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| Picture snapped the day before when sending off my brother, Syazwan & family off to Korea at Changi Airport |
We had a scare on 1st Dec 2017 when Papa complained of chest pains and broke out in cold sweat after a short exercise to Punggol Park with Mama. Prior to that, he had been complaining of giddiness for about a week plus. Thankfully, my youngest brother was at home and insisted for him to go to the hospital. Usually, his routine is to continue driving (he is an Uber driver) after fetching Mama from work but on that particular day, he insisted on going for an exercise and to only drive after Magrib. Allah knows best!
I was at home in Yishun when Mama called and immediately got everyone ready to rush to the hospital. At that moment, I knew little of the situation.
Everything happened so fast at the hospital. We didn’t know it was so serious and only realised the severity when informed that he was confirmed to have experienced a heart attack and has been wheeled into the lab for an emergency ballooning and stenting procedure.
Alhamdulillah the procedure went well and the clogged arteries were unblocked. The fact that Papa was conscious and did not fall flat like in the movies when anyone has a heart attack taught me something new. It is to never take any symptoms lightly. I was horrified when I learnt of the statistics surrounding the case.
Basically, the middle artery was 100% blocked for quite a while as new blood vessels has formed for the blood to continue flowing. The right artery was 20% blocked so the medical team do not do anything about that as procedures will only be done for blockage of 70% and above. The opening of his left artery was 80% blocked, middle part had blood clots and the end part was 100% blocked.
4-year old Azeen and 3-year old Ayra asked me what had happened and I told them that we were rushing to the hospital because Apah was suspected to have a heart attack and their innocent response was “Macam Cerita 6X7?”. For those who don't know, 6X7 is a must-watch drama series on Suria that educates the public on cases surrounding bathing of dead bodies in Islam.
Only Allah knows how hard my heart was thumping. Being the eldest child, I always have to act as the cool and strong one under all circumstances. Although placed in the Critical Care Unit (CCU) as his heart just went through a shock and there have been cases of the heartbeat getting irregular or suddenly stop, he could still horse around with Azeen and Ayra, showing the tubes in his nose.
He was so determined to get discharged because it was just a few days to my mum's trip to Umrah (mini-pilgrimage). He was discharged two days before my mum's trip and he wasn't feeling to well in the morning but he kept quiet about it. After sending my mum off at the airport, we went home and in the evening after Magrib prayers, we were supposed to head to Yishun (my place) but Papa said he was feeling light-headed. My brother and I gave him an hour to rest and alert us if he is still not feeling any better. Around midnight, he woke Yayan, who was sleeping beside him, up and then we proceeded to rush him to SGH. Thankfully, my sister-in-law was around to help look after the sleeping kids. He was admitted again but it was not as serious as the first round.
We didn't want Mama to worry while she's on her Umrah so we did not tell her about the situation. We only told her when she got back. Thakfully, she had bad internet connection while in Media and when her internet connection improved as she got to Mecca, my father was discharged and we were safely video-calling from home.
Fast-forward to now, Alhamdulillah he is off clexane (this horrible medication that he has to inject himself and causes bruises all over his tummy) but he is still on a very controlled diet and of course, medication. He has stopped smoking completely. He is more disciplined in his meal times and slightly more obedient to advice than before. Lol.
Let's not take our health for granted and only start panicking when we are faced with a calamity!
Let's all start now and take preventive measures while we are healthy. Insha-Allah.
I would also like to remind you not to take symptoms lightly. If my youngest brother had not been at home and insisted for my parents to go to the hospital immediately, there was a high chance they wanted to wait for things to blow over first.
I would also like to share with you 7 Great Food for the HEART that can help to unclog arteries naturally! (do Google up the benefits yourself ok? )
1. Black Seed Oil --> got mine from Nigel Herbs
2. Grante Pomegrante Juice --> you can get from Halal Food Hub, Al-Barakah, Holland & Barrette or direct from Nigel Herbs (main distributor)
3. Garlic every morning --> have it raw or roasted - you can slice thinly and add to your sandwich if you want
4. Avocados
5. Asparagus
6. Spirulina --> easily found in pharmacies but I got mine from Elken
7. Cinnamon
May Allah grant my Mama and Papa great health and ease all their affairs. Ameen.
He was so determined to get discharged because it was just a few days to my mum's trip to Umrah (mini-pilgrimage). He was discharged two days before my mum's trip and he wasn't feeling to well in the morning but he kept quiet about it. After sending my mum off at the airport, we went home and in the evening after Magrib prayers, we were supposed to head to Yishun (my place) but Papa said he was feeling light-headed. My brother and I gave him an hour to rest and alert us if he is still not feeling any better. Around midnight, he woke Yayan, who was sleeping beside him, up and then we proceeded to rush him to SGH. Thankfully, my sister-in-law was around to help look after the sleeping kids. He was admitted again but it was not as serious as the first round.
We didn't want Mama to worry while she's on her Umrah so we did not tell her about the situation. We only told her when she got back. Thakfully, she had bad internet connection while in Media and when her internet connection improved as she got to Mecca, my father was discharged and we were safely video-calling from home.
Fast-forward to now, Alhamdulillah he is off clexane (this horrible medication that he has to inject himself and causes bruises all over his tummy) but he is still on a very controlled diet and of course, medication. He has stopped smoking completely. He is more disciplined in his meal times and slightly more obedient to advice than before. Lol.
Let's not take our health for granted and only start panicking when we are faced with a calamity!
Let's all start now and take preventive measures while we are healthy. Insha-Allah.
I would also like to remind you not to take symptoms lightly. If my youngest brother had not been at home and insisted for my parents to go to the hospital immediately, there was a high chance they wanted to wait for things to blow over first.
Signs of A Heart Attack That Papa Faced
- A week of giddiness --> his arteries were blocked and is body was actually screaming for oxygen
- Breathlessness and chest pain --> especially when he forced himself to exercise cos he thought he needed to sweat it out and it was worse! He made his oxygen-deprived body pump his heart harder for more oxygen
- Cold sweat --> when he reached home after he told my mum that he did not feel so well and need to stop exercising
I would also like to share with you 7 Great Food for the HEART that can help to unclog arteries naturally! (do Google up the benefits yourself ok? )
1. Black Seed Oil --> got mine from Nigel Herbs
2. Grante Pomegrante Juice --> you can get from Halal Food Hub, Al-Barakah, Holland & Barrette or direct from Nigel Herbs (main distributor)
3. Garlic every morning --> have it raw or roasted - you can slice thinly and add to your sandwich if you want
4. Avocados
5. Asparagus
6. Spirulina --> easily found in pharmacies but I got mine from Elken
May Allah grant my Mama and Papa great health and ease all their affairs. Ameen.
