In an effort to educate, the NHLBI began this campaign a few years ago. Wear red, Knit Red, learn about women's heart disease at WomenHeart, the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease.
I had my heart attack in May 2000. Two months later, the stent they inserted to fix my blockage, closed up, and I had to have by-pass surgery. I spent a year unemployed (yup - that happens, too, when you're young and sick and working where they are extremely worried about the rising cost of health care). I found WomenHeart and trained in the first class of women's heart health community educators at Mayo Clinic.
Today? Well, I do my best to live life to the fullest. I sometimes feel as if I'm on borrowed time. That heart attack I had was a "Hollywood heart attack" - the kind you don't walk away from. I'm grateful to be here.
Be sure you take a moment - if you don't wear red on Friday, then at least take a moment and think of one thing you can change in your life to make you more heart healthy. Maybe the easiest thing is to add 10 minutes of movement to your life right now. Or eat one more vegetable each day.
The BEST thing you can do, is quit smoking if you do. And stay away from smokers, if you already are smoke-free yourself.
(I'm a former smoker - I know it's hard. If you're trying to quit, maybe try The Q - it's what did it for me!)
I'll show you the one piece of knitting I've done since my heart attack that I hold near my heart often - My Queen of Hearts shawl from Fiber Trends. Made of Knitpicks Merino Style it's a warm and visible reminder of how far I've come!
No comments:
Post a Comment