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Heart attack survivor back in the gym
A Georgia woman, who has survived a half-dozen heart attacks, had to give up her job and running, both which she loves. But she is now finding her way back to the gym thanks to a little help.
ATLANTA - At 56, Karen Green is back in the gym, this time at Dacula Fitness.
"It's a lifesaver," the Hoschton, Georgia, married mother of two adult sons says.
Karen Green, 56, has survived at least 6 heart attacks. (Karen Green)
Because Green, a former kindergarten teacher and longtime runner, has survived at least six heart attacks.
"I had my first one when I was 43," Green says. "They thought it was a fluke; it would only happen once. But it's happened six more times since then."
Dr. Manfred Sandler, Director of Cardiology at Northside Gwinnett, has been treating Green since her first heart attack 13 years ago.
"Karen was a healthy, healthy lady," Dr. Sandler says.
She had experienced all the classic heart attack symptoms, like chest pain, discomfort, and numbness in both her arms.
But Green had none of the heart attack risk factors that might explain what was happening.
"Under most circumstances, if you're 43-years-old with no risk factors, you certainly don't think the heart first," Dr. Sandler says. "You think, 'Well, I've pulled a muscle, it's indigestion.' But, fortunately, they were clever enough, her husband was bright enough to think, 'There is something bad going on here.'"
Green was rushed to Northside Gwinnett's ER and Dr. Sandler's team quickly got the cath lab ready.
They would later learn Green was experiencing something known as spontaneous coronary artery dissection, or SCAD.
It is a rare, life-threatening cardiac emergency triggered by tears in the blood vessels of her heart.
"Your arteries have 3 layers and one of the layers splits, and you form a blood clot between the two layers, which causes the blockage," Green explains.
Dr. Sandler says there were no easy answers, and no medications specifically designed to treat SCAD.
"Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is such a rare, rare condition," he says.
Green's last heart attacks, two of them, occurred in 2019.
"You begin to wonder, 'What if this happens again tomorrow, and I die,'" she says. "And I'm blessed to have a great God that gives me strength."
Still, she missed being active, which had been a big part of her life before her heart attacks.
"I started getting a lot of anxiety and a little depression, I think," Green says. "I told my husband, 'I feel like I need to start working out, but I'm scared.'"
After going through cardiac rehab, Green slowly started training again with Scott Green of Dacula Fitness, with Dr. Sandler's full support.
"Because we've got no scientific medication we can really give her to, to say, 'Take this, and you'll never have a heart attack again,'" Sandler says. "In her case, diet and exercise outweigh even the importance of the medication we give her."
Karen Green has no guarantees she will not have another heart attack.
Still, Green says, she feels stronger and happier than she has felt in a long time.
"We just got back from Hawaii for a month, and we did all kinds of hikes," Green says. "Things I would never be able to imagine I would do, I did. And it just gives me joy."
One of her strength training goals was to be able to lift her oldest grandchild Luca, who has Down syndrome, without worrying about straining her heart.
"My grandson is two and a half, and I can throw him up in the air, and I can do all the things grandmas like to do with their kids," Green says.
SCAD most often affects women in their 40s and 50s but can occur in men, too.
"If you're a woman, and you feel like you're having a heart attack, don't be afraid to call 911," Green says. "I was the first time. The next 5 times, I called 911, and it probably saved my life.
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