New lease of life

A survivor of a near-fatal heart attack shares his scary experience and how clinicians at Mediclinic Worcester and Mediclinic Panorama helped to save his life.

On a cold night two years ago, Atholl Hay, then aged 63, was lying on the couch in front of the fire watching a movie with his pet cat curled up in his lap. He was feeling contented and relieved, having finally completed prolonged renovations on his home in the Western Cape village of McGregor.

“When I suddenly felt a slight tightening in my chest, I reminded myself to mention it to my GP the next time I saw him,” he says. “It had been bugging me occasionally and I’d put it down to the stress of the renovations. After all, I was extremely fit, ate a plant-based diet and didn’t smoke. I worked in the wellness industry, was an avid hiker, yogi and runner. What else could it be?”

This time however, the tightness didn’t pass. It rapidly became more intense; the cramp-like pain spreading down his arms, into his jaw and across the top of his back. “I felt a freezing-cold stab of pain between my shoulder blades,” he recalls. “Instinctively, I knew I was in trouble. As a trained air steward, I was aware of the symptoms of a heart attack.

“I was surprised by how accepting I was of the situation. As I considered the very real possibility that I might die that night, I reminded myself that all I could do was breathe slowly and deeply. My main concern was for my cat, as I live alone and was worried who would feed her. It’s strange what goes through your head at times like this – mindfulness practice came easily to me.

“Although friends and family were later angry with me for not calling for help, I didn’t want to waste precious energy frantically trying to get to the nearest hospital 20km away, Instead I chose to remain still and to keep breathing – slowly and deeply. I firmly believe that decision helped saved my life. After more than an hour, the crushing pain began to ease, and I eventually dozed off.”

“You’ve had a massive heart attack!”

First thing in the morning, Atholl made an appointment to see his GP, who immediately conducted an ECG. “As he knows I generally enjoy robust good health, he started asking me about what I’d had for supper, suggesting it could have been severe indigestion. Then he suddenly looked up from the ECG printout. ‘Lie down immediately!’ he ordered. ‘I’m calling an ambulance. You’ve had a massive heart attack.’”

On arrival at Mediclinic Worcester, things happened with impressive speed, Atholl says. With “a squad of nursing staff” around his bed, his system was flooded with anticoagulants. “I was feeling quite cheerful, all things considered, but it was beginning to dawn on me that I had literally been knocking on death’s door. For three nights in ICU, I was restrained by a spaghetti of wires connecting me to beeping machines, surrounded by cheerful, efficient, compassionate nurses.” WhatsApp and Facebook delivered a steady flow of good wishes, he adds, and even the hospital food was better than expected!

Immense relief

On day three Atholl was transferred to the cardiac unit at Mediclinic Panorama, where he was given an angiogram. “I then experienced the 25-minute medical miracle of having two lifesaving stents inserted via my wrist into my severely constricted cardiac artery,” he says. “All the preceding trauma was almost worth it just to feel that warm lifeblood flowing back into my limbs. It was such an immense and memorable relief.

“I was discharged on day four. I joked that it was unfair a heart attack was my reward for living such a healthy life – and my doctor’s response was that surviving the heart attack was my reward. The words hit home.”

Return to daily life

After a few weeks rest, he returned to work and normal daily life. But his recovery was not without setbacks. “Five months after my heart attack, I felt nauseous, stumbled out of bed and woke up on the bathroom floor with a smashed face, surrounded by blood. A doctor friend of mine cleaned me up and took me back to Mediclinic Worcester for observation. My cardiologist then gave me a heart monitor for four days and the results showed my fainting was due to arrhythmia. I was prescribed medication, and since then, things have been fine.”

In fact, life now has a richer and more precious texture, Atholl says. “I feel better than I’ve felt for years. My tolerance for drama is lower and I have more courage. I’m deeply grateful for the love of friends and family and for access to world-class medical treatment. I wish I could bottle the feeling I had the first week after having the stents inserted – it truly felt like I had been given a new lease on life.”