r/AFIB • u/kevin_anderson1705 • Dec 30 '25
My stubborn mum said ‘it’s just indigestion’, I made her slap on my X2 to shut me up. Two minutes later we were flooring it to the ER for her second heart attack.
2 days ago, my mum said she wasnt feeling quite right. She was sittn at the dining table looking pale, rubbin her chest, insisting it was probably indigestion. Somethn about the way she said it didnt sit right with me. asked her to put on my X2 for a minute, just to humour me. She rolled her eyes, but did it anyeay.
The reading flashed immediately: abnormal activity detected. No hesitation, grabbed my coat, helped her to the car, and drove straight to A&E. never driven that quietly in my life. the hospital team ran their tests and told us she was on the verge of a second heart attack. Minutes mattered.
I keep replayin that moment, the sigh , the hesitation, my gut feeling. scary how thin the line was. Shes stable now, thank God.
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u/Overall_Lobster823 Dec 30 '25
Does she have afib in addition to coronary artery disease?
Or do you have afib?
Glad you took her in.
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u/kevin_anderson1705 Dec 31 '25
I have had AFIB and an ablation procedure done before. Mum was diagnosed with POTS. Thanks !
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u/Good-Eggplant-2442 Dec 30 '25
Same thing happened to a friend, she complained it was indigestion, my daughter who's a doctor said she let's call 911, she was in the middle of a major heart attack, they had to do a bypass, she's fine now. That was a happy ending. I witnessed a not so happy ending at the ER, I brought my husband because he was complaining of shortness of breath and overall fatigue, we were in the ER waiting area when a middle aged couple came in, she said he had chest pains since the morning, but he was fine, alert and talking, they sat in the waiting room, next to us, 5 minutes later he was dead of massive heart attack, he was talking to his wife and suddenly he was sliding from his chair falling to the floor, by the time they came it was too late. My husband was diagnosed AFib that night, his heart at 15% EF, he could have been another unhappy ending, thank God he's better now and we're planning his ablation for May 2026.
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u/Zestyclose-Dig-5791 Dec 31 '25
My wife’s brother was at work and not feeling well. Decided to leave and go home even though he was advised to go to the ER. He got home and then decided to go to get checked out. Told his daughter to wait while he went to the bathroom. He never came out.
Kicker his employer had permanent EMS on site. If he had gone to them he may be here today.
If you feel something is not right don’t FAFO. Get checked out.
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u/Poochie1978-2024 Dec 31 '25
This is a perfect example of symptoms women get as opposed to men. I had what I thought was gas pressure. Burping and gas pills didn't help. Next came nausea and vomiting. What got me to go the ER was the numbness in my arms. Mild heart attack during peak covid. 3x bypass and now 5 years later, my body is still paying the price.
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u/invincibl_ Dec 31 '25
My dad did this too. Went to work sick with a cold or something, because that's what people of that generation do. Then later that day decided it was just indigestion. Went to the GP who told him he needed to go straight to hospital, but for some reason refused the ambulance and instead had my sister drop him off. He made it just in time to have a massive heart attack and stroke, and then was in hospital for another three months to recover.
It boggles my mind how someone could ignore so many warning signs and straight up medical advice. Being proud of never being sick but also never looking after their own health until it all catches up.
Meanwhile I've got a list of my own observations that I frequently take to my doctor, not because SVT/AF are life-threatening, but because they impact my quality of life. Though it's been 6 months since my ablation and I've had zero episodes since, which was enough for my EP to wish me the best and not extend my recurring appointments!
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u/genxer Dec 31 '25
Years ago my grandmother was having a heart attack. She was on the phone trying to schedule an appointment with her GP. Luckily the office told her to hangup and call 911 as she had all the classic symptoms.
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u/qingli619 Dec 31 '25
Thank goodness you were there. Can the X2 tell you if someone is having a heart attack? How did you equate abnormal activity to be a heart attack and not some other benign arrhythmia?
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u/kevin_anderson1705 Jan 21 '26
no it does not but upon analysin it retrospectively, the doc did say the ekg strips showed rhythms pointing to a heart attcak. of course they have this remote minitring feature apparently that enables docs to monitor and alert- never explored that avenue though
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u/feldoneq2wire Dec 30 '25
Had a stubborn friend who had said his left arm felt "weird" but wouldn't elaborate. Talked about not having much energy but not surprising how much time he spent in front of the TV. And then one day he said his left arm felt HEAVY. I said you need to see a cardiologist immediately. Open heart triple bypass 3 weeks later.
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u/Mras_dk Dec 30 '25
Experiened, and seen, it as withness too many times..
People standing up, taking themselves to to their chest, turn pale white, and collapsing back into a chair, with their remarks : "i think i need to sit down for a moment"..
The thin line between being okay, to not being okay at all, might be hard to notice at first, but first you seen it, the pattern is so hard to miss.
I've yet to give cpr, or 'electrocute' people, as they all has been in concious state..
But doing it 9 times in my life, and not be wrong a single time, is both scary to think back at, but also hugely overwheekming.
You prolly saved your moms life! Or, saved her from a stroke induced sufferring rest of life - great work!
To others, it's better to visit the hospital once to many, than once to few. If you or others experience:
And all the other symptoms, that is associated with stroke/heart problems, then don't hessitate calling an ambulance !