (me included) are recreational bodbuilders/powerlifters. Yes a lot of individuals here do bodybuilding shows but your body/physique is not what feeds you and your family. And never will. Bottom line: for the vast majority of us, its about looking better/feeling better about ourselves/ego boosting. There is nothing wrong with that (in my opinion). Just dont risk your health for a couple of extra inches on your biceps and/or more defined abs.

I dont see anything wrong with using gear as par of a lifestyle (I do it).

As long as you...

1.Use moderation

2.Monitor closely and consistently your health through blood tests.

 

[tri-terror]

Arko... wow man. Glad you made it out ok. Thank you so much for sharing.
Part of my job is drawing arterial blood gases and/or placing arterial lines.
It can be a bit tricky... if the artery is very full it can actually roll around when hit with the needle. Ultrasound like they used on you helps quite a bit. Unfortunately, as you discovered first hand, just accessing the artery isn't enough. You have to then thread the catheter. Sometimes you hit a glorious artery and just can't thread it, usually due to spasm.

The bruising is pretty normal, especially since they hit the artery. It should fade over the next week or so. The pain... should subside but if they hit your nerve, which runs right with the radial artery, there could be some permanent damage.

 

[Massive G]

Arko do you have sleep apnea and use a c-pap or bi-pap machine?


remember NO nitrix oxide...

- Dr. Louis Ignarro wrote a book "NO More Heart Disease after he discovered "the atom" of cardiovascular health--a tiny molecule called Nitric Oxide. NO, as it is known by chemists, is a signaling molecule produced by the body, and is a vasodilator that helps control blood flow to every part of the body. Dr. Ignarro's findings led to the development of Viagra. Nitric Oxide has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. NO relaxes and enlarges the blood vessels, prevents blood clots that trigger strokes and heart attacks, and regulates blood pressure and the accumulation of plaque in the blood vessels."

his book is from 2004 (i'm sure there are improvements since then. he was the one to recommended L-Arginine plus L-Citrulline - which all became history.)

Interesting you posted this I just am starting to incorporate arginine supplements into my daily regimen for just that same reason.

 

[chainheart]

Interesting you posted this I just am starting to incorporate arginine supplements into my daily regimen for just that same reason.

Dr. Ignarro's (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine) originally stated take 4000mg of L-Arginine and about 3000mg of L-Citrulline. but newer studies indicate you would best be served with 6000mg of citrulline malate rather than taking L-Arginine. it was discovered that L-Arginine breaks down in your system rather rapidly.

most citrulline doseages list 3000mg but in my experience (since 2007) i get a whole lot of extra kick on dead lift day or squat day when i dose 6000mg of citrulline malate from **broken link removed**

Articles : Jim Stoppani, Ph.D.

 

[Cornelius]

Dr. Ignarro's (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine) originally stated take 4000mg of L-Arginine and about 3000mg of L-Citrulline. but newer studies indicate you would best be served with 6000mg of citrulline malate rather than taking L-Arginine. it was discovered that L-Arginine breaks down in your system rather rapidly.

most citrulline doseages list 3000mg but in my experience (since 2007) i get a whole lot of extra kick on dead lift day or squat day when i dose 6000mg of citrulline malate from **broken link removed**

Articles : Jim Stoppani, Ph.D.

I drink 8 grams citrulline malate over a 2 hour span on workout days (generally 4 days every 6-7 days). Is that enough or should I take it also on rest days?

I am 30 years old but a hypocondriac (my father died age 47 from a blockage) plus I am prone to AFIB (my heart is fine but anxiety plus really hard training in the heat can make that nerve get out of whack). Point being I am always following these threads and trying to pick up every tip I can!

 

[maldorf]

Hi Maldorf,
No pacemaker / defibrillator. How's things going with you brother?

Well that is good, the damge wasn't catastrophic then. I am getting by ok, heart function here is maintaining and actually going up slightly after 8 years survival. The battery in my defib still has lots of life in it, and so it will be years before I am under the knife again when they have to replace it.

 

[maldorf]

Thanks Noswttea4u, that'll make it much easier for me to relate to others #'s
Ive done a lot of reading, and will likely stop the statin soon and replace it with natural alternatives, healthier diet and slowly begin light cardio daily.
My uncle had a heart attack 3 years ago, and they put him on the exact same meds. After a short time he developed side effects from the statin, muscle pains, and significant changes in blood sugar and kidney function. So he stopped it.
There are studies in Japan, and the UK, as well as a Dr. In Texas that say no one should be taking them, and that they actually cause hardening of the arteries.
And as you said, and even my various nurses said my cholesterol isn't to bad and that I have a choice if I take it or not and that its just the standard protocol for all post heart attacks.

I'd really appreciate a list of natural alternatives to control cholesterol if someone with knowledge can share.
So far I'm thinking garlic, co-q10 for heart health, niacin but I'm sure there are better options.

Ive been on Lipitor now for 8 years, things have been great for me.

 

[maldorf]

Not taking anything no. But when I'm feeling good again, and my #'s are all stable consistently I'll likely do 1-1.5iu GH/150mg test-week But no aromasin/adex because of its cholesterol sides. My heart doctor mentioned that my trt dose could come down to wherever I can be comfortable at the lowest possible dose, and that my family Dr. Should taper it rather than just cut it.
It'll be at least a month until I consider even taking anything however, and will be working closely with my Dr. For sure.

Worth noting that about 2 hours before going to the gym that day I took a 2.5cc shot 50mg test cyp/200mg mast.p and after withdrawing a lot of blood poored from the injection site.
I always aspirate, but as we all know at times you pass through a vein inadvertently which causes the bleeding. Maybe this somehow contributed to the clot that go stuck in the 80% blocked artery in my heart?

Sounds like yours was caused by a big clot like I had. You have no plaque to speak of and didn't get a stent, right? That's how mine was. I had them test me for clotting disorders and if I hadn't asked for it they would not have done it. Have you had the DNA testing to see if you have any clotting traits? I have factor 2, prothrombin disorder, and now take Coumadin for life. The Coumadin has worked out pretty well.

 

[trainhard357]

Glad that you are OK. We all think that it only happens to other people and then one day you end up being that other person. Get well.

 

[Arko.]

Sounds like yours was caused by a big clot like I had. You have no plaque to speak of and didn't get a stent, right? That's how mine was. I had them test me for clotting disorders and if I hadn't asked for it they would not have done it. Have you had the DNA testing to see if you have any clotting traits? I have factor 2, prothrombin disorder, and now take Coumadin for life. The Coumadin has worked out pretty well.

Hi M, glad things are going well with you.

Continued.....
When I arrived at the other hospital I was still virtually pain free, so they hooked me up to new iv's, and ECG/bp monitors and whatever else. It was around 2am and they determined I was stable enough not to bring the doctor in.
The following morning they did more blood testing, which determined my kidney function was down signifigantly.. I think they said creatine # was 200 but i might be off. I never got copies of all my #'s so I'm going to request everything on Monday. They said my kidney function was low enough that they were concerned if the dye from the angiogram would shut down my kidneys or not. They decided that they would first give me lots of iv fluids so it'd help flush the dye and a few hours later performed the angiogram and found an 80% blockage in an artery that feeds the lower left chamber and put a wire mesh stent in rather than the drug coated version.. I'm not sure why they chose not to use the drug coated kind, does anyone know why they would choose the kind they did?
The angiogram and stent took about 50minutes, and was surprisingly mild and easy to handle.. Getting a tooth pulled is a worse experience in my opinion!
Over the past months/ or actually more like over the past year or more I've been really tired a lot of the time, and I was definitely noticing how hard it was to work hard all day. Especially things like carrying heavy hoses up long flights of stairs and similar things.
I started a thread about a month ago I think asking about modafinil and worth noting I was on it for 4-5 weeks, both during that first incident and the actual heart attack. I was using 150-250mg/day split up into 2-3 doses. The day of the heart attack I'd taken 150mg modafinil, and 50mg armodafinil. Though I don't believe they caused the heart attack at all, I'm sure they didn't help matters either.
After they put the stent in I felt some mild discomfort in my upper chest, and neck but they said its normal and likely just because I now had much better blood flow to the area. The feeling past in 20-30minutes. They said if i had symptoms of low energy at all before, that I should see a signifigant improvement though its still to early to tell.
They put me on:
Ticagelor, amlodipine, lipitor, bisoprolol, and aspirin following the surgery. But that night I started having shortness of breath, anxiety and strange restless leg syndrome to the point I had to take some clonazepam and it was weird because it started 30-50mins after taking the ticagelor and I told them it seemed like it was because of it the next morning. They said take my next dose and see if it happens again, and it did but this time even worse so they changed me to plavix and problem solved.

 

[Arko.]

Anyone know much about d-ribose for heart attack recovery? I found a post on dats site datbetrue where a guy with major congestive heart failure had signifigantly improvements using it, and here's an article covering it as well D-Ribose: Energize Your Heart, Save Your Life - Life Extension
Sounds almost to good to be true. But I'm going to start using it tomorrow.

 

[maldorf]

stent

Oh, ok. I didn't need a Stent because all of my blockage was blood clot. Mine was 100% blocked.

I would have them do a DNA test for clotting disorders. I know of at least 2 but there are probably more disorders. Most common one I think is factor 5.

 

[nothuman]

Anyone know much about d-ribose for heart attack recovery? I found a post on dats site datbetrue where a guy with major congestive heart failure had signifigantly improvements using it, and here's an article covering it as well D-Ribose: Energize Your Heart, Save Your Life - Life Extension

Sounds almost to good to be true. But I'm going to start using it tomorrow.

I strongly recommend you use that. There are valid links literally everywhere on the internet about how good it is. I use it myself

 

[NeveReveN]

Question

First, thank God you survived this. Second, thank you for sharing your experience here for us.

My question, did your doctors say if there was anything that you could have done, any tests, that could have caught this before the attacks? I assume there were/are, but did any medical professionals say as much to you?