Skiing post Heart Attack

[Jilly]

Oh much better than normal!!

 

[slowrider]

3 minutes flat line, plaque tear. Rebooted then a stent and 3 days in the hospital. A week later skiing. Short on air on the mt and 6 months to recover. Now it's all about technique.

 

[Tricia]

I have a weakness for French Gruyere cheese marinated in Rye Whisky ,..... mixed with cheese curds & melted over the top of fries with gravy, it is a truly evil combination.....

Dang, dude that's a heart attack on a plate.

 

[Main Street]

Dang, dude that's a heart attack on a plate.

It's now an "annual" allowance / indulgence.....

Still drink good booze & eat good food though,.... Moderation is the key.

 

[Main Street]

3 minutes flat line, plaque tear. Rebooted then a stent and 3 days in the hospital. A week later skiing. Short on air on the mt and 6 months to recover. Now it's all about technique.

I work away, close enough to sea level for two weeks at a time & the first day or two back home on mountain is always a bit of a struggle,.... Less so now at the increased EF, but I feel it none the less.

 

[DanoT]

I have never actually had poutine as I am too fat as it is...but now that a Poutine & Perogies eatery is opening at Sun Peaks this coming winter...

 

[Main Street]

I have never actually had poutine as I am too fat as it is...but now that a Poutine & Perogies eatery is opening at Sun Peaks this coming winter...

I'm married to a Canadian with a French / Ukrainian background,...... It's the best of both worlds,.... Her Poutine is awesome & her scratch made Perogies are to die for.

 

[HDSkiing]

Some scary stories there, glad you guys are still here and skiing

Aside from trying to stay fit by being a bit of a gym rat off season I’m hoping my fondness for good scotch along with red wine with my steaks and high cholesterol meals keeps my blood thin, and the pipes clean, at least that’s my back up plan

 

[Fuller]

81 mg Aspirin per day and statin drugs (Atorvastatin) - I'll be doing those for the rest of my life. I tend to think my case was a bit of an outlier in that my Dr had me on a statins 10 years ago but my total cholesterol had dropped and I stopped taking them. I guess that was a mistake. I was supposed to be taking the 81mg aspirin but I was already taking a lot of Excedrin for headaches so it never happened. There are some people that complain about side effects from statins but they never bothered me - I just didn't like the idea of having to take something everyday.

 

[Fuller]

Rowed a new 2000M personal best today at 7:58

Maxed out my heart rate for the last 2 minutes, It didn't kill me!

 

[Nic]

Hi,
First of all, let me say how pleased I am to have found this forum. You folks give me hope.

I'm 46, always been fairly fit, skiing, cycling, diving. I taught fencing 6 days a week. Suffered my MI in my sleep 11 months ago, so it didn't get noticed quickly, and I lost a lot of heart function. It was down to about 20% afterwards and recovery has been a hard road. Had two stents and a defibrillator installed post event. I have no idea what my EF is now, I just hope it's more than 20. They tell me I'm high risk.

But I cannot wait to get back on the mountain. It's literally the thing that's been keeping me going for the last year, so hearing these stories about people who have managed it is wonderful, I'm so pleased for you all. Not least because it gives me hope that I might manage it too.

I took myself up to the base station at 1600m (5250ft) last month. It was okay. Just okay. Not great. Walking up steps left me a somewhat breathless and that made me a bit concerned, because if that's the case at 1600, what am I going to be like at 2000, 2500? I know altitude puts a strain on things, as does skiing itself. Does anyone have any advice, beyond keeping up with the fitness work and diet, about working at higher altitudes with a lowered EF? Season starts in three months, and I don't want to miss it again. Ever.

All the best, and thanks again for saying what you already have.

Nic

 

[Tricia]

Hi,
First of all, let me say how pleased I am to have found this forum. You folks give me hope.

I'm 46, always been fairly fit, skiing, cycling, diving. I taught fencing 6 days a week. Suffered my MI in my sleep 11 months ago, so it didn't get noticed quickly, and I lost a lot of heart function. It was down to about 20% afterwards and recovery has been a hard road. Had two stents and a defibrillator installed post event. I have no idea what my EF is now, I just hope it's more than 20. They tell me I'm high risk.

But I cannot wait to get back on the mountain. It's literally the thing that's been keeping me going for the last year, so hearing these stories about people who have managed it is wonderful, I'm so pleased for you all. Not least because it gives me hope that I might manage it too.

I took myself up to the base station at 1600m (5250ft) last month. It was okay. Just okay. Not great. Walking up steps left me a somewhat breathless and that made me a bit concerned, because if that's the case at 1600, what am I going to be like at 2000, 2500? I know altitude puts a strain on things, as does skiing itself. Does anyone have any advice, beyond keeping up with the fitness work and diet, about working at higher altitudes with a lowered EF? Season starts in three months, and I don't want to miss it again. Ever.

All the best, and thanks again for saying what you already have.

Nic

Welcome Nic!
Glad you're here to ski another day.
We recently skied with @lsfaki in Utah who was skiing for the first time since his open heart surgery.
It has given me a new appreciation.

 

[Fuller]

Hi,
First of all, let me say how pleased I am to have found this forum. You folks give me hope.

I'm 46, always been fairly fit, skiing, cycling, diving. I taught fencing 6 days a week. Suffered my MI in my sleep 11 months ago, so it didn't get noticed quickly, and I lost a lot of heart function. It was down to about 20% afterwards and recovery has been a hard road. Had two stents and a defibrillator installed post event. I have no idea what my EF is now, I just hope it's more than 20. They tell me I'm high risk.

But I cannot wait to get back on the mountain. It's literally the thing that's been keeping me going for the last year, so hearing these stories about people who have managed it is wonderful, I'm so pleased for you all. Not least because it gives me hope that I might manage it too.

I took myself up to the base station at 1600m (5250ft) last month. It was okay. Just okay. Not great. Walking up steps left me a somewhat breathless and that made me a bit concerned, because if that's the case at 1600, what am I going to be like at 2000, 2500? I know altitude puts a strain on things, as does skiing itself. Does anyone have any advice, beyond keeping up with the fitness work and diet, about working at higher altitudes with a lowered EF? Season starts in three months, and I don't want to miss it again. Ever.

All the best, and thanks again for saying what you already have.

Nic

I wish I had some specific, useful advice for you Nic but I reckon you're in good hands medically speaking and following Dr's orders. The only thing that is really under your control is the will to recover but it counts for a lot.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread I'm one lucky SOB to be back at 100% but I still think about it and it gives me the creeps sometimes. On a positive note I think I'm a better person for the experience. Not that I'd want to repeat it..

Take care and enjoy whatever part of the mountain you can. White snow, green trees and blue sky can heal a man in a hurry!

 

[Main Street]

Hi,
First of all, let me say how pleased I am to have found this forum. You folks give me hope.

I'm 46, always been fairly fit, skiing, cycling, diving. I taught fencing 6 days a week. Suffered my MI in my sleep 11 months ago, so it didn't get noticed quickly, and I lost a lot of heart function. It was down to about 20% afterwards and recovery has been a hard road. Had two stents and a defibrillator installed post event. I have no idea what my EF is now, I just hope it's more than 20. They tell me I'm high risk.

But I cannot wait to get back on the mountain. It's literally the thing that's been keeping me going for the last year, so hearing these stories about people who have managed it is wonderful, I'm so pleased for you all. Not least because it gives me hope that I might manage it too.

I took myself up to the base station at 1600m (5250ft) last month. It was okay. Just okay. Not great. Walking up steps left me a somewhat breathless and that made me a bit concerned, because if that's the case at 1600, what am I going to be like at 2000, 2500? I know altitude puts a strain on things, as does skiing itself. Does anyone have any advice, beyond keeping up with the fitness work and diet, about working at higher altitudes with a lowered EF? Season starts in three months, and I don't want to miss it again. Ever.

All the best, and thanks again for saying what you already have.

Nic

Hi Nic,

Good to see you on the road to recovery.

I've had some setbacks with mine and I've had to make some significant adjustments.

The decision that skiing is not really a part of my life going forward was not an easy one, but my very candid conversation with my Cardiologist in conjunction with a bitterly cold winter of 2017 \18 tipped me over the edge.

As such, we have moveed to a lakeside home in the valley with a boat & convertable where life in general is much easier on my heart. Most recently we have bought an oceanside villa in the Yucatan and we will be spending Canadian winters there going forward.

Everyone is different of course, but when you mention that you were struggling a little at 1600 m, then you really do need to listen to what your body is telling you.... Altitude really messes with me too,.... along with the cold.

For instance,.... Coming back from our villa yesterday we had a 6 hour stopover in Mexico City,...... the airport is at over 2000 m and I really struggled to walk around much without becoming breathless...... It just reinforced my decision to get off the mountain and put my skis away.

The focus for me now is golf and beach fishing..... You may need to be open to changes in your circumstances and just be happy with what you have now, rather than yearning for what may no longer be possible.

I wish you all the best.

Cheers,..... MS.

 

[Nic]

Tricia, thanks. Very glad to be here. It's a great forum you've got. Recovering from heart damage isn't easy. Better to take the long view in my opinion.

Fuller, thanks for the support. You are indeed very fortunate to make a full recovery. I'll be happy with 75%, it's the best they reckon I can manage. That'll allow me to do most things, just slower. The will is certainly strong.

Main Street, I'm sorry to hear you've had to hang the skis up. I've had to stop fencing, which is about the only thing I've been doing as long as skiing, and that hit me hard. I'm taking comfort in being only 11 months post event. The improvement has felt slow, but I'm a lot better than I was after my discharge. I'm hoping it keeps slowly continuing.
I generally prefer the cold to the warm. Work took me to Rome this January just gone, and the low temperatures (0C or so) were bliss compared to NZ's summer at 25-30C. Didn't really have a problem on the plane, though. That said, I know what bad weather is like on the mountain, and how it takes the energy away. That's definitely a concern I'll need to factor in, so dealing with the cold *and* the altitude have to be on my priority list.

Ultimately, like you, this is a *need* right now. If it turns out I can't manage it, I'll cross that bridge. Until then, I'm focussing on my return with the diligence of a climber planning his ascent. Baby steps first. Fortunately (?) I still have to teach my youngest to ski, so it may even work out.

 

[Bolder]

I'm going to exhume this thread as it's suddenly become relevant to me.

53 YO, hard core cyclist, fit as a fiddle. Out for a jog end of April -- wham! Full-on cardiac arrest after some plaque detatched in my circumflex. I was saved by a passing reserve firefighter who gave me CPR by herself for 15 minutes, took charge of the scene and sent someone else to get a defibrillator. Then had a heart attack in the hospital. (I was not conscious for any of this, luckily)

Docs said I had a 5% chance of survival. But I did.

So every day since then has been a bonus.

Recovery hasn't been linear, but thanks to CPR right away, good drugs and good luck my ejection fraction is back to normal range, in high 50s, so very stoked about that. Still feeling a bit shaky and on a cocktail of drugs (I wound up with 4 stents, 2 in circumflex and 2 in LAD after 90% blockage found there -- I was basically a ticking time bomb).

BUT, I've set a goal of skiing again starting in March, road cycling in the spring and some longboarding next summer.

I'm basically starting from scratch, fitness wise as I was in the hospital for a few weeks then flat on my back in bed for a month, then wore a defibrillator vest for four months, just got the green light to take it off in mid September...

I've done a cardiac rehab course, did pretty well on a stress test ... so I'm basically cleared to do almost anything. My problem is that I just can't get over the psychological hurdle of pushing my HR over, say, 130 bpm. I have been seen a therapist who specializes in trauma (PTSD type symptoms are very common post CA/HA), but anyone here who's gone to the other side and come back to ski or push yourself have any advice, either conditioning wise or psychologically?

I've been told no anti-anxiety drugs under any circumstances, so my Merlot/Valium cocktail plans are out the window...

TIA...

 

[Tricia]

I'm going to exhume this thread as it's suddenly become relevant to me.

53 YO, hard core cyclist, fit as a fiddle. Out for a jog end of April -- wham! Full-on cardiac arrest after some plaque detatched in my circumflex. I was saved by a passing reserve firefighter who gave me CPR by herself for 15 minutes, took charge of the scene and sent someone else to get a defibrillator. Then had a heart attack in the hospital. (I was not conscious for any of this, luckily)

Docs said I had a 5% chance of survival. But I did.

So every day since then has been a bonus.

Recovery hasn't been linear, but thanks to CPR right away, good drugs and good luck my ejection fraction is back to normal range, in high 50s, so very stoked about that. Still feeling a bit shaky and on a cocktail of drugs (I wound up with 4 stents, 2 in circumflex and 2 in LAD after 90% blockage found there -- I was basically a ticking time bomb).

BUT, I've set a goal of skiing again starting in March, road cycling in the spring and some longboarding next summer.

I'm basically starting from scratch, fitness wise as I was in the hospital for a few weeks then flat on my back in bed for a month, then wore a defibrillator vest for four months, just got the green light to take it off in mid September...

I've done a cardiac rehab course, did pretty well on a stress test ... so I'm basically cleared to do almost anything. My problem is that I just can't get over the psychological hurdle of pushing my HR over, say, 130 bpm. I have been seen a therapist who specializes in trauma (PTSD type symptoms are very common post CA/HA), but anyone here who's gone to the other side and come back to ski or push yourself have any advice, either conditioning wise or psychologically?

I've been told no anti-anxiety drugs under any circumstances, so my Merlot/Valium cocktail plans are out the window...

TIA...

Wow, just wow!
This stuff comes out of the blue. So glad you're upright and able to start planning to get back to some semblance of normal activity.

Here's a shout out to the firefighter who saved your life.

 

[Blue Streak]

Hang in there!
Glad to hear you’re making progress!
Mine was not nearly as bad as yours, but I was 100%, 99%, and 80% blocked. I saved the Doc’s sketch of where he put in the stents.
Eight years later, I feel fine.
But the worry never goes away.

 

[MountainMonster]

I'm going to exhume this thread as it's suddenly become relevant to me.

53 YO, hard core cyclist, fit as a fiddle. Out for a jog end of April -- wham! Full-on cardiac arrest after some plaque detatched in my circumflex. I was saved by a passing reserve firefighter who gave me CPR by herself for 15 minutes, took charge of the scene and sent someone else to get a defibrillator. Then had a heart attack in the hospital. (I was not conscious for any of this, luckily)

Docs said I had a 5% chance of survival. But I did.

So every day since then has been a bonus.

Recovery hasn't been linear, but thanks to CPR right away, good drugs and good luck my ejection fraction is back to normal range, in high 50s, so very stoked about that. Still feeling a bit shaky and on a cocktail of drugs (I wound up with 4 stents, 2 in circumflex and 2 in LAD after 90% blockage found there -- I was basically a ticking time bomb).

BUT, I've set a goal of skiing again starting in March, road cycling in the spring and some longboarding next summer.

I'm basically starting from scratch, fitness wise as I was in the hospital for a few weeks then flat on my back in bed for a month, then wore a defibrillator vest for four months, just got the green light to take it off in mid September...

I've done a cardiac rehab course, did pretty well on a stress test ... so I'm basically cleared to do almost anything. My problem is that I just can't get over the psychological hurdle of pushing my HR over, say, 130 bpm. I have been seen a therapist who specializes in trauma (PTSD type symptoms are very common post CA/HA), but anyone here who's gone to the other side and come back to ski or push yourself have any advice, either conditioning wise or psychologically?

I've been told no anti-anxiety drugs under any circumstances, so my Merlot/Valium cocktail plans are out the window...

TIA...

I also had a massive HA, left Main, "Widow Maker" in June 2015 at 57, skied 162 days that following season, still ski hard, just in shorter bursts.
As Blue Streak said the worry never goes away.
Im grateful to be alive, skiing is the passion & what makes me the happiest so I try to tuck the worries away.
Good luck, stay happy

 

[Bolder]

Wow, just wow!
This stuff comes out of the blue. So glad you're upright and able to start planning to get back to some semblance of normal activity.

Here's a shout out to the firefighter who saved your life.

She was incredible. She just happened to be in the park and it was the first time she'd done CPR outside of a training session (she's 23). I think I mentioned we live in France; the government gave her a medal for, essentially, heroism. To do solo CPR for 15 minutes is serious work, especially because she's about 115 pounds.

We've met up with her and her boyfriend (also a firefighter) a few times for lunch/drinks and both times I've broken down into tears. I'm not a spiritual person but I'm struggling a bit with why I was chosen to be saved.

I also had a massive HA, left Main, "Widow Maker" in June 2015 at 57, skied 162 days that following season, still ski hard, just in shorter bursts.
As Blue Streak said the worry never goes away.
Im grateful to be alive, skiing is the passion & what makes me the happiest so I try to tuck the worries away.
Good luck, stay happy

Thanks for the encouragement!

I really was in good shape but I ignored my family history a bit. My father had heart issues but he also smoked heavily, and my brother has high cholesterol that he's controlled with statins. My cholesterol level was on the high side of normal, but I always felt great, and honestly didn't want to deal with/think about my heart so i just convinced myself everything was OK...Clearly not!

My cardiologist says being in good shape is a mixed blessing -- if you have a really strong heart it finds alternative paths around blockages so you won't necessarily get chest pains before a full-on HA. On the other hand I've been able to recover my ejection fraction and don't have to worry about losing weight, modifying diet much, or adopting a lifestyle that incorporates fitness...

I've been riding my indoor trainer and starting to do some exercise band routines but I think this year it's going to be cruising the groomers...but that first day on skis is going to be incredible!