Cardiac arrest: when it happens in the bathroom

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 22 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas   ♥   @HeartSisters

Ponder this study the next time you are sitting on your toilet – particularly if you are already a heart patient. Most people spend a relatively short time per day in the bathroom (estimated at about 30-45 minutes total, much of that spent using the toilet) yet it appears that the bathroom is a location where sudden cardiac arrest occurs with disproportionately high frequency. According to Japanese researchers, about 8–10 per cent of all cardiac arrests occur in the bathroom.(1)         .         .     Continue reading “Cardiac arrest: when it happens in the bathroom” →

What I wish I knew back then: “Did my family history of heart disease lead to my heart attack?”

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 4 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas    ♥    @HeartSisters

A young 30-something in one of my Heart-Smart Women presentation audiences asked an intriguing question while we were discussing women’s cardiac risk factors.  She was worried about her own risk for developing heart disease one day because of her family history.  Her mother, she explained, had died several years earlier from a heart attack while only in her 40s. But then this young woman added a few additional facts about her Mum.  For example, her mother had also:

  • been significantly overweight
  • rarely exercised
  • lived with poorly managed Type 2 diabetes
  • been a heavy smoker for over two decades

This young woman, however, shared none of those risk factors.  Should she still be concerned about this family history of heart disease?    Continue reading “What I wish I knew back then: “Did my family history of heart disease lead to my heart attack?”” →

What I wish I knew back then: “6 reasons women delay seeking help during a heart attack”

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 3 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas    ♥   @HeartSisters

It turns out that women like me are far more likely than men to delay seeking urgent treatment despite clear signs of a heart attack. This is a dangerously common decision pattern that contributes to the higher mortality rate among women like me. Researchers even have a name for it: treatment-seeking delay behaviour.

“What I Wish I Knew Back Then”  is a back-to-basics summer series of posts here on Heart Sisters revisiting some of the most frequently asked questions from new heart patients. Today, Part 3 continues with another basic that’s far more common in women:  “Why did I wait so long to seek help in mid-heart attack?”     .
 Continue reading “What I wish I knew back then: “6 reasons women delay seeking help during a heart attack”” →

What I wish I knew back then: “What happens to heart muscle during a heart attack?”

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 7 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas    ♥   @HeartSisters

Researchers tell us that women wait significantly longer than our male counterparts to seek medical help – yes, even in mid-heart attack!  In fact, trying to figure out WHY women wait dangerously longer than we should has become a unique field of cardiac study on what’s known as “treatment-seeking delay behaviour“.

“What I Wish I Knew Back Then”  is a back-to-basics summer series of posts here on Heart Sisters that will revisit some of the most frequently asked questions from new heart patients. Today, Part 2 continues with another basic that often accompanies a heart attack: “What happens to heart muscle if I wait too long to get urgent help?”  Continue reading “What I wish I knew back then: “What happens to heart muscle during a heart attack?”” →