SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — February marks American Heart Month, an initiative aimed at raising awareness about heart health and the significance of recognizing heart attack symptoms. According to data, approximately 605,000 heart attacks are reported annually, with one-third of patients not recognizing significant symptoms prior to their event.
Mark Twitchel, an emergency room nurse with a history of fitness and health, recently experienced a heart attack, providing a sobering reminder of the disease's unpredictability. "I've always been a really healthy and active person," Twitchell remarked. However, one night, he began to feel discomfort in his chest, leading to a night of uncertainty.
"I got up out of bed, sat at the kitchen counter hoping the pain would go away," he recalled. Initially hesitant to seek help, Twitchel thought, "Not wanting to burden the emergency department nurses with something that didn't seem like a crisis at the time, I just thought well I'll see how I do, and maybe tomorrow I'll call my doctor and see if I can get an outpatient EKG or something."
The following day, a colleague encouraged Twitchel to get checked, and after an EKG at Kaiser Permanente, doctors discovered he had indeed suffered a heart attack. “I didn’t have any high blood pressure or diabetes, no preexisting conditions that would lead me to think the person without any family history would be having a heart attack,” he stated.
Twitchel required open-heart triple bypass surgery and is now in the lengthy recovery process. Since the surgery last November, he has returned to work and resumed exercising regularly. Still, he recognizes the profound impact this experience has had on his life.
“Don’t ignore it,” he advises others, stressing the importance of being vigilant about heart health. His story serves as a crucial lesson during American Heart Month, reminding individuals to pay attention to their health and seek help when something feels amiss.
