This is an anniversary. It’s been more than 10 years since I had open heart surgery. I was out of work for about seven weeks and returned full time at the beginning April that year.
A couple of weeks ago, I received a very long list of warning signs of a woman having a heart attack. The sender meant well. She knew of my past experience and was trying to help. I quickly e-mailed her and explained that sharp pains are not the only symptoms of heart disease, particularly for women. Like the old saying, women are different from men.
Friends of mine refer to the “heart attack” I had, but it wasn’t an attack, as such. It was heart failure – different from coronary artery disease, the most common type of heart disease. I’ve never had problems with high cholesterol (which causes artery disease). In my case, the classic symptoms of a heart attack never occurred.
But I certainly had the warnings of heart failure: shortness of breath, feeling like you can’t get enough air, extreme tiredness, swelling in ankles. At the time, I had no idea that this meant something might be wrong with my cardiovascular system. How little I knew.
For several months, the doctor thought I had bronchitis, but it turned out to be a deteriorated valve, caused by a probable childhood occurrence of undiagnosed rheumatic fever (seemed like a “strep throat,” and there was no penicillin in those days). The damage had begun. Valve replacement is a common procedure today and follow through includes being careful of what you eat, regular checkups and a little medication. And never any aspirin.
There is finally a great deal of publicity about women and cancer, especially that of the reproductive organs. This has resulted in help for millions of women. It would be wonderful if the same amount of publicity could be provided for heart disease in women. Some women wait to ask for advice because they feel if they are stressed or extremely tired, it’s “just the way things are” with their lifestyle. This isn’t always true, though.
One in three American women dies of heart disease. In 2003, almost twice as many women died of cardiovascular disease (both heart disease and stroke) than from all cancers combined. The older a woman gets, the more likely she is to get heart disease.
Both men and women have heart attacks, but more women who have heart attacks die from them.
The most common condition for women with heart disease is called CAD – Coronary Artery Disease. This is also the leading cause of heart attacks. CAD means your arteries become hard and narrow. Blood has a hard time getting to the heart. When this happens it can lead to:
– Angina, a chest pain or discomfort that feels like a pressing or squeezing pain, often in the chest but sometimes in shoulders, arms, neck, jaw or back. It can also feel like an upset stomach. Angina is NOT a heart attack. But having angina means you are more likely to have a heart attack.
– Heart attack, when an artery is severely or completely blocked and your heart doesn’t get the blood it needs for more than 20 minutes.
– Heart failure – different from a heart attack – occurs when the heart isn’t able to pump blood through the body as well as it should. Other organs which get blood from the heart are unable to get enough blood. It does not mean that your heart stops. Signs of heart failure include shortness of breath, swelling in feet or ankles or legs and extreme tiredness.
– Heart Flutters – As you get older, you are more likely to get heart arrhythmias. This feels like your heart skips a beat. One of my aunts used to have this frequently when she was quite elderly but her cardiologist did not seem alarmed. Heart arrhythmias are changes in the beat of the heart. Most people have felt dizzy, faint, out of breath or had chest pains at one time. These changes in heartbeat are, for some people, harmless. As you get older, you are more likely to have arrhythmias. Ask your doctor about it.
Women, especially as we get older, should learn as much as possible about the workings of our bodies. It’s true that with knowledge comes power. We have the power to help keep ourselves healthy. For many of us, the knowledge is the key.
For more information about heart disease and the way it affects women, ask your doctor or take advantage of the wealth of information available on the Internet at americanheart.org. Some of the information in this article came from that Web site.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
