07/06/2022
So for those who don't know the whole story, I just came home from the hospital tonight. I was at work on the 4th at one of my riskier jobs. During a routine part of the day, there was a high-risk incident that occurred and during my attempts to control the situation and secure the site, I began experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath, feeling lightheaded, trembling, and slight confusion.
(And yes, as far as I'm aware, I was able to successfully control the situation and secure the site without incident aside from my health scare)
My partner reacted quickly and called 911 to request medical assistance to evaluate my condition. Nashville Fire Department was on scene within minutes and performed a battery of tests on-site. My heart was was incredibly high and my blood pressure was at potentially life-threatening levels. EMTs advised me to go to the hospital for stabilizing treatment and evaluation.
Upon arriving at the ER, they took a variety of blood tests and began introducing various medications to lower my blood pressure and heart rate and bring my body temperature back down. The lab results showed elevated cardiac enzymes indicating current damage happening to the heart. The decision was made to keep me overnight for observation and perform cardiac tests in the morning.
This morning, my blood pressure and heart rate had finally stabilized along with my temperate. They performed an echo-cardiogram and a treadmill stress test while continuing to monitor lab tests. After a scary several hours, the doctors have determined that while my heart may have been sustaining damage during the events that took place yesterday there appears to be no lasting damage or loss of heart function. Coupled with the stress of recent events, the adrenaline involved in handling the situation, and heat exhaustion - my body and the circumstances were demanding far more from my heart that it was able to deliver. This could have resulted in a mild heart attack the lasted mere minutes until the situation was resolved and I was able to being recovering.
The doctor has ordered a few days of rest and avoiding stress as much as possible but has given an excellent prognosis. A follow-up with my primary care doctor and a few changes to some medication to help strengthen my heart should prove to be all that's needed to avoid another scenario.
To all who knew about the situation, I thank you for checking in on me. For those who were unaware of this, I wanted to keep it fairly quiet until I had actual results to report.
