I’m back, it’s February…Happy Healthy Heart Month!
It’s been a while since I’ve been here but I thought now is a good time to resume my blog. Today is February 1st, which is the beginning of a month that has great meaning for me.
In September 2017, I suffered a heart attack caused by a spontaneous coronary artery dissection. After recovering from my ordeal, I found my people. I was already a health and nutrition coach but this experience helped me to narrow my focus. Now I work with people for whom I can do the most good.
One of the ways I help is by being a WomenHeart Champion Community Educator. In that role, I speak to groups about women and our unique challenges around heart health.
Did you know this?
Do you know how common heart disease is among women? One in three will develop heart disease and one in four will die from it. But a woman is seven times more likely to be sent home from the emergency room while having a cardiac event than a man is. Pretty scary, right?
Here’s some good news
The good news is that 80% of heart disease is preventable through lifestyle and nutrition changes. Simple shifts to your mindset, your nutrition, your lifestyle, your emotional well-being and your self-care routine, can change the course of your health in very positive ways.
Stay tuned for more information about heart health as the month progresses, and take care of your heart so it can take care of you.
I help women living with or at risk for developing heart disease or other chronic illness that we can manage through lifestyle and nutrition changes. Have you been told that you are on the verge of developing heart disease, or diabetes, or another lifestyle related condition? If so, let’s chat. For a free consultation with me, click here.
Thanks Karen, great reminder for all women to know the signs and realize how many women suffer from heart disease. Thank you for your support and heart education for women.
Thanks for reading my work Kathleen. I hope it’s helpful to you and others.
You and I have met!! I have health issues that I have sought your advice. My heart has not been an issue. My concern is how to separate the symptoms. More than once I was being worked up for a heart attack. It was determined that it was not my heart but GI issues resulting in surgery. If I am having a heart issue, how can I tell? Is there a particular symptom that can’t be ignored? I have a concern that I blurred the symptoms. I appreciate your advice always. I know this is a concern that is vague, but in my case, very real. So let me have it. !!!! ❤️
Hi Susan…yes we have met. Sometimes GI symptoms will mimic cardiac symptoms and vice versa. It’s important to seek medical advice when you think you might be having a cardiac problem.
So often, women will brush off their symptoms because they aren’t as severe as they expect cardiac symptoms to be and they don’t want to make a fuss. The decision to ignore can end badly for them. You won’t necessarily be short of breath or lose consciousness.
When I had my heart attack, it wasn’t terribly painful and there were very few other symptoms we often associate with a heart attack. The symptoms were mild but unusual, which is what made me seek help.
Always err on the side of caution and see a medical professional. It’s better to be safe and embarrassed than to save face and die. Besides, you still have more trouble to cause so you need to stick around.