Heart attack comeback: Retiree stays busy, active following heart attack

On Aug. 2, 2009, Norman Ertman was browsing through Barnes & Noble when he began to feel ill. He assumed it was just a spasm of acid reflux.

"I tried to go out to my vehicle to get my antacids but I couldn't make it. I couldn't move," says Ertman, age 66, a retired factory worker from rural Cape Girardeau County. Fortunately, he was shopping with his son Tom that day, and the two suspected he was having a heart attack.

"It was like I was dead in my chest," recalls Ertman. "I had all the classic symptoms, like pain up and down both arms. I broke into a sweat. I had the symptoms immediately, but I wasn't scared. There wasn't time to be scared."

There wasn't time to call an ambulance, either. Ertman's son drove him across the street to Saint Francis Medical Center and ran into the emergency room for help. An emergency worker came out to the truck immediately and wheeled Ertman inside. He had a stent inserted, was moved to the coronary care unit within 30 minutes, and was sent home the next evening.

"I hardly had time to realize that I'd had a heart attack. I felt fine. It was so surprising," says Ertman. "I didn't even have time to get any sympathy. I had no idea where it came from because I had no symptoms."

Norman Ertman

In fact, Ertman had been very healthy and active since retiring from Procter & Gamble in 1998. Just the day before his heart attack, he'd completed a 10-mile hike with his son and felt great. He exercised three times a week, worked in his yard, and loved to go fishing, ride his motorcycle and play with his grandchildren.

Though his father underwent quadruple bypass surgery around age 70, Ertman had never experienced heart problems or worrisome symptoms. His cholesterol was only slightly high, and he was taking statin medications. He'd even had a stress test a month and a half before the heart attack, and the results were normal.

So that day in August, Ertman was shocked when an angiogram showed 99 percent blockage in one artery. His doctor said the other arteries were less than 35 percent blocked, and that most doctors don't worry until the arteries are 70 percent blocked.

Today, Ertman is taking additional heart medications and trying to watch his diet and lose weight. He hasn't resumed regular exercise yet, but continues to remain active at home. He's only seen his cardiologist once since the heart attack but has frequent checkups with his regular doctor.

"They said not to overdo it," says Ertman. "I'm a busy guy and I just want to get in and do it, but they said I should control my weight and cholesterol first, and then exercise."

Even now, Ertman finds it hard to believe that he's actually recovering from a heart attack.

"It can happen to anyone at anytime -- that's what my cardiologist said," says Ertman. "I don't know what the heck to do now but enjoy life. ... I'll probably go out and shovel snow today, but it's always in the back of my mind now. I can't just hang around at the hospital all the time."

Instead, he's just trying to stay healthy and make the best of a life that he almost lost.

"I'm enjoying my retirement and I have a new lease on life. It's pretty fragile," says Ertman. "I'm more appreciative of being here."