Tag: Dr. David Sabgir

Are you a heart attack waiting to happen?

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 5 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas  ♥  @HeartSisters

woman screaming-5 I was asked last year by a large U.S. publisher to review a new book written by a woman who had recently become a heart patient. I enjoyed reading the first chapter or two until I came to the New York author’s dramatic story of the actual cardiac event itself. The part that left me gobsmacked was not the event, but her abject shock and disbelief that she (of all people!) could be experiencing a heart attack at all.  The pervasive “Why me? Why me?” focus in this chapter clearly ignored a reality that the author had somehow chosen to gloss over: she’d been a heavy smoker for several decades.

Don’t get me wrong. Any cardiac event is indeed a traumatic occurrence no matter who and when it strikes. Sometimes, we truly have no hint about the cause of said event. And my immediate gut reaction was not meant to mock this author, or minimize her experience (which was awful). 

But I felt honestly surprised that she was surprised. Continue reading “Are you a heart attack waiting to happen?” →

Heart disease is a sitting disease

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 25 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas  ♥  @HeartSisters

When Oregon cardiologist Dr. James Beckerman sent me a copy of his new book called Heart To Start and asked me to review it, I agreed – but I have to tell you that it took me a month to actually open it and read it. These days, I’m often invited to review heart-related books of varying quality, so I tend to be a wee bit wary when taking on another review. But I’d already been following Dr. B for some time on Twitter, and I’d quoted him in this 2013 article – so part of me really, really hoped I would like his new book.

But I was wrong. By the end of the first chapter, I realized that I didn’t like this book.  I loved it!  Continue reading “Heart disease is a sitting disease” →

Heart palpitations – what do they mean?

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 8 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas    ♥  @HeartSisters

Dr. David Sabgir at one of his
Dr. David Sabgir at one of his “Walk With A Doc” events

I love the concept of Walk With A Doc. This non-profit group was founded in 2005 by Dr. David Sabgir, an Ohio cardiologist. His reason was simple: telling his heart patients to get out and exercise just wasn’t working. His WWAD project involves recruiting volunteer physicians willing to lace up their sneakers and lead scheduled walks in their communities. These docs kick off each walk with a brief informational talk on some aspect of health. WWAD now boasts doctor-led neighbourhood walks all over the U.S. and Canada – as well as overseas in Russia, India, Australia and Abu Dhabi so far.

Walk With A DocIt’s absolutely free to register a Walk With A Doc program, and in return, physicians receive cool stuff like WWAD pedometers, T-shirts, banners, prescription pads so they can write WWAD orders for their patients, and even sample press releases to send to local media. If your doctor isn’t already leading a Walk With A Doc group in your community, please forward this info about how to get started. And while you’re waiting, here’s what Dr. Sabgir had to say in a recent WWAD newsletter about how he views the common patient experience of heart palpitations:  Continue reading “Heart palpitations – what do they mean?” →