Posted by Calvin543 on 01/24/2018

I am a 63 year old divorced male. I still work full time and enjoy playing tennis regularly.

On Tuesday evening 1 week ago, I was participating in my regular tennis group clinic, one hour of drills and then one hour of play. Near the end of the first hour, while in the middle of a volley drill, I felt faint (no other warning) and immediately passed out - it was Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA). I awoke minutes later after being resuscitated by the EMTs (I was later told that the tennis staff used an AED and a friend administered CPR before the EMTs arrived). I remained fully conscious after that while being taken to the ER and admitted to the hospital. The next day I got an angiogram and the following day I got an ICD. I was discharged on Friday, but won't be able to return to work for 2 more weeks.

This was actually my 2nd SCA in less than a year. Nearly the exact same thing happened almost a year ago on Valentines Day (ironic). Same day of the week, same tennis drill, 2 shocks and then fully awake. However, that time they discovered that I had 99% blockages and needed CABG X7 which I got a week later. I returned to work 6 weeks later, completed cardiac rehab, and started playing tennis regularly again in the summer. During this time I started treatment for hypertension and started on Lipitor to protect the grafts. My cholesterol numbers were good, but, with grafts, the lower the better. I have a naturally slow resting heart rate and the HBP treatment has basically induced bradychardia - it was 36 bpm at one doctor visit. I have also developed bigeminy (irregular heart beat).

The angiogram I got last week showed that the bypasses were OK, so they decided to put in the ICD. I am expecting more tests and adjustment of my meds moving forward. I am hoping to get some clarity about my prognosis next month from my cardiologist.

that is the situation physically. I have purposely left out the emotional impact - on my family, friends, and myself - as I don't feel ready to share that yet. I have, though, made an appointment with a psychologist later this week.

Comments

Submitted by ajb12345 on 05/13/2018

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Thank you so much for sharing your story. It is truly inspiring. Knowing what you have been through is an eye opener to others. Knowing that you have been through so much and have not given up or stopped working on treatment is truly inspiring. You are going out and working to get better and that is great! I hope an wish the best and that everything gets better from here. :)

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