Sailing with Angina

dave_b

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No not a new crew member!! but having just been told I have Angina and not wanting to face giving up, I was wondering how many out there are sailing with this condition? I know it affects people to different degrees, but I would appreciate your opinions /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
 

mainmarine

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I had angina attacks before I had a triple by pass operation last year, I found that it was a warning that I was overdoing things, It usually occured if I did anything strenuous after eating, like walking or cycling, I have learned to adjust my life style to cope with the effects, I rest after meals and avoid heavy lifting etc. If you have a GTN spray they are usually very effective in relieving the symptoms. I used to have to stop every 2 minutes when mowing the lawns, due to chest pains, [I didn't use my spray I just stopped for a few seconds til the pain went away] now I can usually mow them all in one go, about an hour. Sailing again is something I am looking forward to, after I finish renovating my boat.
Best of luck
Malc
Mainmarine
 

catmandoo

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I had pains in my chest after eating and then going walking . Went into hospital for tests for angina and they found nothing . I even ran on a treadmill connected to a computer and ECG machine . pains now reduced in intensity but lurking in back ground Now waiting for endoscope to look inside throat guts etc . hope they start with mouth first .

planning to go boating in April as soon as I can get away
 

Norman_E

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Dave,
Sorry to hear of your problem. If sailing is your pleasure in life, then giving up would just be giving in, and accepting a more limited lifestyle.
I have seen adverts in the yachting press for portable de-fibrillators. (spelling?) In any case these are devices intended to re-start (or stabilise?) your heart in case of a heart attack. I suggest you talk to your doctor about the adviseability of carrying one on board, and crucially having someone in the crew trained how (and when) to use it. Hopefully you will never need it, but it might be a good insurance policy.
All the Best, Norman.
 

dralex

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No way you should have to stop sailing- just make sure it's well controlled and you're on the appropriate levels of preventative treatment, as well as addressing any risk factors. If it's not well controlled, you need continual reassessment with a view to other treatments such as angioplasty. There are lots of different levels of angina which respond to increasing levels of treatment. Your GP should be able to sort all this out. PM me if you want any specifics answered and you promise not to sue me.
 

Sniper

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There are no doubt many out there with greater knowledge than me, but I would offer the following. Angina is eminently treatable and many find the GTN spray (or tablets) effective in keeping it under control. As has been said, a lot of the challenge is in finding a regime which allows you to achieve necessary tasks without pushing yourself to the point where an attack is triggered. A sensible precaution might be to always sail with somebody who is capable of performing any unduly demanding tasks of a physical nature, especially given that sailing is the sort of activity where one can suddenly find oneself engaged in strenous activity without any warning.

As far as defibrillators go, whether or not to purchase one has to be a personal choice. Once you have your angina stabilised through effective medication and a sound personal management regime there is no reason why you should need one any more than the next person (assuming the next person doesn't have an acute heart condition!) Defibrillators, when they are required, are amazing things but they are only of use in case of cardiac arrest - they won't help with a MI.

Good luck in finding a solution, but doing something you enjoy is bound to help.
 

snowleopard

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sounds to me like you need someone young to do all physically demanding jobs on the boat. i suggest she should be between 18 and 25.
 

dralex

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You said "she"- that's hardly acceptable in our current equal opportunities world- surely a "he" could carry out all the same duties with equal skill.
 

snowleopard

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ok, let me spell it out-

i suggest she should be between 18 and 25.... with long blonde hair, legs up to her armpits and not needing to wear a mae west. when will you have a better excuse for recruiting a crew member like that??
 

Peppermint

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Re: It\'s like everything else you do....

...but further from help. From crewmembers we've had with the condition, it's just getting used to it. doing what the doc tells you and carry on. You seem to learn the symptoms and learn the easy way to do stuff.

Things to watch out for are getting cold and tired. If you're sick remember your medication just went in the bucket. Sailors diets can be a bit unsuitable. Ask for help with the stamina jobs.

If it gets worse and you have the by-pass op. You'll be like a spring chicken almost straight afterwards.
 

pragmatist

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Gets my vote ! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

I know - a member of the England rugby squad would be ideal !
 

pragmatist

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Be realistic (oh heck !) - its hard enough to get females to become crew - I think I stand a better chance with my fantasy of an England rugby player as crew ! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif
 

dralex

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Re: It\'s like everything else you do....

Sorry, I've been digressing- SNowleopards fault. In my personal opinion, the three most basic things I would carry if I had angina, would be my GTN spray, soluble aspirin and some oxygen. If the worst happened and you had unresolving angina that progressed to a heart attack, then those are the things that are going to help the most until you can get choppered off. I must say though, the idea would to be well enough controlled in the first place not to get that bad. I am coming around to the ideas of defibrillators on boats as they become cheaper, especially if you have a history of ischaemic heart disease.
 

pragmatist

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dave_b - I apologise if I hi-jacked the thread. Perhaps we all try to minimise the bad bits and I recognise you're currently facing a "real nasty". But I'm sure you don't need to give up - after all the aging process is largely management - eat muesli not bacon & egg or take your time swigging up the mainsail. And no, I'm not in my first flush but I have the added disadvantage of being female so some of the management techniques have been needed for longer if HWMBO isn't to get really fed up when I can't raise the anchor or the main (oh heck - get it up in the river while we're head to wind - NOW !) .

Sure you'll sort it out and carry on sailing - we have no 25 yr old rugby players on our boat and we manage - sure you will have great fun too despite current nasties.
 

Cobra25

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I woke up in the middle of my colonoscopy and turned the monitor towars me to have a look. I said ' Looks pretty clear to me. What do you think? To the surgeon. I watched the little pincers remove biopsies three times before falling back under anaesthetic. I had some extreme discomfort as he pushed the tube further along but soon fell under the anaesthetic again. I am one of the few people in the world to have looked up my own posterior. Didn't feel the endoscopy.
Haven't got angine, glad to say, but on tablets for high blood pressure, which is low as a resut for past ten years. BOL
 

Bergman

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Carry on sailing without a doubt

I've had a couple of heart attacks, one on the boat.

All resolved by an angioplasty, which means putting bits of pipe in your artery, very interesting, you can watch them doing it on a TV screen.

Folllow medical advice on diet and medication and (unlike me) on smoking.

I had the tube job in Feb and was sailing in April. (With GP's blessing)

What you have to remember the worst thing to aggrevate heart disease is stress and nothing better for stress relief than sailing.

Go for it
 
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