Life is wonderful and enjoying every heart beat is important. I had the wildest days 14-18.5.2021. One of my coronary arteries closed 100% friday afternoon. I didn´t feel any pain in that moment, I was just very tired. I had gone diving, spear fishing the day before, didn´t get much sleep and had a busy week at work. I was so tired that I couldn´t even send a message to my girlfriend. 

We had planned and went to a dinner party and she was running a little late. Instead of writing to her that off course it was ok that she was late and she should´t hurry, I only had energi to send a thumbs up selfie.

This image is taken in the middle of a heart attack. My Garmin watch had recorded the event and therefor can I tell you exactly when I had the stroke.

This data was very good to see afterwords. Seeing exactly when it happened and how my body reacted has been good for reflection. This gave me a reason to take a look at the data that was recorded. I got surprised. There was alot of data and there where indications or alerts that I didn´t see. I will try to tell you about these findings. But first what happened and how. 

As sayd, I was tired friday. I had been diving the day before and got my first fish with a harpoon. Which turned out to be the best lunch. But when we look at the data, then my heart didn´t have a relaxing time.

friday at around 16:30 i got very very tired and the peak of the hear is while im sitting down and relaxing. But when I had relaxed it was time to go for a dinner party. While walking over to our friends, I was very tired and out of breath, it felt like I had ran 10km run. But we only walked for about 1.5 km. When arriving to our friends, I had no symptoms and didn´t tell anyone about how I felt. This was the first dinner party after a long Corona lockdown and noway was I going to cancel it. I got few beers and all was good. I wasn´t tired. On the way back home, the same happened, I felt like out of breath, but didn´t say anything. But I know now that this I was in middle of a heart attach. I fell asleep, but woke up with pain all over the body. Actually 7 on my pain scale. 10 is kidney stones. I thought it was just covid knocking on my door since my lungs had hard to create enough oxigen. With few breathing excercises and mental control of the heart, I got all under control and managed to fall asleep. The pain was a sticking pain over the whole body, like being stick by needles. I had never felt this kind of pain before. In the process I had to get everything away from my body, including my watch. Week and with the moderate pain releasing every 3 hours for an hour I had a wonderful saturday. The pain started to become week chest pain and pain to the left arm. My body was screaming on my sense, but hey I aint always that bright. I had energi ones in a while and made ready for diving with my girlfriend(I didnt want to bother her with my pain), just wanted to enjoy life and we did. 
 

In short we went diving on sunday and cought some fish. It wasn´t really my plan to go diving. But when we got to the beach I had good energi and took the suit on. It was more for security if something happened to my girlfriend then I could quickly enter the water and help. 

But what happened was that my girlfriend caught some fish, and to congratulate her, I went in the water. Her first fish needed celibration. With chest pain, but energi ones in a while, and just enough energi. The water was great and the weather fine. But when we came out of the water, my body said no more juice for you my friend. I decided to go for a medical tjeck, but then you have to call the hospital. The alarm center did send an ambulance straight away. After great treatment, pretty fast driving, two hospitals and wonderful people at the hospitals I have now gone through a heart surgery. Opening the closed coronary artery with a “baloon”. I am happy and kicking. 
Leason learned: keep enjoying your life to the fullest. Always!! But listen to the signs and react on them, its ok to make a call to the alarm center when in doubt, respect life. I was lucky. Keep smiling, enjoying with love and respect for what you have been given to govern.(including your own body) 
Images from the diving are about 15 minutes before we called the ambulance. It does not look like I am sick. But I was.
I want thank all of the people on Hillerød and Gentofte hospitals on cardio departements and intesiv care for great treatments, and the fast rides.

How could this happen?

I have written this post as a part of understanding this myself and maybe as a warning and hopefully reflecting words to those who might need it. I think its best to be open, and open minded.
At this event I am 45, way too young to have heart problems. You know the physical ones 😊
I have been raised by a nurse and a doctor, I have learned to clarify and “fix” physical problems by myself or at home. No need to put pressure on a already pressuret medical system.
I have had many kidney stones, which makes selfhealing process and strong self control essential for having a normal day.
I have had a virus in the brain, that I fought my way back from. Lost all short time memory and had to create a new memory pattern for the brain to function. Did that by activating new parts of the brain by learning to bake bread.
Had Borrelia in august 2019, which weakened my body dramatacally and it took about a year and a half to get the energy back.
“Survived” a divorce in which took me about 3 years to recover from.
I drink alcahol & smoke (party-smoker). In average about 6-7 units per week. Never red vine. I generally never drink any alcahol when I have my kids (50% of the time) but do when Im out in the woods with good friends and enjoy a glass of G&T once in a while and specially by open fire.
Have never done any kind of drugs and never will. My senses and reflections are creative enough without.
I eat very healthy. Meat 1-2 a week and almost always wildgame(low fat). Fish 1-2 a week. Salats, skyr or vegiterian the rest.
I do excersise almost everyday, have a program I follow. Because of discusprolabs this is essential to keep my muscles strong and back pain away.
I do love yoga and go to class 2-3 times per week(post corona lock down). I am mostly in nature, hunting, spearfishing(new hobby), hiking, mountain biking(new hobby), golf, camping when Im not at work. Some art & museums now and then, but mostly nature.
189 height and 87kg (normal weight).
I am loved, in love and have loved.
Have a good social life, good friends, good familie. Im generally happy.
My general mindset is to take any assignment life gives me with a smile and resolve it with love, respect and care for others.
Looking at this list, there is not that much that indicates heart issues. Some sicknesses yes, but in general, health and mind is in good shape.

Looking at the monitor at the hospital showed med that the Garmin watch actually is doing a very good job. The pattern I got from the watch is very similiar if not idendical to the pattern from the hospital instruments.

So what happened and how did I stay alive from friday to monday without my main coronary arterie?

I dont know. The doctors aren´t 100% shure, other than my strong heart and strong life will. My arteries where in fine shape, except for the 100% closed artery. But then again, we now know or have a very good clue. 

The closing of the coronal artery has probably been going on for about 15 years or even from birth. I didn´t see the signs, but my coronal artery has been closing down and this was a genetic condition. The body as great the human body is, did have a solution for this. It made its own bypass. It turns out that the straight line drawn in my report is an extra artery my heart has got. Incredible, but true. That is why I am still alive (See the illustration from the report).

Could I have reacted differently?

Yes and no. I was wearing my great Garmin puls watch and as you can see my heart raised at about 16:30 friday.
 

Thats where there arterie closed. Normal heart beat after that. When the heart attack came there was no real pain, I was just tired and had headache. No instrument would have told me that there was an attack in process. I know that because upon arrival to the hospital with the ambulance the cardiologist didn´t think there was a heart problem. It was first when the results of the blood samples came. I had a Troponin value of 4310, all over 59 indicates heart attack. He took an extra look with ultrasound, there he could see that there was something wrong and need of surgery to take a closer look. When the surgery was done it turned out to be totally closed main coronary artery to the root of the heart.

Symptoms

Now one can ask why didn´t the cardiologist see this upon arrival. I believe thats because of my general smiling and happy face it did simply not look like I was lacking one artery. The reading from the cardiac monitor wheren´t crasy/sick enough and generally I had not correct symptoms. Age, size, weight etc.
 
Talking about symptoms. I have data in which I can share with you. The fabolous Garmin watch has monitoret me for the last 6 months and there are indications that I didn´t see, but see now. But first sichness symptoms and the chain of events.
 
Friday: artery closes around 16:30. Tired, headache, no real pain.
Walk about 1-2km feels like 15km run.
 
Friday night:hard pain(7-8 on my scale) hard to attain oxigen. Sticking feeling over the whole body. Feels like the lungs are infected and cant create oxigen, like when with lungmonia, but without the slime rastling sound.
 
Saturday: tired, low energy, energy comes and goes, headache. Heavy chest with pain and pain in left arm. Feels little like someone is sitting on your chest, but not alarming pain.
 
Sunday: feeling of better energy but tired, oxigen level seems stronger, better. Headache almost relieved. Still pain in chest and left arm. But not strong pain, only 3-4 on my scale. Until I came out of the water I had okey energy in-between.
As you might read the symptoms wheren´t 1+1=2 more 1*.3(2)/2 x2 + .5*2 = 1.9999
 

Future balance

Some say challenges in ones life define ones character. I as everybody have had couple of these and heart attack is one of those challenges. In situations like these we react in different ways. Some get angry, some get sad or even afraid. I have all these emotions, but the strongest emotion I have is gratefulness. Grateful for being alive, for my kids, family and friends, the love and happiness I receive and can give. I am and have always been open about my life, have nothing to hide.
 
I hope that this post will open up for some of you and specially young men. Go to the doctor once in a while and get your numbers examined, specially colestrol. Buy your self a wearable that can monitor your heart and sleeping patterns and learn how to analize them. And for God sake call for help when in chest pain without explanation. I am slowly working on finding the balance again in my life. To do so, I have a good help from my daughters, girlfriend, mother, father, my friends and all the rest of my family.

Data from Garmin

Looking at the data it is clear that my sleeping pattern was not healthy.  As a hunter I sometimes don´t sleep as regulary as many other people.  While wildboarhunting we stay up for the whole night and sometimes just take a nap for couple of hours during the day. Therefor sometimes I sleep for 12-14 hours straight after that and nothing or little for couple of days in a row.

 

My coronial artery closed at around 16:30 friday the 14. of May.

As you can see, then there is not that much to say about the heartbeat monitoring. It was a little high when the artery closed but beside that there was couple of peaks thursday while spearfishing. Nothing that indicates heart problems. When I was in pain saturday morning, I removed my watch. I simply couldn´t have anything close to my body. 

The night before my closing I had pretty normal night. Slept for about 7 hours. But take notice on how I go from one stage to another. Many short “lines” and 21 minutes of deep sleep. 

A typical night sleep before my surgery. Many short lines representing different sleeping patterns. 27 minutes of deep sleep, but half awake during different stages of the night.

After a long hunt I sleep for many hours. But as you can see though I sleep for 11 hours I only get 16 minutes of deep sleep. My body is very aware. I get thougt about 4 hours of REM (the dream stage) and that is good.

Few weeks after the heart surgery my sleeping pattern is totally different. Big chunks of deep sleep. Almost all the small lines are gone. The REM sleep is not there at all. I felt very relaxed and well rested after that nigh sleep.

Not all sleep is good after the surgery. I did a mistake and ate alot of strong salty liquorice during the evening. This effected my sleeping pattern. The hearth medicine and new effect of my heart didn´t seem to like this amount of sweets. Another lesson learned 🙂  

Again another good sleep. Deep sleep for hours. Before the surgery I almost never had more than 30 minutes of deep sleep. Now its hours. 

Conclusion

Now to my conclusion I have been back at Tisvilde beach where I got picked up by the ambulance. Working with the wounds of the mind. I have had time to reflect and compute all what happened. The beside the aid of good friends and family the data from the Garmin has shown me that its possible to understand more and react differently with the aid of wearables. My sleeping patterns are different from before and after the surgery. More “normal” with more relaxed stages for longer time now. I am not saying that all patterns for all people should be the same as mine. I am just saying that wearing these great watches and using them aids the understanding of how your body/mind is feeling and in which condition it is in. That will help you with understanding what to work on, if anything. I will wear and use this kind of instrument the rest of my life in one way or the other.