Taking women to heart

Shirley Beel of Cape and Geraldine Meyers of Jackson were each surprised the same way. Each had a heart attack, and neither recognized the symptoms.

Beel had a heart attack Dec. 27, 2002, then had another one two days later in the hospital. Meyers had hers Dec. 11, 2003.

Both women were lucky. Denise Lambert, a clinical nurse specialist for the cardio/thoracic intensive care unit at Southeast Missouri Hospital, said evidence shows that heart attacks kill more women -- especially women past menopause and black women -- than any of the next seven leading causes of death combined. And more women than men will die within the first year of surviving a heart attack.

Most women's conventional wisdom is to fear cancer, especially breast cancer. Only 8 percent of women believe that heart disease is their biggest health threat, Lambert said.

Dr. R. Brent New, a local cardiovascular surgeon, said most women don't recognize the symptoms of a heart attack and don't have the same symptoms men have.

"It's more easy to miss or delay diagnosis for that reason," he said.

Meyers, now 52, was different. She had the classic symptoms that men have, but she still didn't realize she was having a heart attack. She headed to work as a certified tumor registrar at Saint Francis Medical Center with severe chest pressure that came on suddenly while on her way to the office. She clocked in and began working. A co-worker noticed that Meyers looked ill and encouraged her to go to the emergency room.

Even in the emergency room, the enormity of her condition did not sink in right away.

"They started an IV on me and put me on a monitor," she said. "They got me feeling a little better and the pain stopped. I asked if I could go back to work."

Instead of letting her go back to work, the hospital admitted her and she had a double bypass.

Beel's heart attack was more typical of women. The 64-year-old went to the emergency room because she thought she was developing pneumonia. When Dr. Allen Spitler walked in to consult with her, she asked why a cardiovascular specialist had been called.

"He said, 'Shirley, you're having a heart attack,'" she said. "I couldn't believe it."

A stent was put in, and two days later, she developed a blood clot and had another heart attack -- and another stent.

"I told myself the Lord still wants me here," she said. "He's telling me something, and I listened. I started taking better care of myself."

Typical heart attacks

New said that typically women who have heart attacks may start out with shortness of breath and the symptoms of cold or flu. Some get cold sweats, general weakness and tire more easily. Some complain of pain in the abdomen, thinking they're having indigestion.

"Most of the time, because women are older when they start developing symptoms of a heart attack, they have other diseases going on that can mask the symptoms," Lambert said.

Younger women are protected by estrogen, but as they go through menopause their risk for heart attack goes up significantly, New said. Other problems associated with aging -- diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure -- contribute to the problem.

Beel and Meyers both have high blood pressure. Beel also has arthritis and diabetes, which she says have subsided since she lost 42 pounds and began exercising more. Southeast nurse Lambert said it is important for women to stop smoking if they smoke, get their cholesterol down to an acceptable level, keep their blood sugar normal, eat healthfully and exercise regularly.

She stressed that the best time to do this is not after a heart attack. Prevention, she said, is much easier for women's heart health than treatment.

Beel and Meyers say they feel like they have been given a second chance. Both are noticing improvement in their blood pressure and Beel said she is taking less medicine to control her blood sugar.

Meyers said losing 34 pounds was not really difficult.

"I'm doing my best to keep it off, she said. "But I still have pecan pie at Christmas."

Beel, who retired from Southeast Hospital's food service department, said she gave up salty snacks that pack on weight and retain fluid. Because her husband, Ed, had a heart attack six months after she had hers, she cooks healthy meals for them both.

Meyers said she now walks two miles a day, five days a week. Beel and her husband work out at a fitness center three days a week. They also like to go dancing at the American Legion on Friday nights and enjoy the company of their friends as much as the exercise dancing provides.

Beel said she has learned that her health begins with herself.

"We have to sit down, look at ourselves in the mirror and acknowledge reality," she said. "This is real. If I had it to do over I would never have let it get this far. I still want to live."

Meyer said she was most touched by how her heart attack affected her 16-year-old son. She also has a husband and a 21-year-old daughter. "It was actually very hard on all three of them," she said. "But it was hardest on my son. He's been encouraging me to stay on my diet and to exercise, sometimes a little too much. I could never have asked for more support than what I got from my family."

Since her heart attack, Meyers said she has a different outlook on life. Before she made excuses not to exercise, now she finds time to do it. She said she would encourage all women to get a checkup and change their lifestyles.

"It's a killer of women," she said. "It definitely is there."

lredeffer@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160