Go Red presenter, Sue Johannsen, PA-C, GNP, shares her personal heart disease survivor story at HRMC’s Go Red for Your Heart luncheon on Tues., Mar. 2, 2010.
Three years ago, keynote presenter Sue Johannsen, a certified physician assistant at the Huron Clinic, was surprised to learn she had heart disease. After discovering one of her main arteries was 70 to 85 percent blocked, she underwent an angiogram and stent placement. Like many other women, Johannsen thought she was too young for heart disease and blamed her tiredness, shortness of breath and pain on other causes. The experience taught her the importance of taking care of her health and being aware of her risks.
Heart disease is the number one killer of women. While one in 30 women will die from breast cancer, one in three American women dies of heart attack or stroke, according to the American Heart Association.
To illustrate the number of women who die from heart disease, Johannsen asked 30 of the attendees sitting at the two front tables to stand. “These 30 people represent the number of women who are going to die from cardiovascular disease. That’s a lot of people, “Johannsen emphasized. “These women don’t think of themselves as having cardiovascular disease – they take their health for granted. You can’t do that.
“I believe there isn’t anyone in this room that doesn’t need to be attentive to cardiac disease,” Johannsen told the audience.
“It’s up to you to change the statistics. Make the right choices – choose to control your blood pressure, choose to lose weight, choose to quit smoking, choose get that cholesterol down. Give yourself a chance. It’s your choice. Change those statistics.”
According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is an equal killer – it doesn’t care if you’re a male or female, 64 percent of women die suddenly from coronary disease and they have no previous symptoms. “The good news here is that cardiac disease is mostly preventable,” said Johannsen. “But being preventable means that you have to take an active part in preventing that disease. You can change some of the risk factors.”
Researchers now believe that the factors that lead to heart disease start when women are young and progress as they age. “That’s why it is so vitally important to know your risks, pay attention to your symptoms and choose to change your modifiable risk factors,” Johannsen said.
Johannsen also encouraged women to be an advocate for other women. “When you go to coffee, if your friend mentions she isn’t feeling well – encourage her to speak up and get the help she needs,” she said. “We, as women, spend so much time being too busy to take care of our own health. But if we drop over dead, we won’t be able to take care of anyone. So, please, please take the time to learn your risks, change what you can change and give yourself a chance!”
More information about preventing heart disease is available on HRMC’s Web site at www.huronregional.org or online at www.americanheart.org. Community groups interested in hearing more about heart disease or other healthy living topics are asked to contact the hospital’s marketing department at 353-6572. HRMC employees and medical staff are available through the speaker’s bureau to present on a variety of medical topics free of charge.
About Huron Regional Medical Center:
HRMC provides state-of-the-art health care with a caring, compassionate touch to residents in Huron and seven surrounding counties in the region. As a non-profit, private corporation, profits are reinvested directly into the hospital for such items as new or updated equipment and expanded programs. HRMC employs approximately 275 people from the area. For more information, visit HRMC’s Web site at www.huronregional.org.
