I am Susan Smith, an Author, a story teller & creative writer, a former banker & real estate lender, and jewelry designer. I’m also a mom, wife, grandma, sister, & friend. I love a busy lifestyle – the busier the better.
But, something wasn’t right, all that busyness was causing me stress, like a pressure cooker building up steam or a ticking time bomb waiting to explode.
That pressure, ticking, and stress was self-induced. I could not stop myself from running here and there taking care of everything for everybody completely ignoring myself. Who has time for self-care?
It all started with a pinching sensation in my collarbone. Then there was shortness of breath, lightheadedness, and incredible fatigue.
I had an excuse for everything. My fatigue was from a too-flat pillow; the lightheadedness was from standing up too quickly, and I was short of breath because I was talking too fast!
But that pinching in the collarbone would sometimes become a pain in my shoulder and I just thought I should get a massage to work out the kink.
I didn’t realize that these inconvenient little aches and pains were warning signs for heart attack in women. Wait. What!? I always thought heart attack symptoms were the ones I’d seen in the movies where men complain of crushing chest pain radiating down their arm. They clutch their chest and fall to the floor. Now that’s a heart attack!
Wrong. Women’s symptoms are not the same and are presented much differently.
Here they are:
- Neck, jaw, shoulder, upper back or abdominal DISCOMFORT
- Shortness of breath
- Pain in one or both arms
- Nausea or vomiting
- Sweating
- Lightheadedness or dizziness
- Unusual fatigue
My story resonates with women who are too busy taking care of everyone and everything and have no time to care for themselves. Women who thrive on “busyness” like multi-tasking, being in charge, running the meeting, leading the group, and long to do lists.
Knowledge is power. Know your body. Know the symptoms. Together we can be “Heart Smart”
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