OT: Heart Attack

[BobO]

Thanks for all the well wishes.

Originally Posted by nalax

BobO - good to hear that you are on the road to recovery. How did they determine that there was no blockage?
.

Via a contrast angio.

[Chris]

Originally Posted by Mark McM

I'm asking because I don't know, so here goes ...

Smoking anything is generally bad for you, but there are more ways to ingest MJ (or active ingredient THC) than just smoking. Is anything known about the effect on the heart for other ways MJ may be to ingested?

In an effort to be consistent with my ideals expressed above, I will try not to extrapolate. Here's the rub in regards to other forms of marijuana derivatives. Marinol (medical THC) has been used and has been shown to decrease stress on the vascular system, primarily through the lowering of blood pressure. This is a good thing. Getting someone to go home with a prescription for a controlled means of ingesting THC compared to the preferred self-administered dosing is a difficult task. There are no cure alls. Some of marijuana's purported benefits are snake oil. Some likely have greater effects than have been realized because of the lack of research. But trust me, research is being done. There are interested parties in every demographic promoting research. I get that Jeff Sessions isn't psyched by it, but there are plenty of people who are interested.

The problem I had earlier is that just recommending marijuana or any other substance as a cure all and describing how much better it is for you than something that is regulated is just poor practice and ill informed.

[gasman]

Glad to hear you're okay. it's uncanny how many supposedly healthy people are walking around with coronary artery disease. Your risk increases with age and being male.
I had a cardiac calcium scan done the other day- miscode was quite low but not zero. I looked at the scans and saw two small are with calcium that can indicate plaque. Need to take my 81 mg aspirin a day, exercise and have a good diet.

It's too bad there aren't really any good studies about marijuana-just anecdotal reports. Since it's a schedule 1 drug ( no known medical purpose) the feds will never fund a study and the NIH would be a natural to fund studies.

[cadence90]

.... ..
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[54ny77]

Damned good thread. Should be a sticky.

Feel better OP!

[Blown Reek]

Originally Posted by Likes2ridefar

Smoking isn’t the only route and there is very little science for obvious reasons.

But don't tell the kool aid drinkers that. Marijuana usage is exactly as you see in Reefer Madness.

[Avispa]

This article is a good start for reference:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/...n_3112800.html

Originally Posted by BobO

Just a PSA that I learned the hard way. Being fit does not mean that one cannot have a heart attack. I had been under an enormous amount of stress and drinking too much coffee for several months.... The stress alone caused it.

Let me guess, was it work related stress? The amount of Adrenaline, Cortisol and Norepinephrine we release during stress is lethal in many cases.

Originally Posted by dbnm

And I take a xanax a couple nights a week to make sure I sleep through the night.

Why not a regular Melatonin complex? There are many, much healthier alternatives than these addicting drugs.

Originally Posted by BobO

I got a script for Zoloft to try to help me manage.

More damaging drugs! I do not mean to be opinionated or offensive, but there are better alternatives!

Originally Posted by Blown Reek

Medical marijuana (or any marijuana) is such a better option than nasty, dirty pharmaceuticals. Corporation-marketed poisons? Oof. Everything in moderation, though. And that includes stress and coffee.

Yes, that's a good point and start. Yes, you may take marijuana products that leave the CBD, but that not have the TCH (what makes one high) and they will be very beneficial...

Look a couple of years ago, I went through a terrible experience with work and I started to develop all kinds of physical problems. Needless to say, I was super fit for my age, yet developed Spinal Stenosis and a test even found cancer cells on my bladder! I have never been on medication other than the times I was being "treated" and never felt physically worse in my life.

I was lucky to find a way out of the situation and I was back to normal within weeks!

Stress my friends, is the worse thing one can do to their health. Do not forget to take copious amounts of antioxidants when you are under stress (vitamin c is great).... they will help you cope with the effects of stress better...

Glad to hear you are fine and have discovered there's a way out of this!

[clyde the point]

I am reading "The Haywire Heart" by Zinn and others. Recommend.

[buddybikes]

Google THC and panic, pot is fine if your mind is in good frame of mind, but come upon urgent stress and it switches the other way.

Agree with TBD oil


PS: How Avistar - how did they fix your stenosis? I had fusion in 2015 L4/L5 now my L3/L4 has severe DDD, in constant pain - another fusion will probably impact L2/L3 as well as L5/S1, so whole lumber screwed. Riding is my one excercise I can do, can't even mow the lawn anymore.

[bigbill]

I had chest pains at work (aircraft carrier in port) on 12/30/2011 and walked to medical. By the time I reached the ward, I was in a bad way. The DR put me on a gurney and took a blood sample which was positive for troponin. I chewed up 4 aspirin, was put on oxygen, and an ambulance was called. The senior medical officer (family practice) was a also a cardiologist and gave me two blood thinner shots in my belly. I actually walked off the ship and climbed into the ambulance, all the while being followed by a group of medical guys with a crash cart.

At the hospital, the cardiologist said it was an MI and made me comfortable while they ran more tests including a ECG and more EKG's. I did a stress test the next day and with contrast found no blockages. The DR believed that I had a clot and that the shots given to me on the ship are what stopped the blockage. I ended up in the hospital for 4 days and had another stress test before I was discharged. I went home with beta blockers that I took for a month until another cardiologist told me to stop. After that, I had issues with a more pronounced arrhythmia for several years.

My job was completely stressing me out, I was working about 90 hours a week trying to finish up an overhaul that was already past schedule. In hindsight, there was nothing I could do but I let it stress me to the breaking point.

In January, VA did a full on physical on me with ECG and EKG and my heart rate was normal, no arrhythmia at all with a resting HR of 50. For the pot discussion, THC is not legal here, but I use hemp-sourced CBD oil for my inflammation and arthritis and have been able to stop taking Meloxicam.

[Llewellyn]

No-one pays me enough to die of a heart attack for them. It's an approach that works for me. Glad you're OK. Definitely a wake up call

[Louis]

Originally Posted by Llewellyn

No-one pays me enough to die of a heart attack for them.

I bet most folks don't realize how bad things are and that their job (and other life factors like stress, diet, whatever) might literally been killing them until it's very late in the game, sometimes too late.

Happily, in this case it isn't too late for the OP to turn things around.

[paredown]

BobO--thanks for the share--and good luck with your recovery.

For everyone else--thanks for sharing your stories--I learned a lot.

[Black Dog]

Originally Posted by Blown Reek

But don't tell the kool aid drinkers that. Marijuana usage is exactly as you see in Reefer Madness.

From the Refer Madness description: "innocent teens partake of the “demon weed” only to find that one puff plunges them into a hilarious web of murder, sex, lunacy, and jazz music".

Just like this? Really? Jazz music....Noooooooo......

[Avispa]

Originally Posted by steveandbarb1

Google THC and panic, pot is fine if your mind is in good frame of mind, but come upon urgent stress and it switches the other way.
Agree with TBD oil

PS: How Avispa(?) - how did they fix your stenosis? I had fusion in 2015 L4/L5 now my L3/L4 has severe DDD, in constant pain - another fusion will probably impact L2/L3 as well as L5/S1, so whole lumber screwed. Riding is my one exercise I can do, can't even mow the lawn anymore.

I was lucky it was a mild case, not nearly close to fusion at all... although enough to mess me up for one month! I was also lucky that my Doc adhered to this Voltaire quote very much:
The art of medicine consists in amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.

In any case, sports massage, stretching and chiropractor visits did the trick for me more than any drug I was told to take.

I have found out that sitting for long periods of time is terrible for your back and hip arteries. So, I try to use a desk that I can move to standing position often.

Also, your body weight has ha huge impact. I am lucky my body weight is 138-140 lbs most of the time. And I stretch for 20-30 minutes almost religiously after a ride.