I thought I was fit and healthy but suffered a heart attack without even realising: 51-year-old cricket coach reveals he ‘brushed off’ tell-tale chest pain – as experts share six warning signs
A 51-year-old cricket coach has told how he suffered a heart attack without even realizing it.
Raj Nath, van Harrow, London, lived an active life, played sports and taught cricket in schools.
Despite not eating the healthiest diet, the father-of-two thought he was perfectly healthy.
When he started experiencing chest pain in April 2018, at the age of 46, he “waved it away” because he was “overexerting” himself.
However, when the pain spread to his left side days later, he was rushed to hospital and told he had had a heart attack.
Cricket coach Raj Nath led an active life and did not suspect anything was wrong and ignored the signs of a heart attack
Mr Nath had no idea his blood pressure was high – a leading cause of heart attacks – and is now urging people to get their health checked.
Mr Nath said his chest pain started on a Monday.
He told MailOnline: ‘I thought it was just a bit of pain, I’d go home and take some paracetamol.’
However, when he returned to his office after a cricket coaching session on Thursday, he sat down and ‘slumped’ in his chair.
After a concerned colleague asked if he was okay, Mr. Nath explained that he was experiencing chest pain, which suddenly started spreading down his left side.
He was taken to hospital, where his blood pressure was measured and he underwent an ECG – a test that checks the rhythm and electrical activity of the heart. It shows if someone is having a heart attack.
The doctors told Mr Nath that he had high blood pressure but his ECG results were normal.
He admitted he had no idea about his blood pressure because he had “never had it checked” and had not visited doctors in about 15 years.
‘I wouldn’t even go to the doctor for a cold. We only go to the doctor when necessary. There is no engine light like in your car, telling you to change this or change that,” said Mr Nath.
Chest pain and pain spreading to the arms are telltale signs of a heart attack, as are nausea, sweating, light-headedness, or shortness of breath. However, it is possible to have a heart attack without experiencing these symptoms
Mr Nath was kept in hospital that night, during which time his heart stopped for two minutes.
Doctors were left baffled after further tests, including an ultrasound scan, failed to show anything was wrong.
They sent for him an angiogram – an x-ray of the arteries, which can detect problems with the heart and blood vessels.
Doctors discovered that Mr Nath had two blocked arteries.
He said: ‘I was on my own. I remember lying there in the hospital bed and feeling completely alone, and I collapsed.
‘I didn’t know how this could happen to me; I had led an active life.
‘I thought I wouldn’t be able to do the things I used to do anymore. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to coach.’
Chest pain and pain spreading to the arms are telltale signs of a heart attack, as are nausea, sweating, light-headedness, or shortness of breath.
However, it is possible to have a heart attack without experiencing these symptoms.
About 100,000 Britons and 800,000 Americans suffer a heart attack every year.
Doctors told Mr Nath, who admitted not following a healthy diet, to change his eating habits to control his high cholesterol, which can narrow blood vessels and cause a heart attack.
Most are caused by coronary artery disease, in which the arteries become narrow due to a buildup of fatty deposits.
Staying active, maintaining a healthy weight and diet, limiting alcohol and quitting smoking reduce the risk of heart attack, as does maintaining healthy blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
Five days after his heart attack, Mr Nath was fitted with two stents – fine metal mesh cylinders that are inserted into the artery to widen them and stop blockages – and was able to go home two days later.
Doctors told him he needed to change his eating habits to control his high cholesterol, which can narrow blood vessels.
Mr Nath said: ‘I wasn’t eating healthily; I ate at irregular times. But I didn’t think my food would have that adverse effect.
‘Doctors told me that my South Asian diet of mainly Indian food, irregular eating habits and weight had not helped my cholesterol.’
He said his heart attack and realization of his unhealthy diet “kicked him into gear” and encouraged him to take care of himself.
He now tries to eat ‘in moderation’ and has learned to cook. However, he admitted that it can sometimes be difficult to resist the ‘rich’ and ‘heavy’ food, such as recently during Diwali.
The coach is still active, walks a lot and plays cricket for his local club in Chiswick.
Mr Nath has also completed a phased return to work. His colleagues have supported him and he now does less coaching and instead provides cricket coaching.
He now emphasizes the importance of going to the doctor to have your blood pressure and cholesterol checked, especially for people over 40.
He is involved in a campaign with HEART UK to help others in his situation understand how to best manage their cholesterol levels.
He said: ‘I know that we men have a tendency to tuck it in and pride takes over. But people need to understand that it’s okay to talk, it’s okay to get yourself examined.”
Michaela Nuttall, a cardiovascular nurse in London, said heart attacks are not always just accompanied by chest pain.
She told MailOnline: ‘We have quite classic symptoms that we think of when we think of someone having a heart attack. That’s usually what we see in the media: people hunching over and clutching their chests with an impending sense of doom.
“But that’s not how a heart attack feels to everyone.”
Ms Nuttall said there are a range of symptoms, from dizziness, a burning sensation in the throat and pain in the back of the chest.
She said: ‘You may get quite a feeling of indigestion, you may feel like you are having a cold sweat or you may feel quite sweaty.’
She added: ‘Knowing your cholesterol level and lowering your cholesterol and knowing your blood pressure, lowering your blood pressure can help prevent a heart attack.’
It is crucial that your cholesterol is checked. That’s because high cholesterol can lead to a buildup of fatty deposits in the walls of the blood vessels, causing them to narrow and increasing the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
The NHS Health Check is a free check of your overall health. It can show whether you are at risk for heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and diabetes.
It is available to people aged 40 to 74 who do not have pre-existing conditions, such as high blood pressure, diabetes or heart failure.
In addition to their GP practice, people can also have their blood pressure measured at pharmacies. The NHS is expanding this service from December 1 in the hope of carrying out 2.5 million blood pressure checks by spring 2025, which it estimates could prevent more than 1,350 heart attacks and strokes a year.