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I am a woman aged 55, who was recently diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. My parents were quite old when they married, so my family history is limited, but all of my mother's family died at relatively young ages of heart failure. Two of my aunts on my mother's side had heart problems from childhood and the other three siblings in my mother's family died of sudden heart failure at relatively young ages. I realize that I have had symptoms for a number of years, but, although I have had a few stress echo's, no one paid much attention until about a year and a half ago, when I fainted while resting on a crunch bench while working out. I could hear my heart beating abnormally and stop before I fainted. Not long before that I had reported chest pain. The doc ordered an ekg and said it was abnormal, but claimed that further tests showed nothing of significance. After the fainting spell I had about 5 weeks of arrhythmia, but then it went away, so I ended up going to China to teach for this past year. After a few months there, I began to have fairly severe arrhythmia and fainted one more time while playing Solitare on my laptop, so I was glad when the university where I was teaching in Beijing was closed for SARS as that freed me to come to the US for tests. The cardiologist I saw here told me I have HCM and placed me on , which ended up causing me to have diverticulitis. So, I am now on 240 mg of Cardiazem and 25 mg of Toprol. I also have hypertension and am on HCTH to try to bring that back down.
I asked the cardiologist whether I could climb the Great Wall (2500 steps straight up). He said that I could do anything I want, as long as I stop if I have symptoms. I asked what to do if I was half-way up and he suggested I just stop, wait for the symptoms to go away, and then continue. My classes are usually on the 4th or 5th floor with no elevators, so I get practice climbing nearly every day. I carry a laptop, projector, speakers, small boombox, text, sidewalk chalk, and any papers needed with me to virtually every class.
I realize this is long, but I am planning to return to China Sept 1, so I would like all the info I can get, if possible. Any have any suggestions of ways to help make this possible would be deeply appreciated. I would love to talk with one of your specialists in HCM, but do not see that as feasible. I will say that I like my cardiologist and his "can do" attitude. He told me that I can call him any time from Beijing with problems or even questions and he will return my call.
Thanks!
I asked the cardiologist whether I could climb the Great Wall (2500 steps straight up). He said that I could do anything I want, as long as I stop if I have symptoms. I asked what to do if I was half-way up and he suggested I just stop, wait for the symptoms to go away, and then continue. My classes are usually on the 4th or 5th floor with no elevators, so I get practice climbing nearly every day. I carry a laptop, projector, speakers, small boombox, text, sidewalk chalk, and any papers needed with me to virtually every class.
I realize this is long, but I am planning to return to China Sept 1, so I would like all the info I can get, if possible. Any have any suggestions of ways to help make this possible would be deeply appreciated. I would love to talk with one of your specialists in HCM, but do not see that as feasible. I will say that I like my cardiologist and his "can do" attitude. He told me that I can call him any time from Beijing with problems or even questions and he will return my call.
Thanks!
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