Serious as a Heart Attack

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WQAD (Quad Cities) Reporter John David is back on the job after suffering, not one, but two heart attacks. 

"Three months to the day after suffering the first of two heart attacks, I’m back on the job as a reporter at WQAD," David posted to the station's website. 

David wrote, my first heart attack took place in Los Angeles on Labor Day.  I really thought it was just a bad back ache.  But when my cardiologist, Dr. Heather Shenkman, told me it was a big deal, reality started to sink in, along with time in the Intensive Care Unit.

Two weeks later, on September 18, I had another heart attack in my Davenport doctor’s office.

In all, there were two hospitalizations, three stents placed and six weeks of cardiac rehab in Davenport. I progressed from limited walking to doubling my output and exceeding all my goals in rehab.

It’s going to be a long road ahead taken in baby steps.  Since I had muscle damage to my heart, continued exercise and a low-sodium diet will help to restore its function.  Medication – a lot of it – is helping to keep everything on track.

Stress is my biggest enemy right now, so I will be taking it slow and easy at work.  Still, it is great to starting a normal routine again.

Since his station is being taken over by Sinclair, we wish him luck on dealing with the stress part.