Congestive Heart Failure

[livingwith]

Yesterday I was discharged from a five day stay in the hospital with pneumonia and later discovered CHF with an EF reading of 35 (however IV stress test was negative for blockages). I came home with a sack full of pills having never had to take prescription pills in my life (age 60, obese female).
My doctor said I might have had CHF many years without even knowing it, but my cholesterol level has always been in the 168 range, no diabetes, and no hypertension that anyone ever told me about.
Four...Read the full article

[kcsteve]

Not a Dr, just a fellow chfer who remembers how scared I was when I was told. At 54 I learned that I had chf. Unlike you, I did have blockages and a lot of old heart damage as well. After 4 bypasses, and 2 stents (within a month of diagnosis) my ef was improved to 20%.
In cardio rehab the first thing I learned was what I could do, not what I couldn't do in terms of diet and exercise. After 2 years I was maintaining and had an ef of 20-25%. Never had high cholesterol numbers, but now of course, they are always much better. (diet and a ton of drugs).
Whenever I asked about when I could expect improvement, I was told that I was not one of the ones that could ever improve. Only maintain.
Today, after 3.5 years, I tested at 40% ef and still feel great. I will always have, and can still go into chf, but I know how to deal with it when I do. I exercise whenever I can, maintain a positive attitude, minimize stress and eat a much better diet.
The moral to this little tale is that your greatest enemy can be your own fears. Once you make the determination that you will beat chf, not allow it to beat you, you have a great chance at life. I know.

[azark]

Hi There! I hope you are doing well as it has been a few weeks since you posted your story...and I hope you continue to return to this forum for support.

Oh! How I wish I had an EF of 35! My CHF was diagnosed on Christmas eve day a year ago. An echocardiogram pegged my EF at 20-25%, while another a week later had it in the 10% range. A full day at a hospital with tests showed I had a "Left bundle branch block" with some mitral valve problems. The docs tried meds (Coreg, lisinopril, lasix, and more) with the hope that they would help -- by mid April it was apparent they were not (another echo showed same as first) and in mid May I got a bi-ventricular pacemaker implanted. That improved things a lot, but I am no where near what I was before CHF. My guess at EF is 25-30 range. I tire easily, but I am surviving well.

One of the good things that happened to me was the pure luck that my personal physician (a GP) had taken extended training and courses in cardiology under a cardiologist recognized as one of our state's best. He is an old small town doctor with a lot of experience and common sense and we've both learned from each other. He took me under his wing, so to speak, and would spend well over an hour on each of my first half dozen visits with him. He told me that he viewed his job as "keeping me from the knife of those cardiologists" at the nearby regional medical center and to see that I got to the proper specialist. I believe he views me as one of his successes in medicine!

If you have not found a good doctor who will take the time to explain the pills and your options to you, whether it be a cardiologist or a family doctor with good knowledge in the heart area, you deserve and should seek one immediately.

Depression is one thing often overlooked by experts -- yes, I had it too -- and I dealt with it mostly by informing myself as much as possible about my condition and treatments.

I am doing well now. That doesn't mean I don't have thoughts about how fragile my otherwise robust life is. I'm a lot older than you and if my heart gets worse, my options for transplant are almost nil at my age.

I wish you well, and let us hear your experiences...