The Night I Thought I Had a Heart Attack, and the Weeks That Followed

August 7, 2019 by teamloy 4 Comments

On Friday, July 12th, we returned home to Littleton for the evening, after our 6th day of OMF’s Orientation & Candidate Course.  That day we had pizza for lunch, and spicy Thai food on the way home for dinner.  Shortly after dinner, I was experiencing short, sharp pains in my chest bone here and there.  I thought nothing of it, and got ready for an early bedtime.  Once I got up from bed to use the restroom before falling asleep, I felt a sudden and sharp pain in my chest, more powerful than before.  My heart started beating really fast, I started hyperventilating, started losing feeling in my left hand, had trouble swallowing, and over time began to have muscle convulsions all over my body.  As Hannah and I thought I was experiencing a heart attack, we called 911 and I was rushed to the local ER.  I was given IV’s, had an EKG done, and chest x-rays.  After a few hours of tests, and my symptoms started to wane, they explained to me that everything came back fine, and that I was in perfect health.  They explained that I most likely had a foodborne illness and had experienced acid reflux (from pizza and Thai food that day) and my brain THOUGHT I was experiencing a heart attack so I started having a panic attack (which brought on the symptoms).  They released me hours later and told me to follow up with my doctor in a few days.

Above all, this experience has been more traumatic than anything else.  It was by far the most difficult and challenging thing I have ever faced in my life to date (facing the prospect of death and leaving my family without a husband and father). Physically, it took me two days to finally sleep through the night, and four days until the foodborne illness eventually gave way to me having a full meal.  I followed up with my doctor, and they agreed with the ER’s assessment.  They prescribed me a daily, extended-release acid medicine (for 30 days) and an anxiety medicine for the near-future as an “emergency” pill if I would have another panic attack…

The following Wednesday evening I had a second panic attack that came out of nowhere while we were eating dinner at home.  I used coping mechanisms and took my anxiety medicine, and it passed after about 10 minutes.  Thankfully, over the next few days, I slowly started feeling better, mentally and physically, and began to return to relatively full-health the following week.

Currently, I’m feeling well, and far-removed from the ER event, specifically, but I definitely know that God has changed me for the better through it all.  It’s very clear that there has been a lot of Spiritual Warfare involved, but instead of trying to fully comprehend all of what that entails, Hannah and I are focusing more on what God is doing in the midst of it all, along with what He is teaching us.  One of the the biggest messages we believe God is communicating to us is to slow down.  We have always had a lot on our plate, and we need to learn what we should say “no” to, how to be wise with where we spend our time, and continue to prioritize our time with the Lord and as a family.

Additionally, God has reminded us that He is the One in control, and that we are to rely on Him in everything we do.  We cannot make the mistake of forgetting to invite Him into all aspects and areas of our lives, from the big life decisions, down to the everyday decisions.  Furthermore, we need not be worried about how things will turn out in our lives, long-term.  Whether we indeed move forward to Japan, serving as long-term missionaries with OMF and experience the life we expect for ourselves or not, we can bring our anxieties and worries to the throne of the One whose purposes are so much higher than we could ever understand.  In short, our lives are truly in His hands.  Would you please pray for us in these things?

We are so thankful knowing that we have people faithfully praying for us, and for those who have come alongside us through encouragement and meeting practical needs. Ultimately, we put our hope and trust in the character of God, the One who is Good, Holy, Righteous, and Sovereign over it all.

– Aaron