It turns out, I can’t outrun family history. Fifty years ago today, June 7, 1974, my father dropped dead of a heart attack at the age of 42. I was seven years old; my sister had graduated high school the night before; and my brother had just completed eighth grade. On that day, we were moving to a new home closer to my father’s company, The RW Greenland Company. We made the move, only to move back to the area six months later.

I have lived my life by lessons learned that day and the years that followed. I knew I had to always be able to take care of myself; I could never depend on a man to take care of me because he could be gone quickly. I taught my children to be able to take care of themselves. I never wanted to see any one of them in the position my mother was suddenly thrown into.

When I turned 42, I decided to be proactive; I would take care of my heart. It was then that I began to run. My husband and I knew we needed some lifestyle changes, so we began running, joined the gym, cycled, and even taught classes at the gym for several years. Though I haven’t run a half marathon since pre-covid, I have continued to run and to walk regularly. With the Covid era came several pounds – 24 to be exact. On a five foot frame, it was definitely an issue. In April of 2023, I joined Weight Watchers, and I lost the weight, but more importantly, I ate healthier. When counting points every day, anything with sugar or too much fat adds up quickly, so that was cut out. Gary also joined, which made it easier to stick to it.

Though the diet and exercise helped with my cholesterol levels, they were never below 200. When I was heavy, I was put on statins. Once I lost weight and was eating better, I went off of them. My choice – not a smart one. I hate taking meds, and am bothered by having to take three pills a day (hormones, allergy, and statin). I thought I could control it with diet and exercise.

In April, I went to a holistic clinic to meet with a nurse practitioner. After learning of our family history of heart disease {father died at 42, his brothers at 52ish, my grandfather at 57, and my brother had a heart attack at 58}, she suggested Cardiac CT Calcium Scoring, which is a CT scan that checks for buildup in your coronary arteries. It then gives you a level of risk you are at. Sign me up! Insurance doesn’t pay, which I will get to later, but it was only $50. That’s $50 that might just save my life. I was scheduled for May 31.

Meanwhile, in the beginning of May, I had an issue with a racing heart, and a couple of days of higher-than-usual blood pressure, and I just didn’t feel right. I went to my family doctor, and everything checked out fine. He did bloodwork, and other than cholesterol, and a little kidney issue, I appeared healthy. So, I went on with all of the end-of-school festivities.

Last Friday was my scan. I knew it would show some risk because of my family history and my years of high cholesterol, but my blood pressure was great, my resting heart rate averages 50, and my EKG was perfect. I was fine! The scan was quick and easy. In and out in 30 minutes, and that included registration. They attached electrodes to me, rolled me in a CT machine, had me hold my breath a few times, and that was it. It was time to shop.

I had signed up for notifications on the portal, so I knew I’d have results that day. What I didn’t expect was to be in TJMaxx, to open the portal, and to read “…score 749, unusually severe for a 57 year old patient, strongly suggesting elevated cardiovascular risk.” Holy shit! The scoring starts at zero, so 749 is super high. As I read further, I found I was in the 91-100 percentile, which is the highest risk – “very severe”. I was in shock for a few hours. I called to get in with my doctor asap. He couldn’t get me in until June 11, so I really panicked. Was I a ticking bomb? Could I drop at any time? I got on the PCMH portal and messaged my doctor and sent him my report that weekend. Monday morning they called and said he could work me in later that day – thank goodness!

He explained about blocked arteries, and agreed that I needed to see a cardiologist. Anyone who knows me knows I am not patient, and I do not do well when things don’t go as planned. I was supposed to leave yesterday on our annual Girls Trip with my high school friends. Gary and I have a trip planned the first week of July, and I have a school conference to attend in Kansas City. I don’t have time to mess with this crap! I have worked so hard to take care of my heart all these years. I was scared and I was angry. And I didn’t really want anyone to know. At first, I told only my husband, his son (he is a nurse and answered some questions), and my friend Katie because she is our personal medical expert. I didn’t tell my kids or anyone else because I just needed to process it myself first.

The cardiology office called Wednesday. To see the doctor I preferred, I would have to wait until August 5. No way. I would either die of heart failure or a massive anxiety attack by then. I asked if anyone had anything sooner. Dr. Dev had an opening this morning (Friday), which meant no girls trip. That was literally the only appointment until the end of July with any cardiologist in the group. Good-bye, girls trip. It was a disappointing, but easy decision. Ironically, today is also the 50th anniversary of my dad’s death.

Dr. Dev did not seem overly concerned. He also explained about how the plaque builds up, and then calcifies. He did say that people who have sudden heart attacks have a piece of the calcification that ruptures like a pimple popping, and that blocks the blood flow to the heart. Super reassuring. So, the next step is a stress test with echocardiogram on June 27. If that is okay, I will see him every six months. If it isn’t, then I think we would look at a heart cath and/or stents. If you know me, you know my brother holds the record for the most stents (not really, but he has nine), but also that he almost died TWICE when getting stents, and I was there both times. The thought of a cath or stents absolutely terrifies me. I have seen what that “simple procedure” can do. I am going to hope and pray that the stress test goes well, and I can continue taking my baby aspirin and just checking in with Dr. Dev. He did tell me I can continue to run, but not to push it too hard. I ran this evening. When I returned home and Gary asked how it went, my reply was that I didn’t die. I guess that’s what I will strive for.

(I was running on the trail by the tennis courts and saw five deer, which always makes a run more meaningful.)

Why am I writing all of this? Because if you are a female and you have any risk factor, you HAVE to advocate for yourself. Ask your doctor to make a referral for the scan. It’s $50! I do not understand why it is not a regular preventative test like a colonoscopy, pap smear, or mammogram that insurance not only pays for, but encourages. It is less expensive, a helluva lot easier, and life-saving.

If that nurse practitioner had not recommended the CT calcium scan, I would think I was completely healthy. I am not. When I told my family doctor that I am worried because of my family history, he took it seriously, but also said that because I am female, my risk is lower. I am high risk. I eat healthy, I don’t smoke, and I exercise regularly. I am not overweight. If you would see me, you would not think about heart disease, but I was unable to outrun my family history.

I got this tattoo last year in honor of my dad. I began running to keep my heart healthy in his memory.