Emergency Treatment of Cardiac Arrest
By Luke Douglas
Dealing with a heart condition is one of the most difficult things in the world – for the doctors, for the patients, and their families. This is why avoiding any potential problems and minimizing the chances of heart failure in the first place is so important. However, in case something does end up happening and you might be forced to be admitted to a hospital, you’ll need to undergo emergency treatment. What does this treatment include in case of cardiac arrests, is there something you can do yourself, and what does the outcome look like?
No warning
The biggest problem each one of us faces when it comes to cardiac arrest is the fact that it can occur with no previous warning at all. You may be focused on your everyday activities, relaxing at your own home, or walking to your favorite store – and suddenly start experiencing the symptoms of cardiac arrest. That’s when you’ll probably either lose your responsiveness, start having problems breathing, or temporarily lose your consciousness.
Some of the other symptoms of cardiac arrest include the feeling of discomfort in your chest, sudden weakness, or an elevated heart rate. Feeling these things will probably scare you, and that’s quite normal and expected, but what you shouldn’t do is panic and lose your cool. If that happens, though, the symptoms will probably get even worse and you’ll start feeling even less comfortable because of that. Therefore, try to remain calm, think happy thoughts, and be patient because help is surely on the way.
Treating cardiac arrest
Whether it’s you, someone you know, or a person you’ve never met in your life, as soon as you notice something’s wrong, you need to react. Calling for help is the first thing you should do, especially if you’re home alone or with someone you can’t seem to help on your own. Once the medical professionals arrive at the scene, they’ll do some tests and check if you’re dealing with cardiac arrest or something else.
Still, before they arrive, there’s a simple technique you can perform and make a huge difference in the outcome.
CPR is a combination of chest compressions and rescue breathing you can perform on another person and possibly save their life. In case that doesn’t seem to work, the emergency medical team will take the patient to a hospital where the doctors will use defibrillation. This is a procedure that uses a defibrillator to issue electric shocks in the patient’s chest, trying to help the heart start beating on its own once again.
Getting certified
If someone in your family – from your partners and your parents to your children or your cousins – is struggling with cardiac arrest and experiences problems every once in a while, taking things to a new level is the best way to go. This means getting certified and learning how to deal with this problem professionally and effectively that won’t just minimize the consequences of cardiac arrest, but actually help the patient feel better than ever.
One of the ideas you could explore is taking an Advanced Cardiac Life Support course and learning all the tips and tricks that will allow you to help different people at the same time. The course you’ll take and the certification you’ll get will make you an expert in this field, which will, in turn, mean the people in your life struggling with cardiac arrest have nothing to worry about in the future.
Help yourself
Another huge issue with cardiac arrest is not being able to rely on someone else to help you. If you’re living alone or simply happen to be alone once you start feeling the aforementioned symptoms, you may get frightened and not know what to do. That’s why you need to learn a few techniques that will help you remain calm and start feeling better – at least until someone comes back home or the ambulance arrives your way.
One of the most popular solutions you can find online is the so-called cough CPR, but you need to keep in mind that this procedure isn’t the safest and most effective in the world. On the contrary, it could lead you to further issues and delay medical help that could save your life. Instead, what you need to do is take a minute, relax, sit down, and take a dose of glyceryl trinitrate. These come in tablets and spray, and could effectively prevent further damage to your heart. After you do that, you need to wait five or six minutes and repeat the process in case you remain feeling breathless.
In the end, no matter what happens, remember to call for help because cardiac arrest is a serious matter that should be treated by professionals. Still, if you know how to react and what to do, you’ll be able to save someone’s life, and that’s all that matters!
Luke is a lifestyle blogger. He is editor in chief at blog Ripped.me and one of the contributors at blog Trans4Mind. He follows the trends in fitness, gym and healthy life and loves to share his knowledge through useful and informative articles.
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Can You Die of a Broken Heart?
By Emma Suttie, D.Ac, AP
Can you die of a broken heart? Surprisingly perhaps, the answer is yes.
Anyone who has had their heart broken wouldn't even have to think about the answer to this. "Yes" they would say, or at least that is what it feels like. Heartbreak is like walking around with tiny shards of glass in your chest. You feel a crushing sense of sadness, and you are miserable. I suspect that most of us have had our hearts broken at least once, and it feels awful. Sometimes it is so bad that you literally feel like you want to die. But did you know that you can actually die of a broken heart? Yes, that's right. You CAN. And the medical name for it is Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy.
In Western medicine the condition has several different names; transient apical ballooning syndrome, apical ballooning cardiomyopathy, stress-induced cardiomyopathy, stress cardiomyopathy and Gebrochenes-Herz-syndrom. The syndrome is characterized by a sudden weakening of the myocardium, or heart muscle. Broken heart syndrome is a well recognized cause of acute heart failure, and the interesting thing is that there are often no structural problems in or around the heart which is why, at least to Western medicine, its cause is a bit mysterious. Broken heart syndrome symptoms mimic those of a heart attack so people report symptoms like chest pains and shortness of breath. A heart attack results from a near or almost complete blockage of a heart artery. In broken heart syndrome, there is no such blockage.
Broken heart syndrome has been well documented. If the sufferer survives the initial attack (which most do), all the symptoms often resolve completely in a couple of months. But perhaps the most significant thing about broken heart syndrome is that it is usually preceded by an intense emotional event, either a sudden shock, like the death of a loved one, or an ongoing emotional stressor like the breakup of a relationship. It can also be brought about by a constant state of anxiety - for example, living in a war torn country where you have watched your family die and have been torn from your home. This kind of ongoing stress and anxiety puts a huge load on the heart, both physically, spiritually and emotionally.
Interestingly, broken heart syndrome was first documented in Japan in the 1990's, and it gets its name - Tako-tsubo - from the Japanese literally meaning "octopus pot". It gets this name because of the shape of the heart when the syndrome is present - apical ballooning, a reversible abnormality characteristic of takotsubo cardiomyopathy. During systole (when the heart contracts) the midsection and tip (apex) of the left ventricle balloon out, while the area above, called the base, contracts normally. The shape is similar to the tako-tsubo - a round bottomed vessel with a narrow neck used to catch octopuses in Japan. The syndrome also seems to occur in much higher instances in women than in men, and most reported cases are of women from ages 58-75.
The Heart in Chinese Medicine
In Chinese medicine, the heart is at the centre of the body and its activities. The heart is said to govern and be responsible for all of the bodies functions via the other organs. The heart is also the residence of a very subtle but profoundly important energy, called the Shen. The Shen has been loosely translated as "spirit", but this does not encapsulate the entirety of what Shen means. It is a difficult concept to explain, but many mental illnesses are described in Chinese medicine as disturbances of the Shen. When you look into someones eyes and they are clear and bright and full of intelligence, this is someone with healthy Shen. When you look into the eyes of someone who is depressed, deeply sad, or is going through something very difficult in their lives that is, at least at that moment, getting the better of them, their eyes have a cloudy, unfocused appearance. This points to a disturbance of the Shen. Our Shen is our ability to be in the world, deal with problems effectively, be emotionally balanced and be clear and focused in our thoughts, feelings and ability to handle life and everything is throws at us. So, having a healthy Shen is of supreme importance, and its residence is the heart.
To anyone who practices Chinese medicine, dying of a broken heart isn't such a bizarre thought. A sudden shock, or prolonged emotions like worry, sadness, anger and guilt (which is a uniquely Western emotion) weaken the heart and its energies. As we know, Chinese medicine takes the emotions very seriously and they are one of the main causes of disease. Now, for those of you who this is new to, let me clarify - it is not HAVING emotions that can cause disease, emotions are a natural part of being human. But emotions that are repressed, unexpressed or experienced intensely for extended periods of time without being resolved can certainly be a cause of disease.
In Chinese medicine, the body is like a garden, and everything must be working in harmony for the garden to flourish and grow. This means that the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of a person must all be in harmony for ultimate health to be achieved. So, take care of your heart. If you are dealing with something difficult in your life, acknowledging it and either dealing with it or seeking out help to get you through it is my best advice to keep your heart, and your Shen happy and balanced for many years to come. And if you are having symptoms of a heart attack, even if you have no prior history of heart problems, take them seriously. Especially if they occur after an intense emotional event or sudden shock. Broken heart syndrome is real, and arming yourself with information is the best way to avoid problems in the present and the future.
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