1. < Heart & Blood Health

High Coronary Calcium Score: How do others feel emotionally?

Posted by mcphee @mcphee, Dec 14, 2016

I have a calcium score of 1,950 which is extremely high which means I am at a very high risk for a cardiac event,heart attack,stroke or sudden death.

I take a statin and baby aspirin. I have never been sick, have excellent cholesterol, low blood pressure and I am not overweight. I have no other health problems and I have never been sick. But I feel like a walking time bomb which has caused me a lot of stress. I am 70 yrs old.

I wonder how others with this condition feel emotionally?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Heart & Blood Health Support Group.

alaskat | @alaskat | May 30, 2023
In reply to @poppy07 "Sounds like you had a pretty good diet growing up in Peru. What is your calcium..." + (show)
@poppy07

Sounds like you had a pretty good diet growing up in Peru. What is your calcium score?
A friend of mine had a zero score but further tests showed major blockages and needed a triple bypass.
It all seems so confusing.

Jump to this post

It was on my 20's that I came here and that's when the problem started. My CAC is 1525. I know is different for everyone but hoping for a good stress test and then ways to improve my well being. If stent is the solution then stent is. Ty

REPLY
writer418 | @writer418 | May 30, 2023

My suggestion would be to get a nuclear stress test and sonogram of your heart to check blood flow. If it’s good, don’t worry. If there’s a problem, it’s better you know and get a simple stent, hopefully nothing more. Having a doctor tell me my blood flow was fine eased my mind tremendously. I stopped eating red met (for the most part) and swim three times a week. Godspeed…..

REPLY
2 replies
poppy07 | @poppy07 | May 30, 2023
In reply to @alaskat "That's a tricky question. What I knew and what I know now are immensely different. There..." + (show)
@alaskat

That's a tricky question. What I knew and what I know now are immensely different. There is a reason why doctors ask the question : Where are you from? I was born overseas (Lima, Peru to be exact) and as kids we ate everything. Our cuisine is a mix. There were stews, white rice, milk. I didn't grow up eating a lot of red meat and was not surrounded by tons of candies and cereals and the amount of information we have on hand now is huge compare to back then. I became aware of food about 8 years ago (I am 64 now). So that's the answer. Nowadays I am prioritizing vegetables, no dairy but still keeping fish and chicken as options (not a lot of it though). Internet indicates that 25% of cholesterol we produce is genetic, the rest is food intake. Statins have stabilize my condition. I still have to improve my food intake so working on it.

Jump to this post

Sounds like you had a pretty good diet growing up in Peru. What is your calcium score?
A friend of mine had a zero score but further tests showed major blockages and needed a triple bypass.
It all seems so confusing.

REPLY
2 replies
alaskat | @alaskat | May 29, 2023

Visited a new cardiologist last Friday. Fortunately he has a more holistic approach and is not an interventionist cardio. Having said that if my condition doesn't improve he will (probably) referred me to my previous cardio for an angiogram. Having a stress test this coming Wednesday.
: )

REPLY
alaskat | @alaskat | May 29, 2023
In reply to @rochelle369 "Are you aware that all animal products (chicken, fish, eggs, all meats, dairy) contain cholesterol? A..." + (show)
@rochelle369

Are you aware that all animal products (chicken, fish, eggs, all meats, dairy) contain cholesterol? A whole food plant based low fat diet has been proven to be beneficial. Your body also produces cholesterol.

Jump to this post

That's a tricky question. What I knew and what I know now are immensely different. There is a reason why doctors ask the question : Where are you from? I was born overseas (Lima, Peru to be exact) and as kids we ate everything. Our cuisine is a mix. There were stews, white rice, milk. I didn't grow up eating a lot of red meat and was not surrounded by tons of candies and cereals and the amount of information we have on hand now is huge compare to back then. I became aware of food about 8 years ago (I am 64 now). So that's the answer. Nowadays I am prioritizing vegetables, no dairy but still keeping fish and chicken as options (not a lot of it though). Internet indicates that 25% of cholesterol we produce is genetic, the rest is food intake. Statins have stabilize my condition. I still have to improve my food intake so working on it.

REPLY
1 reply
mayoconnectuser1 | @mayoconnectuser1 | May 27, 2023
In reply to @wisconsin2267 "See above." + (show)
@wisconsin2267

See above.

Jump to this post

Apparently not everyone agrees with this doctor ... likely the selling of books and youtube videos makes folks suspicious?

I certainly am.

I am, btw, also suspicious of most binary statements - like only eat plant based food.

REPLY
wisconsin2267 | @wisconsin2267 | May 27, 2023
In reply to @rochelle369 "Is this a good book?" + (show)
@rochelle369

Is this a good book?

Jump to this post

I thought it was and gained some advice from it.

REPLY
rochelle369 | @rochelle369 | May 27, 2023
In reply to @wisconsin2267 "See above." + (show)
@wisconsin2267

See above.

Jump to this post

Is this a good book?

REPLY
1 reply
wisconsin2267 | @wisconsin2267 | May 26, 2023
In reply to @wisconsin2267 "Besides Beat the heart attack gene by Bale-Doneen, this is a really good book by Ford..." + (show)
@wisconsin2267

Besides Beat the heart attack gene by Bale-Doneen, this is a really good book by Ford Brewer and Todd Eldridge.

Jump to this post

See above.
REPLY
2 replies
rochelle369 | @rochelle369 | May 26, 2023
In reply to @alaskat "I appreciate your responses. You are on the good side of things score wise and living..." + (show)
@alaskat

I appreciate your responses. You are on the good side of things score wise and living your best life possible by exercising and changing your diet. I am 63 and play tennis 2/3 times a week, no dairy unless is low fat cottage cheese, no red meat. I have joined the gym basically for swimming twice to three times a week and use of treadmill for 1/2 hour each time. Tomorrow I meet a 2nd cardiologist's opinion and hoping it is someone who has options as opposite of a "stent procedure only solution". Currently taking 1 statin x10mg p/day with a CAC score of 1525. Have friends and relatives who have stents from long time ago and they don't even think about them and that fact makes me wonder if I should go for that. I want to be worry free but then again I don't want an invasive procedure BUT then again I have a high CAC. I will definitely want my heart stress tests done before anything and see where to go from there but because my mind has a divided opinion I am open minded for an angiogram. I will write more after tomorrow's conversation with the doctor.

Jump to this post

Are you aware that all animal products (chicken, fish, eggs, all meats, dairy) contain cholesterol? A whole food plant based low fat diet has been proven to be beneficial. Your body also produces cholesterol.

REPLY
1 reply
View MoreView Less
Please sign in or register to post a reply.