The Heart Thing

harryopal1 said:
Amazing how much benefit can be obtained by walking. Obviously don't stress as you begin but as you adapt you can begin to increase the rate and distance. A wife who passed from cancer some years ago had an enlarged heart from rheumatic fever in childhood. She used Wafarin, a blood thinner (also used in rat poison) and did not have a lot of energy. I encouraged her to exercise and walk regularly. We lived below Castle Hill in Townsville and in time she was able to walk to the top. Also had her take swimming lessons and it improved her quality of life greatly until cancer came.

A simple exercise to improve balance is to stand in front of a chair, so you can grab it if necessary. Stand on one leg and hold for 20 seconds. Then repeat with other leg. Evidently this is a very effective exercise. Unfortunately many older people fall because of balance problems; break legs, hips and crack skulls. A useful exercise with which to begin your day. If you check with youtube you can find seniors' exercises for stretching and mobility. Well worth while. Good luck with your progress.
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Very good recommendation Harryopal! I prefer the old method of lifting a bottle of beer and pounding it down many times! Well that doesn't work very well any more after the years have gone by! I remember when I was limber all over and stiff in one place, now I'm stiff all over and limber in one place! I agree with Fast pitch about giving the doctors hell with questions! They are too used to people being shy and afraid to rock the boat. I say Rock the boat! It's your health and body!
 
Well, sitting around all day gives me plenty of time to do research. I already had some doubts about this heart attack with covid so I started going through med journals with data related to heart problems caused by covid. Seems there are quite a few. After much reading I have come to a realization that I did not have an actual heart attack.

What I most likely have due to Covid is an infection of the heart which is somewhat common it seems in test groups. Covid causes blood vessels in the lungs to reduce oxygen to the heart which can simulate the feel of a heart attack due to the heart needing to work harder. Infection sets in easier and then the heart has to work even harder. Thus, the tightness in the chest.

What made me question it all was thinking about the things the doctor did. While I had a sonogram and 3 EKGs, I never had a MRI or Cats an which would be normal procedure to come up with this diagnosis. The amount of antibiotics I was prescribed for home and the vast amounts of them including some being injected into my intestines left me with questions. I know some would be required I can't find where so many different ones at rather high doseges for home would be. My only question that causes concern is the Nitroglycerin direct constant feed I was on. That would normally be associated with heart angina but, maybe angina caused by the infection. I do remember the doctor stating, heart attack.

Come Monday when I see the doctor I will be presenting him with a list of questions that I want answers to before I leave. Yeah, I am not afraid of pissing him off because I am questioning him.

I have taken a beta block for 30 some years. Controls heart rate so it doesn't Eli ate. Something you stay on for life. He knows fully what I take. He has prescribed a different beta block. Looking it up same effect, different chemical, 4 times higher cost. I take a simple diaretic and he prescribed a different one at 10 times the cost. We will be discussing these too.

In the mean time I will continue my prescribed meds and seeing what else I can find that this covid could do to me. Something to do.
 
fastpitch17 said:
Well, sitting around all day gives me plenty of time to do research. I already had some doubts about this heart attack with covid so I started going through med journals with data related to heart problems caused by covid. Seems there are quite a few. After much reading I have come to a realization that I did not have an actual heart attack.

What I most likely have due to Covid is an infection of the heart which is somewhat common it seems in test groups. Covid causes blood vessels in the lungs to reduce oxygen to the heart which can simulate the feel of a heart attack due to the heart needing to work harder. Infection sets in easier and then the heart has to work even harder. Thus, the tightness in the chest.

What made me question it all was thinking about the things the doctor did. While I had a sonogram and 3 EKGs, I never had a MRI or Cats an which would be normal procedure to come up with this diagnosis. The amount of antibiotics I was prescribed for home and the vast amounts of them including some being injected into my intestines left me with questions. I know some would be required I can't find where so many different ones at rather high doseges for home would be. My only question that causes concern is the Nitroglycerin direct constant feed I was on. That would normally be associated with heart angina but, maybe angina caused by the infection. I do remember the doctor stating, heart attack.

Come Monday when I see the doctor I will be presenting him with a list of questions that I want answers to before I leave. Yeah, I am not afraid of pissing him off because I am questioning him.

I have taken a beta block for 30 some years. Controls heart rate so it doesn't Eli ate. Something you stay on for life. He knows fully what I take. He has prescribed a different beta block. Looking it up same effect, different chemical, 4 times higher cost. I take a simple diaretic and he prescribed a different one at 10 times the cost. We will be discussing these too.

In the mean time I will continue my prescribed meds and seeing what else I can find that this covid could do to me. Something to do.
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If you have the EKG readings they should show clearly the heart attack (if you indeed had one).
Whatever you had - I'm glad you are well enough to be up typing on here and planning to get yourself moving when you are ready. I had the unpleasant experience to be a witness to a classic heart attack in a friend here recently (he had a blockage and they had to clear it with stents- it was clearly a heart attack), although it was horrible for him and scary for me the drs and care staff everywhere seemed to be taking it all in their stride (I was impressed and that is not something I expected from Indo hospitals).
Get well soon xx
 
Last edited:
Where are you based FP?
By all means message me & I will share details of my fab cardiologist- she is young, smart and up to date with all things heart related & not afraid to explain absolutely everything in detail. She is in Bandung though.
(& it costs about 200,000 idr for a consultation with her paying privately- or BPJS.)

I wouldn't go in to meeting the doc all guns blazing simply because they are still doing some studies re covid & cardio stuff and many countries aren't collecting data as they ought to be . Peer reviewed papers are still in short supply. However there are /appear to be some strong indications of links.
Dr John Campbell on YouTube has been trying to find out as much info about all this as is out there.
 
gemima said:
If you have the EKG readings they should show clearly the heart attack (if you indeed had one).
Whatever you had - I'm glad you are well enough to be up typing on here and planning to get yourself moving when you are ready. I had the unpleasant experience to be a witness to a classic heart attack in a friend here recently (he had a blockage and they had to clear it with stints - it was clearly a heart attack), although it was horrible for him and scary for me the drs and care staff everywhere seemed to be taking it all in their stride (I was impressed and that is not something I expected from Indo hospitals).
Get well soon xx
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EKGs can only show up fewer than 50% of heart attacks.
They can show up the absence of a previous heart attack around 80% of the time.
The other tests could well show them up too - blood tests should show cardiac markers.
 
Bad_azz said:
Where are you based FP?
By all means message me & I will share details of my fab cardiologist- she is young, smart and up to date with all things heart related & not afraid to explain absolutely everything in detail. She is in Bandung though.
(& it costs about 200,000 idr for a consultation with her paying privately- or BPJS.)

I wouldn't go in to meeting the doc all guns blazing simply because they are still doing some studies re covid & cardio stuff and many countries aren't collecting data as they ought to be . Peer reviewed papers are still in short supply. However there are /appear to be some strong indications of links.
Dr John Campbell on YouTube has been trying to find out as much info about all this as is out there.
Click to expand...
I may need to see a cardiologist here, as I don’t think I’ll be going to the states anytime soon. Shoot me a PM with her details when you get a chance.
 
Bad_azz said:
Where are you based FP?
By all means message me & I will share details of my fab cardiologist- she is young, smart and up to date with all things heart related & not afraid to explain absolutely everything in detail. She is in Bandung though.
(& it costs about 200,000 idr for a consultation with her paying privately- or BPJS.)

I wouldn't go in to meeting the doc all guns blazing simply because they are still doing some studies re covid & cardio stuff and many countries aren't collecting data as they ought to be . Peer reviewed papers are still in short supply. However there are /appear to be some strong indications of links.
Dr John Campbell on YouTube has been trying to find out as much info about all this as is out there.
Click to expand...
Thanks BA,
I am in Bandar Lampung. Appreciate the kindness but I will be doing my best to get things right here. I had come across quite a few more recent articles (last 2 years) concerning COVID and the heart. I will be preparing a series of questions, on card stock, in Bahasa Indonesia, to present to the doctor one at a time. My lead in will be that while I am certainly not a MD, I do have a better than average knowledge and education in health related matters. That I expect honest answers based on fact and science and if he is unsure of or does not know the answer then just admit so.

Wish me luck to get answers from him and if not, on my own with my own research. My background of work and education in Public Health, Communicable Diseases, and Epidemiology has allowed me a roadmap of sorts to seek out some answers.
 
fastpitch17 said:
Thanks BA,
I am in Bandar Lampung. Appreciate the kindness but I will be doing my best to get things right here. I had come across quite a few more recent articles (last 2 years) concerning COVID and the heart. I will be preparing a series of questions, on card stock, in Bahasa Indonesia, to present to the doctor one at a time. My lead in will be that while I am certainly not a MD, I do have a better than average knowledge and education in health related matters. That I expect honest answers based on fact and science and if he is unsure of or does not know the answer then just admit so.

Wish me luck to get answers from him and if not, on my own with my own research. My background of work and education in Public Health, Communicable Diseases, and Epidemiology has allowed me a roadmap of sorts to seek out some answers.
Click to expand...
Good luck with it all.
I dunno if you will get definitive covid answers, you may be able to educate the doc though :)
 
gemima said:
If you have the EKG readings they should show clearly the heart attack (if you indeed had one).
Whatever you had - I'm glad you are well enough to be up typing on here and planning to get yourself moving when you are ready. I had the unpleasant experience to be a witness to a classic heart attack in a friend here recently (he had a blockage and they had to clear it with stents- it was clearly a heart attack), although it was horrible for him and scary for me the drs and care staff everywhere seemed to be taking it all in their stride (I was impressed and that is not something I expected from Indo hospitals).
Get well soon xx
Click to expand...
I would want to see the first one taken because an EKG shows what your current heart activity is at in each heart section. They can show that there is damage remaining from previous heart problems though. Not the ideal path for the best answers. Better than nothing. I have copies of the sonogram views but have to say, they are not the best even for an experienced person looking at them. I also have the chest xray that lacks much detail. If the cloud I see covering most of my upper torso is the infection, I was lucky to go when I first felt it. I am not one to easily go see a doctor here.

As for typing and using the ol noggin, that's really all I have right now. Between diverting my energy towards a quick recovery and some research, I think I can manage. Of course, there are a few naps thrown in there.

I have always found medical staffs to be very professional in there actions. The only thing that seems to get in their ways is religion and dealing with the opposite sex. Once I had to quickly see an urologist in Jakarta due to some unexpected pain. I was seen by a female doctor who started the exam and when she had to go low informed me that she needed to get a male doctor to complete the exam. I asked if she was a doctor, she replied that she certainly was, I asked if she was a professional, she again answered that she was. I told her that I have no problems if she finished the exams since she was the professional. She stayed and she seemed a bit more loose. Another time was here at my same hospital as now. Prostate problem and doctor wanted to do a sonogram of the lower regions. Nurse was told to leave the room. I asked why she had to leave since it was the doctors assigned regular nurse. I was told because I was a male. I asked if she had completed a nursing school. She had. I asked if she knows what the difference looks like between a male and female. She actually smiled and said yes. I asked if his nurse was a professional in her line of nursing. Yes she was. I said she could stay and learn then. He told her she could stay if she wanted to. She stayed.

The doctors and medical staffs seemed well trained as can be expected here. Nothing close to a Western Medical School education but with the limited knowledge resources and medical equipment available, most try their hardest. I find nurses are as well trained in their 3 year schools as most doctors. They just don't get as much exposure to various live humans as doctors do.

The hospital I use was started by Christians. While it is no longer a private Christian run hospital, they still have the same approach to medicine as they always did. Majority of female doctors do not wear hijab and it is not mandatory for them to do so. Many Chinese/Indonesian doctors as well as administrators. All patients are equal and when you go there you see among waiting patients a lot of hijabs. I will not go to a Islamic controlled hospital.

If I ever have a problem in Jakarta I have 2 nieces who are nurses at one of the military hospitals there. They always tell me to come there even if my problems are here. They know how to switch up the BPJS requirements for out of area treatments. I understand that the military hospitals have some of the best doctors around at their disposal. Oh, one of those nieces is head surgical nurse and a devout Muslim day in and day out except when it comes to medicine.
 
I'd recommend going for a virtual angiogram. This is a CT scan (64 slice CT and above) using contrast dye that can provide a complete view of the arteries and determine if and how calcified they are. If you are found to have significant blockages you can then immediately go for stent implantation or, in the worst-case scenario, have a bypass operation.
 
Tested negative today for the first time. Will recheck tomorrow in case of a false negative. Finished with anti viral regiment. Went for a short walk yesterday, a few hundred meters maybe. Felt like a 50 mike hike. Gotta build that up I guess. See doc tomorrow.
 
fastpitch17 said:
I would want to see the first one taken because an EKG shows what your current heart activity is at in each heart section. They can show that there is damage remaining from previous heart problems though. Not the ideal path for the best answers. Better than nothing. I have copies of the sonogram views but have to say, they are not the best even for an experienced person looking at them. I also have the chest xray that lacks much detail. If the cloud I see covering most of my upper torso is the infection, I was lucky to go when I first felt it. I am not one to easily go see a doctor here.

As for typing and using the ol noggin, that's really all I have right now. Between diverting my energy towards a quick recovery and some research, I think I can manage. Of course, there are a few naps thrown in there.

I have always found medical staffs to be very professional in there actions. The only thing that seems to get in their ways is religion and dealing with the opposite sex. Once I had to quickly see an urologist in Jakarta due to some unexpected pain. I was seen by a female doctor who started the exam and when she had to go low informed me that she needed to get a male doctor to complete the exam. I asked if she was a doctor, she replied that she certainly was, I asked if she was a professional, she again answered that she was. I told her that I have no problems if she finished the exams since she was the professional. She stayed and she seemed a bit more loose. Another time was here at my same hospital as now. Prostate problem and doctor wanted to do a sonogram of the lower regions. Nurse was told to leave the room. I asked why she had to leave since it was the doctors assigned regular nurse. I was told because I was a male. I asked if she had completed a nursing school. She had. I asked if she knows what the difference looks like between a male and female. She actually smiled and said yes. I asked if his nurse was a professional in her line of nursing. Yes she was. I said she could stay and learn then. He told her she could stay if she wanted to. She stayed.

The doctors and medical staffs seemed well trained as can be expected here. Nothing close to a Western Medical School education but with the limited knowledge resources and medical equipment available, most try their hardest. I find nurses are as well trained in their 3 year schools as most doctors. They just don't get as much exposure to various live humans as doctors do.

The hospital I use was started by Christians. While it is no longer a private Christian run hospital, they still have the same approach to medicine as they always did. Majority of female doctors do not wear hijab and it is not mandatory for them to do so. Many Chinese/Indonesian doctors as well as administrators. All patients are equal and when you go there you see among waiting patients a lot of hijabs. I will not go to a Islamic controlled hospital.

If I ever have a problem in Jakarta I have 2 nieces who are nurses at one of the military hospitals there. They always tell me to come there even if my problems are here. They know how to switch up the BPJS requirements for out of area treatments. I understand that the military hospitals have some of the best doctors around at their disposal. Oh, one of those nieces is head surgical nurse and a devout Muslim day in and day out except when it comes to medicine.
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I don't understand what you are talking about? What has religion got to do with medical care, or doctors, and nurses? What has being a devout muslim, got to do with health care? Don't Muslims need medical help also?
 
Shadrach said:
I don't understand what you are talking about? What has religion got to do with medical care, or doctors, and nurses? What has being a devout muslim, got to do with health care? Don't Muslims need medical help also?
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It varies but in many Muslim countries it is considered preferable that a woman be examined by a female doctor. In an emergency a male doctor may be used but a blood relative or husband must be present. When being examined by a male doctor a woman patient has to be completely covered if they are to be examined and if intimates parts of the body are being examined the face and features remain covered to spare the woman from embarrassment. While that may seem extreme from a western point of view It is only back in Victorian times that not dissimilar procedures were often followed in England and other parts of Europe.
 
harryopal1 said:
It varies but in many Muslim countries it is considered preferable that a woman be examined by a female doctor. In an emergency a male doctor may be used but a blood relative or husband must be present. When being examined by a male doctor a woman patient has to be completely covered if they are to be examined and if intimates parts of the body are being examined the face and features remain covered to spare the woman from embarrassment. While that may seem extreme from a western point of view It is only back in Victorian times that not dissimilar procedures were often followed in England and other parts of Europe.
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Wasn't there a time when people first got married and the wife was covered with a bed sheet with a decorated hole over her private part for the first time to have sex?
 
These are all issues I have a difficult time understanding. How did something so natural get so perverted? I have often wondered why a Muslim woman has to cover her hair and sometimes face also, when a Muslim man wears normal clothing? Where did all this modesty come from? I have seen paintings of Indonesia from long ago and all the people just wore sarongs and a hat for sun protection. Why did seeing a woman's breast become taboo to see? Was that brought on by westerners or Muslims coming to Indonesia with their religious beliefs?

Is seeing a Muslim woman's hair too much for men? Are they tempted to be interested in her so much that her husband and family demands her to cover it up? All these things I don't understand. Luckily I was becoming a young adult during the so called Hippie era (70's) and we let all these inhibitions go! We all would swim in the rivers together naked with no judgement on how fat, skinny, big breasted, small breasted, well endowed or not male parts, or color of the skin a person was! If a person was attracted to another, they expressed it naturally and if it felt right they got together. Some became married and some just partners. It was a time of enlightenment, vegetarianism, Buddhism, learning how to grow organic food. Traveling and seeing the world and learning about other cultures. Of course it was not perfect! But learning Peace and not War was never a bad idea! Many of the so called Hippies became doctors, nurses, lawyers, judges, farmers, and some become junkies! I am happy to have been a part of it. Let it be! And may all find Peace and Love in their hearts!
 
Shadrach said:
These are all issues I have a difficult time understanding. How did something so natural get so perverted? I have often wondered why a Muslim woman has to cover her hair and sometimes face also, when a Muslim man wears normal clothing? Where did all this modesty come from? I have seen paintings of Indonesia from long ago and all the people just wore sarongs and a hat for sun protection. Why did seeing a woman's breast become taboo to see? Was that brought on by westerners or Muslims coming to Indonesia with their religious beliefs?

Is seeing a Muslim woman's hair too much for men? Are they tempted to be interested in her so much that her husband and family demands her to cover it up? All these things I don't understand. Luckily I was becoming a young adult during the so called Hippie era (70's) and we let all these inhibitions go! We all would swim in the rivers together naked with no judgement on how fat, skinny, big breasted, small breasted, well endowed or not male parts, or color of the skin a person was! If a person was attracted to another, they expressed it naturally and if it felt right they got together. Some became married and some just partners. It was a time of enlightenment, vegetarianism, Buddhism, learning how to grow organic food. Traveling and seeing the world and learning about other cultures. Of course it was not perfect! But learning Peace and not War was never a bad idea! Many of the so called Hippies became doctors, nurses, lawyers, judges, farmers, and some become junkies! I am happy to have been a part of it. Let it be! And may all find Peace and Love in their hearts!
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Absolutely agreed.
Born a few years after you (I think ?), 1953, but I can remember that when living in Britanny, a very "conservative" region, my girlfriend and me were considered a bit like heretics because we went at the nude beach....
After some.time they got used to it anyway.
Good old days, VW combi, the blond girlfriend and the windsurfing board !

Sea, sex and sun.... Fast forward, I still have the sea and the sun 😄😄😄

But the days of "surfers do it standing up" are gone 😪😪😪
 
Balifrog said:
Absolutely agreed.
Born a few years after you (I think ?), 1953, but I can remember that when living in Britanny, a very "conservative" region, my girlfriend and me were considered a bit like heretics because we went at the nude beach....
After some.time they got used to it anyway.
Good old days, VW combi, the blond girlfriend and the windsurfing board !

Sea, sex and sun.... Fast forward, I still have the sea and the sun 😄😄😄

But the days of "surfers do it standing up" are gone 😪😪😪
Click to expand...
Do you agree that a line needs to be drawn somewhere or should people be free to go nude in public? Does it make any difference if the children see? Shoud every culure adopt the same standards?
 
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