I’ve been in your shoes, and I take this question very seriously. In 2015, I had a Type A ascending aortic dissection that came out of nowhere and required emergency open-heart surgery and a Dacron graft to save my life. Knowing what I know now, I look back differently at stress, exertion, and the warning signs I didn’t have time to process. I am still a federal litigator today.

A 4.5 cm ascending aortic aneurysm is not trivial, especially in someone working in law enforcement. Even if you feel fine day to day, the issue is not how you feel most of the time, but what happens during sudden spikes in blood pressure. Law enforcement work can involve unpredictable stress, adrenaline surges, physical confrontation, breath-holding, heavy exertion, and split-second reactions. Those are exactly the conditions that increase wall stress on the ascending aorta and raise the risk of dissection or rupture. Doctors are usually conservative for a reason when they recommend a job change in this setting. It is not because you are incapable or weak. It is because the consequences of a bad moment are catastrophic, not incremental. I had no warning. One minute I was fine, and the next minute I knew I was dying.

That said, many people with ascending aneurysms can continue working if their job allows strict blood pressure control, avoidance of heavy lifting and straining, no breath-holding or Valsalva maneuvers, and minimal acute stress. Law enforcement often fails all of those criteria, even if most shifts are calm. You cannot control when the job suddenly demands everything from your body at once.

If your doctors are advising a different role, that advice is grounded in risk management, not fear. A transition to a less strenuous, less adrenaline-driven position, whether within law enforcement or outside it, can dramatically reduce your risk and give you years or decades of stability while your aneurysm is monitored. From someone who didn’t get a second warning before his aorta tore, I would urge you to take this seriously and think long-term. Preserving your life and future matters more than any single job title. Knowing about the aneurysm now gives you the chance to make proactive choices that I never had. Peace.